What do beginners notice most when looking through binoculars. (1 Viewer)

[Paultricounty]

I’ve had the great pleasure of observing, trying out and testing dozens of binoculars , with people of all levels of experience over the last few years. From beginners who’ve barely ever looked through a real binocular , all the way to some very optically savvy people. As someone in another discussion had posted, It’s very interesting to get reactions from people when handing them your binoculars.

The first thing or impression I get from people , other than how some people say how close things look , using their words is, how clear they are. I get , wow , that’s amazing how clear things are most of the time.

Most people that are beginners or fairly new to optics don’t see any of the of the optical traits more experienced people see. Nobody sees CA, nobody sees the difference of binoculars with or without field flatteners, nobody sees panning peculiarities, nobody sees edge distortion, nobody sees the porro 3 D effect and nobody sees color hue.

Clear and bright are the two things I hear the most.

Sometimes even after pointing out some of the optical traits many of us see automatically, they still can’t see it. CA is about the easiest to get people to see once we tell them what to look for , and how to induce it. Pincushion is another one that can easily be seen once told what to look for.

The majority of people can barely tell the difference between a $500 to $2000 pair of binoculars. But a small percentage , and I think it’s age related, but not sure, can see the difference like night and day. My son is one of those people. My son a total amateur can clearly see differences in sharpness , brightness and resolution on objects even from a $1000 binocular to the very best in seconds. I’ve seen few others with that level of acuity. It also doesn’t matter how new or old the binoculars are. I think i’ve had the most awe inspiring comments from people looking through old vintage super wide field bins more than anything else. That shocked me.

Paul

 

[Frank van Drogen]

When I hand my 10x42 IS binoculars to people, they notice the difference in image stability -- people are quite amazed about the capabilities of modern IS techniques.

 

[MiddleRiver]

A lot of the conversation around here, is fairly technical. THAT I've found is totally lost on non-aficionados. But even the 'non believers' I have seen unequivocably able to say things like 'I definately like these better'. Most people don't need, or know how, to articulate the 'like' part unless you tease it out of them (leading the witness). At most they'll respond something like 'the view is clearer'. Does that mean brighter, sharper, edge-to-edge, contrasty, accurate, lacking CA, 'bigger' wider,... or what? ;-).

 

[Mike Crawley]

I demonstrated some inexpensive 8x32 binoculars (£70) last Friday to a young person in their early 20s.
I’m a "visitor experience" volunteer at my local RSPB and we’re tasked with the normal meet and greet stuff and those with some experience help with binocular and telescope demonstrations. These particular binoculars are in the RSPB Puffin range. The same range of binoculars are used for daily hire (we also hire 8x42 Avocet binoculars) to those who forget their own binoculars, so they are robust.

The first look through the binoculars produced a "Wow" from the youngster - a suitable reaction for someone looking through their first real binoculars.
The binoculars passed the three most important tests:-
they fit the hands of the buyer
they fit the face of the buyer
land (most importantly) they fit the budget of the buyer

The £50 Christmas gift voucher and a £20 note passed into the till and the young person went onto the reserve to enjoy the purchase. Didn’t care about transmission graphs, or what prism or any of the other blah, blah, blah we sometimes read here.

 

[Will K]

I knew pretty much nothing about binos until about a year ago. I was perfectly happy using a massive 20x60 Pentax with a tiny AFOV for pretty much everything. "Because magnification is the main thing, right? The bigger the better."

I like Vortex designs, so I picked up one of their cheapest models, a Crossfire 12x50, and discovered that there was much more to optics than magnification. Then I started looking at bino review videos on YouTube (Optica Exotica, mainly), and soon decided that I had to find and try the big three Alphas: Noctivid, Victory SF and NL Pure, just to see what all the fuss was about.

I found a shop that stocked all three and tried them out one by one... I was hooked. Goodbye £4000+ and hello optics snobbery (in a good natured way, I hope!) I now recognise CA, poor colour, edge clarity, etc. in most other binos I pick up. It took about a year for this capacity to develop. Human perception is very malleable.

Its an expensive 'taste' / hobby to develop, but at least its not cars, boats, watches, horses...

 

[Paultricounty]

A lot of the conversation around here, is fairly technical. THAT I've found is totally lost on non-aficionados. But even the 'non believers' I have seen unequivocably able to say things like 'I definately like these better'. Most people don't need, or know how, to articulate the 'like' part unless you tease it out of them (leading the witness). At most they'll respond something like 'the view is clearer'. Does that mean brighter, sharper, edge-to-edge, contrasty, accurate, lacking CA, 'bigger' wider,... or what? ;-).

So true!!

