Birding Gear

Binoculars

Swarovski 8x32 EL Traveller Swarovision (580g)

These are Mandy's bins that she really likes. Apart from the great view through them they are so light around the neck and in the hand. The Swarovski optica at present are in our opinion the ones who are producing the goods and that also goes along nicely with the excellent customer service that goes along with the company ethos. One thing for sure though is that no company has produced a better focus system than Nikon have on the HGs below. They are silky smooth and clearly something the other manufacturers have not bettered or even equalled.
Swarovski 8.5x42 EL Swarovision (795g)

  

These are classed as the next generation of optics for binoculars. This kind of title is often banded around anything that the major optics companies release. The difference here though is a change in type of optics. Most binoculars have a particular sweet spot in the centre of the optics which generally means that you move your head to change view but with the new sworovision this changes as the sweet spot has now been replaced with edge to edge pin sharp detail all over the view through them, thus allowing you to move your eyes around the view inside the binoculars. The other reason for this purchase is in readiness for our trip to India, and in particular forest birding. My 10x42 Leicas are great but the field of view reduces usefulness when in a forest so the 8.5x of the Swarovski should suit closer birding giving a brighter and wider view of an area. The other advantage for me personally is the great strides forward in allowing spectacle wearers to see the full view through the bins. My prescription in my spectacles is quite high on the + side so a thickish lens from the glasses can leave some binoculars useless for me. the 20mm eye relief of these is apparent straight away.

Nikon 8x32 HG

 

These Binoculars are my Mandys' primary pair which she really likes due to the smaller objective lens of32mm. This model is waterproof and nitrogen gas filled to reduce fogging. They are not particularly light even though they are a little smaller but they give a great bright image without the bulk of some of the other binoculars we use. The focus wheel on these binoculars is something to behold as they are lovely and smooth, this being noticed more than other bins due to the binoculars lack of depth of field which means that altering the focus is a done much more than some optics. That said this lack of depth allows a superb image when the image is focussed and I would imagine it would be hard to better this finding in other brand binoculars.

Leica Ultravid 10x42 (750g)(sold May 2013)

These binoculars are my primary pair and are waterproof and again nitrogen gas filled to prevent fogging internally. These have a magnification of x 10. a little more than most of the birders would use but i do like them and the weight even though slightly bulkier is actually lower by a few pounds. Apart from the superb clear, bright and very life like image I get through them the ergonomics allows the binoculars to be extremely well balanced when in use up to my eyes as the weight of the optics seems to lessen due to the well balanced design. A few innovations that have been made with modern optics are things like twist up and down eye caps that have different click stops so that you can fully adjust the eyepieces to allow for the full field of view to be seen even when glasses are being worn. The other superb feature to these optics is the ability to completely remove the eyecups altogether exposing the eyepieces which allows you to clean the surface of the glass fully with trying to wedge something into the edges with possible damage to the lens surface eventually occuring. I see myself as still a novice birdwatcher so having quality optics can make all the difference in IDs of birds. the only down side to these binoculars is the focus wheel as considering the quality put into most aspects of them the focus wheel has had issues with a few owners. I am sure that if you pick these up you will not feel it to be a problem but, when you have used other binoculars like Nikon you realise that the wheel is not really a winner. The focus wheel is slightly gritty in use and a small turn of the wheel does not always register or is not transferred to the binocular gearing. Other people have brought this up and Leica say that this is due to the coarse thread used coupled with a very small amount of lubricant used in the mechanism so that in colder conditions the focus wheel is not, in any way affected by external conditions like cold making the lubricant less viscous and so harder to turn. This does not detract from the superb qualities overall and I can see me using these for some years to come.

