Binoculars are the very popular equipment for watching anything clearly from a long distance. It is being used for past two or three hundred years. Day by day the features of binoculars are changing and right now in the market, we have a huge amount of binoculars with various specifications. Among all of these binoculars, how can we choose the right binocular for us? So here in this article let’s try to find out how to choose a perfect binocular for you. There are some parameters that can define what type of binocular that is. Here’s the Information you should figure out:
Types of binocular
Normally there are two types of binocular. One of them is a compact model and another one is the standard model. The compact binocular is smaller one than a standard-size binocular. Compact binocular is light in weight and we can carry this binocular in our pocket. On the other hand, the standard size binocular is a larger one. It is heavier than the compact size binocular. Another visible difference between compact binocular and standard size binoculars is the diameter of the objective lens. The size of an objective lens of a standard size binocular is larger than a compact size binocular.
There is also another type of binoculars. They are the roof prism binoculars and Porro prism binoculars. Porro prism binocular is made for producing brighter image. On the other hand Roof prism binoculars are compact and durable. Roof prism binoculars are costly but durable. They are more compact than similar porro prism binocular. Both of the types of binoculars are good. You have to choose one from your activity.
Things to watch out for before buying a binocular
1. The numbers on the binocular are important:
On every binocular, you can see two numbers are multiplied. These numbers are important to find out the important information of a binocular. You may see 7 x 35, 10 x 50 or similar type numbers are written over a binocular. So what are the meanings of these numbers? The first number of the multiplication is referred as the highest magnification ability of the binocular. For example, let’s imagine 7 x 35 is written over a binocular. The first number which means 7 is defined as the highest magnification of that particular binocular. So you can magnify an object a maximum 7 times larger. Here “x” is called a magnification factor. Now then, the last number indicates the diameter of the objective lens in millimeter scale. So for our chosen example the diameter of the objective lens is 35 millimeters. Let’s see some facts related to the numbers.
- Larger size of objective lens will be beneficial for exploring in lower amount of light. If the size of the objective lens is larger then lot of light can enter through the objective lens. For this reason, you will get a brighter and clear image in the presence of dim light also. Objective lens with the diameter of 35 mm to 50 mm is quite good. Especially for astronomy and hunting in the dusk or dawn, this plays an important role.
- As the higher the magnification becomes, the image will get dimmer gradually. The coverage area will also become smaller.
- It will be hard to keep yourself focused on the object in higher magnification due to narrowing of the objective field.
- If you need larger field to cover, choose a lower magnification binocular. You can see the binocular magnification chart for more information.
2. Check out the lens material:
Most of the lenses are made of glass but some other lenses are made of plastics. Both of the lenses will create same image quality but the glass lens normally appears to be costly. Plastics lenses are poorer than the glass lens but this could be used in such places where the durability gets more priority such as mountain climbing.
3. The coating codes tell a lot about your lens quality:
There are some codes which defines the glass coating of a binocular lens. These codes are like C, FC, MC and FMC. C refers that only some part of the lens is coated with a single layer coating. FC means full glass surface is coated. MC refers that some surfaces of the glass are coated with multiple layers. FMC means all of the glass surfaces are coated with multiple layer coating. Multiple layer coating is superior to single layer coating and is costly.
4. Test the focusing ability
The focusing ability of a binocular means a lot to the features of a binocular. You must check the binocular for the focusing ability. There are two types of binoculars. One of them has focusing feature. Another one is non focusing binocular. The non-focusing binocular can create eye strain and other lot of problem. A good binocular must need to have a focus adjusting button. You have to screw the button to adjust the focus and you must determine that your binocular has a good focusing ability.
5. The weight is a fact for carrying:
Whether this is not a compulsory issue but this also can create problems. A higher magnification and good binocular sometimes become heavy. These binoculars should be used are for very complicated and important issues like astronomy. What am I going to say is they are not for using long time period as they are heavier to carry. In such cases like traveling and other long time usage we must keep our priority on durability and we should use a lighter binocular. Also we have to check out the binocular is made for water resistance or waterproof situation.
You can also see the video for choosing a binoculars
Conclusion:
As the market is full of various binoculars, it is really very difficult to find out which binocular is best and suitable for you. So the question emerges always that how to choose binoculars for bird watching, how to choose binoculars for hunting, which binocular magnification is better. But we mustn’t fear this problem. I hope after reading this you can easily differentiate between these binoculars and also can choose the right one for you.
You can also check : Spotting Scope VS Binoculars