 

[Binastro]

Father showing Jupiter to young daughter for the first time in a telescope.

'You will see two of Jupiter's moons to the left of Jupiter'.

Daughter to father before looking through the telescope..

'No daddy, the two moons are to the right of Jupiter'.

As to me.

My first look through an 11x one inch drawtube scope when I was eleven got me hooked for life.

I didn't look through a binocular till much later.

I have never seen Jupiter's moons without optical aid, but knew colleagues who could.

Regards,
B.

 

[tehri]

That's what I also appreciate here, on the site, the infinite capacity to create new discussions about binoculars... It's very funny and always entertaining !!!

The majority of people can barely tell the difference between a $500 to $2000 pair of binoculars.

Oh, personally, I would even say between $50 and $2000 and more !!
We really are a tiny community here, with scanners for eyes, and looking through high quality optics is like a drug, but the vast majority of people just don't care at all, and they seem to have really 'shit in their eyes' ! ahaha !!!
Personally, I now avoid this kind of discussion because it's so frustrating... they take a pair of NL's or Noctivid's in their hands, look into them, say 'oh yes, that's nice ', and change the subject quite quickly... And if I insist a little, start talking technical, optical, they laugh and take me for a crazy dude... ' Yes it's nice your binoculars but we're not going to spend the day on it... it's just a pair of binoculars ! '. 😡

The only really enriching experiences, and which I believe I briefly mentioned here once, were in the Himalayas where I spent many years, trekking and spending my time in small hamlets, or on high pastures with shepherds. And there, no jaded people, but very simple,very kind, living every day in the middle of nature and wildlife.
For the most part, binoculars, they have never seen, never held... And lending a shepherd living in this extraordinary landscape of beauty, a pair of Habitch, is an absolutely fantastic sharing of pleasure and joy !!! Words are not even necessary, so much surprise and fascination are felt !
There, with these people, these are really the times when I fully noticed an immense pleasure !!...
But frankly here, most people don't give a damn.

 

[bgc38]

You can imagine a shepherd looking through them and saying "Not bad, but I'd pay a bit extra to minimise that CA and Pin-cushion!"

 

[bgc38]

I knew pretty much nothing about binos until about a year ago. I was perfectly happy using a massive 20x60 Pentax with a tiny AFOV for pretty much everything. "Because magnification is the main thing, right? The bigger the better."

I like Vortex designs, so I picked up one of their cheapest models, a Crossfire 12x50, and discovered that there was much more to optics than magnification. Then I started looking at bino review videos on YouTube (Optica Exotica, mainly), and soon decided that I had to find and try the big three Alphas: Noctivid, Victory SF and NL Pure, just to see what all the fuss was about.

I found a shop that stocked all three and tried them out one by one... I was hooked. Goodbye £4000+ and hello optics snobbery (in a good natured way, I hope!) I now recognise CA, poor colour, edge clarity, etc. in most other binos I pick up. It took about a year for this capacity to develop. Human perception is very malleable.

Its an expensive 'taste' / hobby to develop, but at least its not cars, boats, watches, horses...

Like becoming a wine buff. The interesting question is whether it is all worth it. For me, having my NLs is worth it, simply because I get to see more. That's objective.

 

[Trinovid]

I can still remember how much trouble I had with blackouts and when I bought my Leitz 8x32b in a leap of faith it was fantastic to easily be able to see without any obstructions.
Next thing I noticed while looking at the surrounding mountains was how clear and verdant they looked, which was actually really addictive and the thing that hooked me the most into wanting to check out of it actually got better with newer models or not.
Just a few months later I found how much better it was when both my BN and HD+ versions showed up and had a couple of my novice both easily noticed how much sharper, brighter and blacker the newer binoculars were.
That’s some of my personal memories of newcomers to the field and in closing, when I traded off my original Leitz to a friend he was also startled at how nice the view was and asked if the new ones could actually be even better!

 

[GrampaTom]

What do beginners notice most when looking through binoculars?​

Easy - stuff, closer, bigger. I can see that over there and I'm here. Wow!

 

[Andy Adcock]

Everything is BIGGER

 

[Paultricounty]

What do beginners notice most when looking through binoculars?​

Easy - stuff, closer, bigger. I can see that over there and I'm here. Wow!

I expected much more from you Tom 🤭. At the very least I expected 3-4 long in-depth paragraphs going into what people might see or not see , why it matters or don’t matter, as well as marketing theory and philosophy. 😝✌🏼. And then the arguing with the usual people who don’t agree with you 😀.

