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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Steve C" data-source="post: 3526037" data-attributes="member: 56622">A thing I learned long ago,in Ornithology class actually.  The professor was not particularly expert on optics I don't think,but he knew how to get students to get the maximum use from whatever binoculars they had. When he imparted the bit of knowledge, the questions at hand were "is that a Greater Scaup or a Lesser, and why?"  (why was always assumed if you didn't say so when volunteering the ID, he'd ask..why) Somebody complained that they were too far away and they could not see well enough.  That is when he showed off the technique.This is a dual three point hold, three points of contact from each side of the binocular.  You need to cup the binocular in the palm of each hand.  The thumb rests on your cheek bones, the forefinger on the forehead, the placement will obviously vary as dictated by hand size, facial features, and binocular size.  That is two points, the third is your palm.  You can move your forefinger off the brow fo focus or use the middle finger.  Depending on hand size (this usually works for me) you can use the middle and/or third finger touching each other across the binocular creating a reinforcing effect.  I don't suggest this as an all of the time, normal usage hold.  However when properly applied it is phenomenally steady.  Much more so than the finger on the brim of the hat Chuck notes, but the hat trick works and is likely a better general use hold, provided you wear a baseball cap.  It also helps a lot with this hold if you can additionally brace your elbows.This might seem a bit cumbersome, but you will find it becomes another part of your regular binocular use repertoire The older I get the better it works :t:</blockquote>

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