A Word About Optics
In January, I wrote about the benefits of practicing birding skills from home by using eBird's handy quizzes; in February, I shared how using alpha codes while field birding has greatly improved my note-taking efficiency. This month, as we eagerly await spring and warmer weather, I'd like to talk a little bit about optics.
With the departure of our abundance of overwintering waterfowl goes some of our easiest birding. We're no longer able to spend great lengths of time poring over a pond covered in reasonably sedentary, large-ish birds. As spring migration and the nesting season kicks off, and leaves begin to unfurl, we find ourselves met with a puzzling assortment of mostly small, flighty songbirds, and birding reaches a new level.
While winter is the ideal time to ease into birding as a beginner - anyone, even without binoculars, can enjoy large numbers of conspicuous Sandhill Cranes and Snow Geese - spring requires moving up to the next level! And you will need to bring your optics along!
Birding optics come in two basic categories: handheld binoculars and tripod-mounted spotting scopes. They both have their place in the toolkit of a serious birder, but nearly everyone begins with a simple pair of binoculars (affectionately known as "bins," "binos," or "binocs.")
Understanding binoculars
Binoculars are defined by two numbers, such as 8x42 (which is read "eight by forty-two.") The first number, usually a 7, 8 or 10, represents the magnification power. The second number, often 25, 32, or 42, represents the diameter of the objective lens (the fattest end of the tube) in millimeters, which affects the amount of light the binoculars are able to take in. For example, popular-sized 8x42 binoculars magnify images eight times, and have a 42 millimeter objective lens.
Most (but not all!) birders prefer using 7- or 8-power binoculars as this allows for a wide field of view. I even like using some 10-power binoculars, but anything more than this is not useful for birding. Remember that if an image is magnified 10 times... so is every little jitter and shake of your hands! And while some will argue that the field of view in 10x binoculars is too narrow, I don't always find it a problem. Make sure to look at the field or angle of view listed on the binoculars as well, and choose a pair with a field of view of at least 341 feet at 1,000 yards, or angle of view of at least 6.5 degrees.
The sweet spot for objective lens diameter is between 30 and 45. Really, anything larger than 42 millimeters starts to get too heavy (larger lens, more glass) and anything smaller than 32 millimeters results in a dimmer image.
Most sources advise birders to look for binoculars close to 8x32, 7x35, 7x42, 8x42, or 10x42.
My first pair of "real" but very small and modest binoculars was an inexpensive little pair of 8x23 Bushnells from the local sporting goods store. And do you know what? They worked just fine to start out with! I've seen some pretty neat things with those little bins, from Bald Eagles and Great Horned Owls to little wrens and pipits. Sure, the field of view is irritatingly small (now that I know better) and rather like trying to see the world through a toilet paper tube, but they did the trick. They got me hooked, and wanting more! Though I've moved on to bigger and better binos, these little super-lightweight rather battered 8x23s still find a place in my backpack or pocket when I'm going out walking or hiking or otherwise "not birding" (as if that's possible!) It is far better to have small binoculars in your glove compartment or backpack than no binoculars at all when you stumble across that one amazing surprise bird!
My next move was a false one: I "upgraded" to a higher magnification (10x) without significantly increasing the size of the objective lens. The result was a closer look at birds through an even smaller field of view, which made it even more difficult to track birds in flight or moving through the canopy. Learn from this common mistake! A wider objective lens is more beneficial than a higher magnification.
Now, the two pairs of binoculars I use almost exclusively are 8x42 Nikons and 10x42 Bushnells (neither of which will break the bank, and both of which have served me very well, even in low-light conditions.)
For advice on selecting a specific pair of binoculars, I recommend this article from Audubon. There are a lot of really good binoculars out there, at a staggering range of prices. Finding the best pair for you will largely come down to a matter of personal preference.
Using Binoculars
Now, assuming you already have a trusty pair of binocs, don't think I'm trying to convince you to upgrade to something new! I'm not! You could invest in a better pair of binoculars, or even upgrade to a spotting scope, but most of the time you'll be able to see the birds just fine with whatever optics you happen to have with you, provided you know how to use them correctly.
1. Adjust your binoculars to your eyes. Your eyes are unique, and good binoculars come with the ability to be fine-tuned to accommodate your specific needs. First, twist the eye cups up if you are not wearing glasses; this positions the lens a comfortable distance away from your eyes. If you do wear glasses, keep the eye cups down. Second, adjust the width between the barrels so that they line up with your eyes; having them too far apart for your eyes results in a split image, while pinching them too close together doesn't allow for a full field of vision.
