From nature viewing and hunting to concerts, sports, and more, we have compiled a list of the most common activities binoculars can be used for, as well as the features they’ll need to have in order to perform well in each field. Then you can shift your attention to our list of top ten binoculars that includes models suitable for most of the activities we’ll showcase below.
Nature viewing
The most common use for binoculars is without a doubt nature viewing, and this category includes all kinds of activities such as bird watching, big game safaris, leaf-peeping, hiking. camping and many other outdoor activities.
Thanks to their compact and lightweight design, binoculars are a perfect aid for viewing flora and fauna that is hundreds if not thousands of yards away. For nature viewing purposes, most binoculars should have a magnification of 8x or 10x and a lens diameter of 40mm.
These specifications place the binoculars required for these activities in the full-size range. The high level of magnification and the generous lens diameter make these instruments perfect for viewing distant flora and fauna even in low-light conditions. The relatively wide field of view will allow you to search for birds that like to move a lot and that are well-camouflaged.
When sightseeing, hiking, or on a guided tour, binoculars can help you feel like you can almost touch every landscape that comes within the range of your vision. A high-quality and versatile pair will help you admire the distant sunset, spot any animal hiding in the canopy of the jungle and study the vibrant plumage of any bird.
In other words, if you do plan on experiencing the nature around you first-hand, with a pair of good binoculars you won’t miss a moment of nature’s splendor. Add to that the fact that most models currently on the market are extremely compact, and small enough to store in any backpack, and there is really no excuse not to take one next time you go nature viewing.
Hunting
In the US hunting is not just one of the most popular sports, but also a way in which many families feed themselves. A wrong movement can quickly cause the prey to escape, so a pair of hunting binoculars are a must if a hunter seeks to end his or her hunt successfully.
Nature-viewing and hunting binoculars have a lot in common since they both focus on providing the performance and quality required for outdoor viewing. Both of them are designed to spot animals from a great distance, but hunting binoculars do have a few extra features.
First of all, they are often focused more on high-performance and durability which is why a good pair will feature an all-weather tested casing capable of handling even the most intense weather conditions. Some may even come with advanced features such as night vision, which is not necessary when sightseeing or bird watching.
The specifications for hunting binoculars differ depending on what game the hunter seeks to target and the conditions in which the hunt will take place. Because high magnification makes it difficult for the user to keep the image steady, a magnification higher than 10x is not recommended for hunting purposes.
A wide field of view is also very important, so it is not surprising to see that many hunting binoculars have a smaller lens size (between 30 and 20mm). These specifications place hunting instruments somewhere in the medium-range since they are not as large as the ones required for nature viewing.
Opera, theater, and concerts
Using binoculars for opera and theater plays is very common, so much so that we all have that image in our mind of classy old women pointing their compact pair of binoculars to the action on the stage.
These binoculars generally have a magnification that ranges between 3x to 5x and while any pair that matches these specifications will perform well, they may not be appropriate for the opera and theater. Opera binoculars are an accessory for formal attire, so you will have to purchase a pair specifically designed for this activity.
Opera and theater binoculars are usually luxuriously decorated, they have gold tones and can even be encrusted with precious jewels. Here the accent is put more on looks than on performance, but apart from the magnification that is just enough to allow you to read the emotions on the actor’s face, they should also have a wide field of view.
The wider field of view is required to help the viewer keep the entire stage in focus so that they don’t miss the subtler details in the play. They also usually come with either a neck or wrist strap so that the wearer does not risk dropping them in the dark room.
The same specifications are relevant for concerts as well, but depending on what type of concert you intend to attend, a luxurious pair of binoculars might not be needed.
Sports
Another activity in which binoculars are very popular is sports, especially when you are watching an event on a huge stadium, dozens of yards away from your favorite athletes. With the right pair of binoculars, all of the action will feel like it is right in front of you so that you no longer have to worry that you’ve got a bad seat.
Sports that have a lot of action such as soccer or football require binoculars with a medium magnification and a wide field of view so that you can keep up with the team you are rooting for. On the other hand, a narrower field of view and higher magnification can be the perfect choice for solo sporting events such as figure skating or gymnastics.
Because you are only following one or a couple of people moving across an open field, it is much easier to keep up with them and you will benefit greatly from a higher magnification. Nonetheless, a magnification of 8x is generally considered ideal for most sports.
Furthermore, if you are on a budget and you can’t afford to get a different pair for each of these activities, your nature viewing binoculars can work just as well for sporting events.
Militarily and surveillance
Binoculars are used every day for military activities. In fact, night vision was a technology invented by the military, so it is no wonder that it is found in most military binoculars. Military servicemen and women use these instruments to survey the landscape for any lurking dangers before the troops can move forward.
They are also used to judge distance or identify the best and safest route to a certain location. Military-grade binoculars use the latest technology and can get quite expensive. Even so, there are some fairly inexpensive models that you can get now thanks to the decrease in the cost of manufacturing high-end optics.
Stargazing
You don’t need a high-quality telescope to get a closer look at the night sky, as a good pair of binoculars with the right specifications will suffice, especially for the needs of amateur stargazers. The only difficult part is choosing the right model since there are lots of factors and variables one must consider.
First of all, since you are trying to observe objects that are either hundreds of thousands of miles away from you such as the Moon or millions of miles or light years such as the other celestial bodies, magnification is a very important feature to consider.
While there are many experts who recommend getting binoculars with 12x or 15x magnification, as long as you have a quality product, anything that is 10x or more should suffice. Other specifications to consider is a low-dispersion glass in the lenses to help fight chromatic fringing or aberrations in the image. The focus here should be on getting a model that can perform very well in low-light conditions.
