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Message: <blockquote data-quote="4John" data-source="post: 1310307" data-attributes="member: 46277">Angled or StraightHi Felipe,It is partly personal preference, partly what type of scope you had before, and partly how tall you are.My first scope was a straight scope, and I personally find it much more intuitive to find something with a straight scope than with an angled scope. However, I know that if somebody took my straight scope away and only let me use an angled scope I would probably get used to it after a while.If you are small to medium height you won't have any problem finding a tall enough tripod for a straight scope that won't vibrate much in the wind. If you are tall and you want to use a straight scope then you will often need to use the centre column of the tripod at close to its highest, so vibration will be higher. You may therefore prefer an angled scope if you are tall because the centre column can be lower. Having said that I am 6 ft/1.8m tall and I have no problem with a carbon fibre tripod and a straight scope.One often cited advantage of an angled scope is that it is much easier to share the view with others, which is much more difficult with a straight scope because you have to stand on tip toe or stoop. So if you regularly lead groups of bird watchers for example you may prefer an angled scope. My personal opinion is that I am buying a scope for me, not everybody else !However, the most important advice I can give is the same as is regularly given on this forum - try both options for yourself and see which one you prefer before you buy it.Mark</blockquote>

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