Most binoculars allow for one more final adjustment to compensate between the slight difference in vision between our two eyes. Look for a small dot and dash or arrow just below the eye cup on the right barrel and notice the adjustable ring, which fine-tunes the focus of only the right-side barrel. To get the sharpest image possible for your vision, close your right eye and look through the left barrel, using the main focus wheel to bring the image reaching your left eye into perfect focus. Now, close your left eye, look through the right barrel and use the small focus ring below the right eye cup to fine-tune the image reaching your right eye until it is as crisp and clear as it can be. Opening both eyes, the image should be nice and clear. Now take a look at the little dot and dash. Do they line up? If they do, the focus of both barrels is adjusted to be exactly the same. But they probably don't! If you have moved the focus ring and the dot and dash no longer align, the right barrel has been adjusted to compensate for some slight difference between the vision in your left and right eye. For me, the image is most clear when the ring is adjusted just a little to the right. This is an adjustment you only need to make once! Leave the fine-tuning ring untouched after this, and only use the main focus wheel to bring everything into perfect focus for both eyes.
2. Keep your newly-adjusted binoculars at the ready! Wear them high enough up on your chest that you don't have to bring them very far to meet your eyes. Binoculars can be carried in you hand, around your neck, worn cross-body style or slung over one shoulder. But I think the best, most efficient way to carry them is on a padded strap around the neck, or, better, on a binocular harness (which may look a little funny, but you won't care once you discover that with a harness, you no longer develop neck- and headaches from wearing heavy binoculars all day!)
3. To find a bird with your binoculars, locate it with your naked eye first. Don't begin by randomly scanning trees with your binoculars hoping to stumble across a bird - this rarely works! Often, sound or movement are the best clues to the presence of a bird, and a bird's movement is best picked up with the naked eye. Once you've spotted a bird, don't look away from it to fiddle with your binoculars! Keep your eyes on the bird, and bring your binoculars up to your eyes... without taking your eyes off the target. And there, magnified 8 or 10 times, is the bird. This takes practice, but in the end is much easier and more effective than scanning through the trees with binoculars.
4. To provide stability, keep your arms close to your body when supporting your binoculars. More often than not, my arms get tired before I get bored with looking at a good bird! Try resting your elbows on a deck railing, obliging rock or branch, or the top of the car to give your arms a rest, create stability and reduce wobble. When gazing into the treetops, try leaning against a tree, rock or vehicle - or even laying down on a bench or the ground! - to alleviate that old birder malady, "warbler neck."
5. Keep your binoculars clean! Take them off when you're eating (or at least make sure the lens caps are on), and try your very best to never touch the lenses - especially if you have just applied sunscreen. (Speaking from experience on both accounts!)
Audubon offers this advice:
Or, you can practice the tried-and-true method of exhaling on the lenses (to form a layer of foggy condensation) before wiping them with your cotton undershirt or handkerchief. Probably not advisable, but it helps in a pinch!
6. As with everything, practice! The more you use your binoculars, the easier it will become to find and even follow birds for the best views. Many new birders avoid trying to watch birds in motion through binoculars, believing it to be too difficult. But this is not the case! And the truth is, many birds are rarely still! One great way to practice using your binoculars on a moving target is to watch birds foraging, either on the ground or through the trees. Once this feels comfortable, start watching birds in flight! Start by watching a perched bird, and then resist the temptation to lower your bins when a perched bird flies away. Instead, try your best to follow the bird with your binoculars as it flies. With practice, you'll soon be able to put your binoculars directly on a moving target as a bird flies overhead.
While it is certainly possible to watch and enjoy birds without the help of binoculars (and this can be done every day, wherever you are), bringing those birds in for a closer look really makes the whole experience so much more rewarding. Even the most common birds, those which can be identified from a distance at a glance or by sound, like Mourning Doves, become so much more captivating in their intricate beauty and engaging behavior when we pause, pull out the binoculars, and take a a closer look.
With the departure of our abundance of overwintering waterfowl goes some of our easiest birding. We're no longer able to spend great lengths of time poring over a pond covered in reasonably sedentary, large-ish birds. As spring migration and the nesting season kicks off, and leaves begin to unfurl, we find ourselves met with a puzzling assortment of mostly small, flighty songbirds, and birding reaches a new level.