Opticron Dioptron 10x50

These were my first pair of binoculars kindly handed down to me by my father. They are very good for the age and  considering how optic technology has moved on. These are not waterproof as I discovered to my peril as I walked around Leighton Moss one day in the pouring rain. I had to have them sent away to be cleaned as the water had left marks on the internal lenses. The other thing that has changed for the better is the fold down rubber eye cups that are a nightmare for anybody who wears glasses. These soon become damaged and worn to a point (as pic shows) they no longer stay on and are worn away. This is not a problem if all users wear glasses but it makes them very difficult to use if you do not, as the effect rendered is that of a long tunnel with a small aperture. They give a slight yellow cast to the image but on the whole they are still very much a good binocular which are still regularly in use at the kitchen window observation spot.

Pyser Eagle 8x42

These were bought for Mandy as a pair to see if the hobby would be taken farther than the house and so it did prove as now these also occupy a place indoors and sit on the window sill in the upstairs office where most of the garden observation takes place. If I were to recommend a pair of binoculars to anybody that was looking for a good "starter" pair then these, for the price, I would think hard to beat. They are nice and light, the ergonomics are excellent, waterproof and nitrogen filled. they have pop up hard plastic eyecups where full vision is attained whether you wear glasses or not. The focus wheel is very smooth and both the depth of fiels and field of view are good. They do have a slight blue/purple cast but this gives it a more neutral colour that does not detract one bit from the bright crisp image. These are also quite small in dimension and the weight is pleasantly light with a good quality armour to the exterior of the optics.

Telescopes

Swarovski X series of scopes 85mm module with straight eye module (1965g)

    

This is quite a departure from what normally is expected from a scope in it's design with the traditional screw in eyepiece gone and instead a complete module that is half and half as you can see in the picture above. It also brings the zoom and the focus close together on the body of the scope. The innovative idea of giving you the opportunity to choose which objective size lens you want is also a novel approach. I have settled with the 85mm module whilst a 95mm and 65mm are available and all can be used with one eye module. If you are flush you can have all three! The other thing I like about this setup is the thought given over to digiscoping. You can see from the second picture how this fits together with the zoom and focus being clearly better to reach. It is also very stable in use although I will need a balance rail now due to the centre of gravity shifting somewhat leaving the setup very back heavy in part due to the foot of the scope being pushed onto the front end of the scope objective module. The other really big bonus to me was the fact that Swarovski have produced an eyecup that has been thinned down to allow better viewing for those with thick lenses in glasses like me!

Carl Zeiss Diascope 85T Straight with 20x-60x Zoom Eyepiece (sold Oct 2013)

This is one item that is not always used when out bird watching but when you do take it out it never fails to amaze with it's sheer quality of view. It really is superb and coupled with the 20x-60x eyepiece it can give excellent views from distances you would not stand a chance with. It not only allows distant views but it gives very good views at these distances due to the lenses and coatings but most probably due to it's 85mm objective lens which is one of the larger lenses available on a scope. This larger objective lens equates to better image rendition due to more light being allowed into the scope just like light into a camera can make all the difference in the picture quality. As you can see it has two focus wheels on the top one for rapid focus and one for fine tuning the image. This again is the only let down as the rapid focus wheel is slightly stiff to turn but i am waiting to see if my upcoming birding trip to Mallorca will alter this due to the warmth or if given a little more use it will settle down. This aside Ii am very pleased with this product as it has a large objective lens yet rertains a small overall size and the real bonus is the weight, as this is considerably lighter in comparison to others in this catagory. I opted for a straight scope over the angled variety as my height I felt would make it difficult to use comfortably without craning my neck. This is due to the tripod it sits on being a little taller than most which stops me from having to extend the centre column and thus making the chance of an unstable image being viewed due to vibration which can wreak havoc at 60 times magnification!

Bushnell Spacemaster straight with 15x-45x Zoom Eyepiece.

