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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Nominate the extraordinary! (1 Viewer)

eronald

Well-known member
Some instruments are very good, some are extraordinary, head and shoulders different from the crowd. Nominate yours, and then we can do a by-category poll.

My own nominee is the Zeiss Pocket 8x25 in the “superlight real glass” class.

Part of the fun, of course, is naming the class.

As I’m setting the rules, I will disqualify any class name that contains a number, or a brand.

I think it would be really nice if we had some entries from the “toy periscope” or Orbital telescope” categories :) Come to think of it, maybe cameras should also be allowed.

Edmund
 
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Interesting that you say that - when I want to search a distant location (sometimes not even that distant ~500m) for a stationary bird, I find the 8x43's can run out of puff and deliver inconclusive results.

If I take a pic with my 600mm lens +1.3× crop DX camera (24x equivalent) and then zoom in on the rear LCD to various degrees, I can get a definite answer. :t:





Chosun :gh:
 
Nikon 50ED Fieldscope with 27x WF eyepiece for smallest and lightest scope with normal magnification and quality view.

--AP
 
Alvin Clark 6 inch binocular telescope.

APM? 12 inch binoculars.

Japanese 180mm binoculars.

Zeiss Aspectem binocular.

Nikon WX binocular.

Zeiss 20x60S mechanical IS binocular.

Canon 10x42L IS battery IS binocular.

Takahashi 22x60 fluorite binocular.

Hasselblad with Zeiss 50mm f/0.7 lens, 1960s

Zeiss RMK Survey cameras.

Williamson F52 Aerial camera. Large format.

Vinten F95 aerial cameras. Medium format.

Vinten Panoramic camera.

Horace Dall 108mm f/30 camera obscura. The best of the best.

c. 1950 Soviet 100mm Maksutov.

Horace Dall's folding pocket telescopes 2.5 inch to 6 inch aperture.

Kodak Bantam Special 1936-1948

Tessina 35 Swiss camera.

Polaroid Land camera

Leica M3.

Minota Super A camera.

Sony A7S camera.

Thermal cameras.

Generation 3 image intensifiers.

Mitchell movie camera.

Hadland high speed camera.

Baker camera with 144 inch focal length f/8 lens using 28 inch square film.

Baker Nunn 20 inch f/0.75 Schmidt cameras 1950s.

Big Bird with 70 inch aperture adaptive optics.

Nordic 100 inch Optical telescope.

Carlsberg 6 inch transit telescope.

Hipparcos astrometry telescope.

Mars orbiter camera.

Hubble space telescope.

Regards,
B
 
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Nikon EDG 8x32 for best 32mm birding binocular.

Nikon EDG 8x42 for best all-around binocular.

Nikon EDG 10x42 for best 10x birding binocular.

Meopta Meostar B.1 HD 15x56 for best high power binocular.

Leica Retrovid 7x35 for best revival of a classic binocular.

Nikon EII 8x30 for best wide angle and best binocular for the money.

Nikon Micron 7x15 for best pocket binocular.

Nikon WX for the very best binocular made.
 
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Never tried the WX, but from experience:

All-around, strictly hand-held use: Tie between EL 8x32 and Zeiss T*FL 7x42

All-around, tripod-only: EL 10x50*.

*On paper and not based on experience, I think the SLC 15x56 would be better.
 
"A Swaro 10x50 SV has no peer.......How about a Nikon WX 10x50?;)"

Are these the most extraordinarily heavy binoculars you've ever seen ornithologists carrying?

I tried someones 10x50 Swaro a few months ago, and noted they provide a very nice view, while also being the same as a kilo bag of sugar hanging round your neck.

|:D|
 
Someone’s not tried the WX. There’s a lot of ergonomic reasons not to like it, but the optical performance is untouchable. My ED Astro binocular with proper ultrawide eyepieces comes close, the E2... very poor field width and edge correction in comparison :-(

Peter
 
It seems clear that the original criterion of "head and shoulders different from the crowd", taken more seriously than Dennis did, is not going to produce candidates that many people actually carry and use, especially not birders, with the exception of the mentioned Victory Pocket, or perhaps more arguably the SFs. Otherwise they will be rather large and/or unusual models, like my SLC 56s (which I hereby nominate as "best Big Eye", long distance/low light glass). If there really were such obvious winners in more popular configurations, there would be far fewer posts on this forum.
 
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It seems clear that the original criterion of "head and shoulders different from the crowd", taken more seriously than Dennis did, is not going to produce candidates that many people actually carry and use, especially not birders, with the exception of the mentioned Victory Pocket, or perhaps more arguably the SFs. Otherwise they will be rather large and/or unusual models, like my SLC 56s (which I hereby nominate). If there really were such obvious winners in more popular configurations, there would be far fewer posts on this forum.


Indeed. My idea was that one supply a creative category name, AND a nominee.
The fun is the creative category name.

Here is another entry:
Category - Skeuomorphically styled modern glass.
Product - Leica Retrovid.

Notice that in this category the Leica is competing with ... Habicht, and may lose the BirdOscar!

Edmund
 
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Since 99% of the public has never seen one, I'd say you're out in left field as usual.
I looked through one! They are amazing. Best binocular I have ever looked through. The 85 degree AFOV is stunning. A little big for birding though at about 5 pound's. More of an astronomy binocular. The big Nikon's send the 10x50 SV's back to Austria crying for mommy.
 
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Now if Nikon could make a 10X50 or even a 12X50 with 8 * FOV, smaller and lighter than the WX with optics close enough in performance then that would be great, however likely not going to happen. The WX are great at night under a very dark sky, and in this thread an easy nomination as the most expensive 10X50 binocular of recent production. I compared my 10X70 astroluxe one night to the WX 10X50, and I now fully understand the definition of tunnel vision.

Andy W.
 
Now if Nikon could make a 10X50 or even a 12X50 with 8 * FOV, smaller and lighter than the WX with optics close enough in performance then that would be great, however likely not going to happen. The WX are great at night under a very dark sky, and in this thread an easy nomination as the most expensive 10X50 binocular of recent production. I compared my 10X70 astroluxe one night to the WX 10X50, and I now fully understand the definition of tunnel vision.

Andy W.
"Now if Nikon could make a 10X50 or even a 12X50 with 8 * FOV, smaller and lighter than the WX with optics close enough in performance then that would be great, however likely not going to happen."

Exactly. Holger said the same thing. I would pay $4K for scaled down WX with an 80 degree AFOV but I don't think Nikon could do it because it takes too many lenses and a lot of glass to achieve the kind of corrected field the WX has so it has to be a big heavy binocular to get that kind of view. I was so impressed by the WX if I ever see a 7x50 WX on the used market I may just have to have it. Not for birding. Just for the view!
 
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Mightiest of Mighty Mighty Mites -- Nikon Micron 6x15

*THE* EDC Birder's Bin -- Zeiss VP 8x25

Pound For Pound Birder's Champ -- SW SV pre FP 8x32 (Title unification bout against Zeiss 8x32 SF coming soon)

New and Improved? We Birders Don't Need No Stinking "New and Improved"!! -- Zeiss FLT 7x42

Too Big For It's Britches But BAAAD To The Bone -- Any Nikon EDG II

The Elegante -- Leica UV HD+ 10x32

And Finally

"Whatsa Matta U" With All This Complaining About Too Much Weight Around Your Neck? -- Get a harness already!

Mike
 
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