While winter is the ideal time to ease into birding as a beginner - anyone, even without binoculars, can enjoy large numbers of conspicuous Sandhill Cranes and Snow Geese - spring requires moving up to the next level! And you will need to bring your optics along!
Birding optics come in two basic categories: handheld binoculars and tripod-mounted spotting scopes. They both have their place in the toolkit of a serious birder, but nearly everyone begins with a simple pair of binoculars (affectionately known as "bins," "binos," or "binocs.")
 |
| Watching the birds at one of my favorite locations: Moss Landing Harbor. |
Understanding binoculars
Binoculars are defined by two numbers, such as 8x42 (which is read "eight by forty-two.") The first number, usually a 7, 8 or 10, represents the magnification power. The second number, often 25, 32, or 42, represents the diameter of the objective lens (the fattest end of the tube) in millimeters, which affects the amount of light the binoculars are able to take in. For example, popular-sized 8x42 binoculars magnify images eight times, and have a 42 millimeter objective lens.
Most (but not all!) birders prefer using 7- or 8-power binoculars as this allows for a wide field of view. I even like using some 10-power binoculars, but anything more than this is not useful for birding. Remember that if an image is magnified 10 times... so is every little jitter and shake of your hands! And while some will argue that the field of view in 10x binoculars is too narrow, I don't always find it a problem. Make sure to look at the field or angle of view listed on the binoculars as well, and choose a pair with a field of view of at least 341 feet at 1,000 yards, or angle of view of at least 6.5 degrees.
The sweet spot for objective lens diameter is between 30 and 45. Really, anything larger than 42 millimeters starts to get too heavy (larger lens, more glass) and anything smaller than 32 millimeters results in a dimmer image.
Most sources advise birders to look for binoculars close to 8x32, 7x35, 7x42, 8x42, or 10x42.
My first pair of "real" but very small and modest binoculars was an inexpensive little pair of 8x23 Bushnells from the local sporting goods store. And do you know what? They worked just fine to start out with! I've seen some pretty neat things with those little bins, from Bald Eagles and Great Horned Owls to little wrens and pipits. Sure, the field of view is irritatingly small (now that I know better) and rather like trying to see the world through a toilet paper tube, but they did the trick. They got me hooked, and wanting more! Though I've moved on to bigger and better binos, these little super-lightweight rather battered 8x23s still find a place in my backpack or pocket when I'm going out walking or hiking or otherwise "not birding" (as if that's possible!) It is far better to have small binoculars in your glove compartment or backpack than no binoculars at all when you stumble across that one amazing surprise bird!
My next move was a false one: I "upgraded" to a higher magnification (10x) without significantly increasing the size of the objective lens. The result was a closer look at birds through an even smaller field of view, which made it even more difficult to track birds in flight or moving through the canopy. Learn from this common mistake! A wider objective lens is more beneficial than a higher magnification.
Now, the two pairs of binoculars I use almost exclusively are 8x42 Nikons and 10x42 Bushnells (neither of which will break the bank, and both of which have served me very well, even in low-light conditions.)
For advice on selecting a specific pair of binoculars, I recommend this article from Audubon. There are a lot of really good binoculars out there, at a staggering range of prices. Finding the best pair for you will largely come down to a matter of personal preference.
 |
| Watching mountain bluebirds from a Sierra summit. |
Using Binoculars
Now, assuming you already have a trusty pair of binocs, don't think I'm trying to convince you to upgrade to something new! I'm not! You could invest in a better pair of binoculars, or even upgrade to a spotting scope, but most of the time you'll be able to see the birds just fine with whatever optics you happen to have with you, provided you know how to use them correctly.
1. Adjust your binoculars to your eyes. Your eyes are unique, and good binoculars come with the ability to be fine-tuned to accommodate your specific needs. First, twist the eye cups up if you are not wearing glasses; this positions the lens a comfortable distance away from your eyes. If you do wear glasses, keep the eye cups down. Second, adjust the width between the barrels so that they line up with your eyes; having them too far apart for your eyes results in a split image, while pinching them too close together doesn't allow for a full field of vision.