Tripod

Manfrotto 443 Carbon Fibre

Min Length: 62cm
-Max Height, Without Centre Column: 53cm With Centre Column Extended: 172cm
-Minimum Height, Column Removed: 26cm
-Weight (Without Head): 1.57kg
-Max Weight to Support: 6kg
-Leg Sections: 3

A tripod of a decent standard is a must in my opinion as vibration from your setup is the single biggest threat to image quality. I use a manfrotto carbon fiber 3section tripod which whilst light(ish) remains stable. the only downside is that they are not as tough as metal and have heard about people snapping the legs if accidentally stood on. It's also the case that in high wind and due to it being light it can be easier for the setup to be blown over in winds. Some people report that in winds carbon fibre has a nack of allowing micro vibration to exist almost permanently through the legs which as said before can wreak havoc. I myself have not found the latter to be a problem but I have noticed the former.

Tripod Heads

This is again important as the usability of a tripod head can make the job a lot easier. My opinion of the Manfrotto 128RC, Manfrotto 701RC2 and the Swarovski FH101 are formed after usage not just from a birding point of view but also with this extra hobby of digiscoping in mind so the things that may not bother a birder may bother a digiscoper and vice versa. Also the weight and size of equipment used on top of the head all have a bearing on a users opinion.

Swarovski FH 101

Weight: 540g    Maximum Load Capacity: 3.5kg 

              

It's very light, has the ability to lock both the pan and tilt separately from the correct pressure for usage and has a safety lock feature built in so that the scopes accidental release from the head is much harder to do. It's totally judder free even when the pressure for pan and tilt is severe. The ability to lock the pan and tilt separately is a massive bonus to me as I can now put the scope and my back without worrying about it moving around and with a flick of a catch it is ready to use with the correct pressure untouched. Down side is that the handle could do to be longer and because of the orientation of the plate I can no longer use my anti rotation plate, although at present I have not witnessed the scope trying to spin on the plate. Only time will tell with this but I hope it does not spin. The locking mechanism is not as fool proof as the 128 head with only the gentelist of nudges to release the catch, so beware. This head is made of plastic and although it feels cheap it seems like the build quality is excellent. The bumf with it also reassuringly states that the head lubricant is totally leak free.

Manfrotto 701RC2

Weight: 800g    Maximum Load Capacity: 4kg 

                    

It's light, small and the ability to be able to centralise the weight due to it's sliding plate is a real bonus. The unit does not suffer as much with the "droop" like the128RC but it is not smooth in operation. It always "sticks" on the first movement up or down so much so that the extra pressure required to move it results in the scope learching forward and past your intended target. Once the initial "stutter" is passed it is fine in use until you come to tilt it again after a period of no use. I have now tested three heads and all suffer from this and to be honest I just could not do with it.

Manfrotto MN128RC

Weight: 1.0kg    Maximum Load Capacity: 4kg 

                                                       

Manfrotto MN128RC. This is a superb head that almost fulfils the requirement. It's overall weight and bulk are it's only downfalls with a lesser problem of the head "drooping" backward when walking around. It is silky smooth in operation with no judder when panning or tilting. Again the omission of not being able to lock the pan and tilt separately from the pan and tilt pressure knobs makes it annoying when carrying around as it either droops if the pan and tilt are at the best settings for use or if you tighten the knobs up to travel you then have to set it back up to find it's best presuure setting. The big plus with this is a superb safety locking mechanism that will never allow your scope to be inadvertently released from the head..ooouucchhh!

                     One thing that never seems to amaze me is no matter what your opinion is regarding products this is not always one held by the next man. Strangely this is bore out in my testing of the 701RC2 head that has had a lot of excellent reviews. Personally I think it is a very poor item as it's propensity to stick when it is tensioned is unbearable and this was so annoying as I had taken this head with me to Lesvos in 2008. So far in my opinion the 701 comes last out of these three with the 128 second and the FH 101 way out in front.

Manfrotto MN200US

I would also recommend the use of a Manfrotto accessory that cured one of my headaches. Due to the length of the setup eventually the screws that hold the scope from twisting on the head start to work loose so I eventually found and bought this little addition (although it's price is quite ridiculous) Manfrotto MN200USS Universal Anti Twist Scope Plate. This simply has two screws which tighten up to the foot of your scope which stops and lateral rotation.