Binocular recommendations?

I'm looking for a good pair of astronomy/terrestrial binoculars with good
contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field, good quality, etc. I'm
interested in something borderline handheld. Any suggestions? Anything
under, say,$700 is in the running. Thanks.

"PathLessTravled" wrote in message
...
I'm looking for a good pair of astronomy/terrestrial binoculars with good
contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field, good quality, etc.
I'm
interested in something borderline handheld. Any suggestions? Anything
under, say,$700 is in the running. Thanks.

I recommend trying them out yourselves in a store, because no two people's
eyes are alike. The edge of field sharpness will depend partly on what
focus setting happens to match your eyes.

I'm very satisfied with my Pentax 8x42 binoculars and my Celestron Ultima
9x63s.

I recommend trying them out yourselves in a store, because no two people's
eyes are alike. The edge of field sharpness will depend partly on what
focus setting happens to match your eyes.

I agree that it is important to evaluate the binoculars yourself. SO many
variables and for each person some are just more comfortable to use.

And some people like 10x50s for terrestial work, some think 8x42s or something
like the 8.5x44 Swift Audubons are best because it is easier to hold them
steady. Field of view is an issue too, higher magnifications mean the true
field of view is smaller.

Best to try em out.

jon

The exit pupil may be a little smaller than you want, however
the Nikon Superior E 10x42 fits most of your needs. The price
may be about $800. It is a great multi use birding and astro
binocular.

Rich



PathLessTravled wrote in message ...
I'm looking for a good pair of astronomy/terrestrial binoculars with good
contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field, good quality, etc. I'm
interested in something borderline handheld. Any suggestions? Anything
under, say,$700 is in the running. Thanks.

"PathLessTravled" wrote in message
...

I'm looking for a good pair of astronomy/terrestrial binoculars
with good contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field,
good quality, etc. I'm interested in something borderline
handheld. Any suggestions? Anything under, say,$700 is in
the running. Thanks.

PathLessTravled--

i like the handle. i have a t-shirt you might appreciate. i picked it up
after my son and i backpacked king's canyon. it has a backpacker on it with
the phrase "explore the outside world--the path less traveled".

back on topic: as others have said, very personal thing. one person's
borderline handheld is another's exercise in weightlifting (i would
**never** recommend binoc's over 50 mm in size for a first pair, but folks
do here all the time and swear by them. who can argue with their own
success?). a single pair of binoc's for such use would be a compromise, so
here's some food for thought:

1. borderline handheld: does this mean you don't plan to hike/backpack
with them? 50 mm binoc's are great astronomy binoc's, but become cumbersome
when carried around all day (better to carry extra water!). also, does this
mean you'll use them "sometimes" with a tripod, or "usually" with a tripod,
or you'll just tough it out (no tripod)?

2. terrestrial: what are you planning to look at? while 10x binoc's are
often recommended for astro work (provides better contrast than lower
mag's), finding a fleeting critter is a whole lot easier with a wide field
of view (suggesting lower mag's in the 7-8x range).

3. what's your age? more specifically, how large can your dark-adapted
pupils open? if you're in your 50s or older, a pair of 7x50 binoc's may not
be any brighter than a pair of 7x35s. that's because as folks age their
pupil's ability to open is reduced. if that's the case, then there would be
no advantage for you to get 7x50 binoc's. exit pupil, btw, is the objective
diameter divided by the mag's. 7 mm (approx) for the 7x50s. this is about
max usable for younger folks. 5 mm is more typical for the older set. the
7x35s, of course, have a 5 mm exit pupil.

4. will you be taking these binoc's to dark sky locations routinely (or
ever)? if you're observing from a suburban backyard and won't be able to
truly dark adapt (neighbor's/street lights, etc), then you might not be able
to use a lower mag/larger objective binoc to full advantage. again, you
could end up paying for large aperture that you can't use, then you have to
lug it around (if you haven't taken a close look, there's a world of
difference between the typical "ideal" astro binoc (10x50), and the "ideal"
birding binoc (7x35). i put those ideals in quotes, btw, because there's
lots of room for personal preference. another take on this question is, if
you'll be observing from light polluted skies, higher mag's will
dramatically increase contrast. the 10x binoc's would likely provide a more
pleasing image than the 7x in that situation.

5. why are you buying a single pair of binoc's for this? personally, i've
found a pair of Nikon 8x32 superior e ii's to be the ideal compromise
binoc's (similar criteria as yours except the "borderline handheld" one). i
take these hiking/backpacking. and their cost is under your $700. however,
you don't sound that critical about certain performance characteristics:
"good contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field, good quality".
perhaps i'm taking you too literally here, but you can certainly get all of
that for a lot less than $700. in fact, for that amount of money you should
be expecting near optical perfection. i mention this not to quibble over
your needs (hey, it's your money and i just want to offer sound advice!),
but rather to suggest that you might consider buying two binoc's, one for
terrestrial and one for astronomical. in fact, i own five pair, and i think
you'll find most folks who are serious about binoc observing own multiple
pair. for $300-400 apiece, you can get some quite excellent binoc's.

well, hope you find the above helpful!

clear, dark skies--

mark d.

After owning a pair of Canon 10x30 IS Binoculars, I can't go back to
anything non-stabilized. It was amazing to me how much nicer it made
observing for me. If you can take the weight, you can get the 15x50's
for around $700-800.

-Jeff


"Rich N." wrote in message ...
The exit pupil may be a little smaller than you want, however
the Nikon Superior E 10x42 fits most of your needs. The price
may be about $800. It is a great multi use birding and astro
binocular.

Rich



PathLessTravled wrote in message ...
I'm looking for a good pair of astronomy/terrestrial binoculars with good
contrast, edge of field sharpness, nice wide field, good quality, etc. I'm
interested in something borderline handheld. Any suggestions? Anything
under, say,$700 is in the running. Thanks.