Most binoculars allow for one more final adjustment to compensate between the slight difference in vision between our two eyes. Look for a small dot and dash or arrow just below the eye cup on the right barrel and notice the adjustable ring, which fine-tunes the focus of only the right-side barrel. To get the sharpest image possible for your vision, close your right eye and look through the left barrel, using the main focus wheel to bring the image reaching your left eye into perfect focus. Now, close your left eye, look through the right barrel and use the small focus ring below the right eye cup to fine-tune the image reaching your right eye until it is as crisp and clear as it can be. Opening both eyes, the image should be nice and clear. Now take a look at the little dot and dash. Do they line up? If they do, the focus of both barrels is adjusted to be exactly the same. But they probably don't! If you have moved the focus ring and the dot and dash no longer align, the right barrel has been adjusted to compensate for some slight difference between the vision in your left and right eye. For me, the image is most clear when the ring is adjusted just a little to the right. This is an adjustment you only need to make once! Leave the fine-tuning ring untouched after this, and only use the main focus wheel to bring everything into perfect focus for both eyes.
2. Keep your newly-adjusted binoculars at the ready! Wear them high enough up on your chest that you don't have to bring them very far to meet your eyes. Binoculars can be carried in you hand, around your neck, worn cross-body style or slung over one shoulder. But I think the best, most efficient way to carry them is on a padded strap around the neck, or, better, on a binocular harness (which may look a little funny, but you won't care once you discover that with a harness, you no longer develop neck- and headaches from wearing heavy binoculars all day!)
3. To find a bird with your binoculars, locate it with your naked eye first. Don't begin by randomly scanning trees with your binoculars hoping to stumble across a bird - this rarely works! Often, sound or movement are the best clues to the presence of a bird, and a bird's movement is best picked up with the naked eye. Once you've spotted a bird, don't look away from it to fiddle with your binoculars! Keep your eyes on the bird, and bring your binoculars up to your eyes... without taking your eyes off the target. And there, magnified 8 or 10 times, is the bird. This takes practice, but in the end is much easier and more effective than scanning through the trees with binoculars.
4. To provide stability, keep your arms close to your body when supporting your binoculars. More often than not, my arms get tired before I get bored with looking at a good bird! Try resting your elbows on a deck railing, obliging rock or branch, or the top of the car to give your arms a rest, create stability and reduce wobble. When gazing into the treetops, try leaning against a tree, rock or vehicle - or even laying down on a bench or the ground! - to alleviate that old birder malady, "warbler neck."
5. Keep your binoculars clean! Take them off when you're eating (or at least make sure the lens caps are on), and try your very best to never touch the lenses - especially if you have just applied sunscreen. (Speaking from experience on both accounts!)
Audubon offers this advice:
"Never clean the lenses with tissue, toilet paper, paper napkins or towels, or newspaper - all contain wood fibers that will scratch and eventually destroy the lens coatings essential to your binoculars' optical performance (and can't be repaired or replaced). Never use commercial glass cleaners. They may contain ammonia or other chemicals that will destroy the coatings.
"Clean your binoculars only with good-quality lens tissue or a micro-fiber lens cloth from an optic or camera store. Also buy a can of compressed air and lens-cleaning fluid whose label states clearly that it's safe to use with lens coatings. First use compressed air to blow away loose dust. Next spray the lens cleaner on the cloth and gently clean the lenses. Then gently wipe them with a dry part of the cloth."
Or, you can practice the tried-and-true method of exhaling on the lenses (to form a layer of foggy condensation) before wiping them with your cotton undershirt or handkerchief. Probably not advisable, but it helps in a pinch!
6. As with everything, practice! The more you use your binoculars, the easier it will become to find and even follow birds for the best views. Many new birders avoid trying to watch birds in motion through binoculars, believing it to be too difficult. But this is not the case! And the truth is, many birds are rarely still! One great way to practice using your binoculars on a moving target is to watch birds foraging, either on the ground or through the trees. Once this feels comfortable, start watching birds in flight! Start by watching a perched bird, and then resist the temptation to lower your bins when a perched bird flies away. Instead, try your best to follow the bird with your binoculars as it flies. With practice, you'll soon be able to put your binoculars directly on a moving target as a bird flies overhead.
 |
| Watching a pair of Pyrrhuloxia moving through the dense thorny scrub of Saguaro National Park. |
While it is certainly possible to watch and enjoy birds without the help of binoculars (and this can be done every day, wherever you are), bringing those birds in for a closer look really makes the whole experience so much more rewarding. Even the most common birds, those which can be identified from a distance at a glance or by sound, like Mourning Doves, become so much more captivating in their intricate beauty and engaging behavior when we pause, pull out the binoculars, and take a a closer look.
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