Paul

 

[Patudo]

"You can see everything!" (from security staff at a rooftop looking over the City of London)

Folks who have only looked through poor and/or misaligned binoculars can be very impressed when they look through a proper pair - I don't mean best of the best, even a properly cleaned/aligned 1960s era porro can be a revelation. I think it's sometimes easier to appreciate a good binocular if you have used a poor, or indeed not as good one.

"I guess that's what modern binoculars are all about" (from a classic binocular fan who looked through the 8x30 SLC mark II I owned at the time)

The other "audience reaction" that's very noticeable is the sticker shock folks get when they look at the price tag of top tier optics. Easy to see why the sub-alphas and indeed the tiers below that sell well - most folks can't justify the price of alpha binoculars for what most perceive as only small improvements.

 

[Paultricounty]

That's what I also appreciate here, on the site, the infinite capacity to create new discussions about binoculars... It's very funny and always entertaining !!!

Oh, personally, I would even say between $50 and $2000 and more !!
We really are a tiny community here, with scanners for eyes, and looking through high quality optics is like a drug, but the vast majority of people just don't care at all, and they seem to have really 'shit in their eyes' ! ahaha !!!
Personally, I now avoid this kind of discussion because it's so frustrating... they take a pair of NL's or Noctivid's in their hands, look into them, say 'oh yes, that's nice ', and change the subject quite quickly... And if I insist a little, start talking technical, optical, they laugh and take me for a crazy dude... ' Yes it's nice your binoculars but we're not going to spend the day on it... it's just a pair of binoculars ! '. 😡

I hear that perfectly, almost sounds like your talking about my daughter. Actually looking through an NL was greatly disturbing her social media posts for a good part of 3 1/2 minutes that she had them in her hands. Her attention span for birding or nature observing (glassing as I like to call it) is about 3-4 minutes, and only if I make her look through more than one binocular.

But on the other hand my 28 year old nephew was hooked the first time out. Met at one of our local bird spots early this spring , I had four bins with me. UVHD 7x42, Bushnell 7x35 Rangmaster, Nikon 8x32SE and a GPO 10x42 Passion HD. He was immediately blown away by the Leica, subsequently he was blown away by the other three as well. I tried my best to limit the technical gobbledygook as much as I could , but he was a sponge and listened intently as I explained the numbers, magnification, objective size and a little bit what each Binocular was known for. He would then look through the binoculars and say yeah, I see it. We went out a couple of times more with me bringing different binoculars every time. He is going through a rough patch right now so after a few times out and I realized how interested he was , I gave him a pair of old Tasco 7 x 35 SWA bins, which he now uses almost every day.

The only really enriching experiences, and which I believe I briefly mentioned here once, were in the Himalayas where I spent many years, trekking and spending my time in small hamlets, or on high pastures with shepherds. And there, no jaded people, but very simple,very kind, living every day in the middle of nature and wildlife.
For the most part, binoculars, they have never seen, never held... And lending a shepherd living in this extraordinary landscape of beauty, a pair of Habitch, is an absolutely fantastic sharing of pleasure and joy !!! Words are not even necessary, so much surprise and fascination are felt !
There, with these people, these are really the times when I fully noticed an immense pleasure !!...
But frankly here, most people don't give a damn.

That’s a great story and experience, glad you shared 🙏🏼. I would’ve liked to see his face after looking the Habicht’s. By the way I’m more partial to labrador retrievers than shepherds 😂😆🙏🏼.

Thank you
Paul

View attachment 1525046

 

[Pinewood]

...

Its an expensive 'taste' / hobby to develop, but at least its not cars, boats, watches, horses...

Hello Will,

If that 4,000 quid binocular lasts 20 years, which is perfectly possible, it may cost less than two or three pints each month, down at the pub. Up front, you may have a good deal of cost but not over a lifetime of bird watching when it may be worth every penny.

Stay safe,
Arthur

 

[tehri]

it may cost less than two or three pints each month, down at the pub.

😋

 

[GrampaTom]

I expected much more from you Tom 🤭. At the very least I expected 3-4 long in-depth paragraphs going into what people might see or not see , why it matters or don’t matter, as well as marketing theory and philosophy. 😝✌🏼. And then the arguing with the usual people who don’t agree with you 😀.

Paul

Sigh…..

 

[wllmspd]

Sometimes the optical bar is low… an old enthusiastic chap once lent me his binos to see something at a big birding site… old Porros that seemed to be full of smoke…! I hadn’t the heart to let him try mine. If people get pleasure from the kit they can afford, then we’ve won. I always feel sorry for the people visiting birding sites who don’t have any optical equipment at all….
The difference from no binos to “ok binos” is much larger than “ok” to “alpha”.

Pete