Binoculars

[missty1405]

We will be going on the Princess Dawn in June. We are looking at buying new Binoculars for our trip. What strength and "Prism" do you think would be the best?

[Cruisin'Chris]

Buy the most powerful binoculars that are comfortable and reasonable for you by a budget point of view. On my last Alaska Trip I ha dmore powerful binoculars and it made a difference. I'm traveling for bus. right now so can;t tell you the exact power I had but I know after 4 trips, stronger is better!

Cruisin' Chris


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[srphnx]

And so is smaller.... no matter how cool it is to see everything, no one want to carry an extra anchor.

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[JanetMarie]

We, too, are looking to purchase new binocs. Can someone help me with the numbers i.e. 5 x 20 etc., which I simply do not understand. Thanks. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif

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[starsjohn]

Ok, 5 is the power or the amount of magnification. The iamge should appear roughly 5 times larger. The 20 is the diameter of the main lenses on the foward end of the binocs. This is the other end from the eyepieces

The larger the second number, 20 in this case, gives the amount of maximum resolution and brightness of the final image you see with your eye. Resolution (sharpness) is ONLY dependent on the size of main lenses (referred to Objectives in the literature), not the magnification. The larger the number, results in larger main lenses with higher resolution, resulting in brighter, easier to see images. Larger lenses really help in low light, or night viewing. The size of the objective determines how much light (brightness) reflected from the object you will see.

Higher priced quality binocs, offer better protection from moisture (weather proofed}, have higher quality optics giving clearer more distinct viewing. Proper alignment resulting in less eye strain. Coated lenses to reduce optical flare and glare from reflected light. High quality machining and mounting of the optical components insure a life-time of use.

The most power you can hold without a support is about 8. 7-8x50 glasses are favored by marine users because they can be hand held and work well in night and bad lighting conditions,

Cruise passenger will find high quality binocs in the 7 or 8 power with 20 to 35 objectives available from the likes of Nikon, Pentax, Leica, Carl Zeiss, Steiner, Canon, Bushnell (better models only) and others. The German glasses from Leica and Carl Zeiss Optics are the finest in the world and while most find them too expensive, the bird watchers and other naturalists snap them up. Premimum binocs can often be found sold on comission in good local camera stores or on EBAY or Astromart.

The 8 X 20 size will fit very nicely into your shirt pocket. The larger 7 X 50 will hang on you neck and shoulder and will seem heavy in a while. You might find them a pain to carry.

Canon makes a special breed of binocs that have image-stabilization features. This feature means you can hand hold, without support, 10-15 magnification binocs. On the other hand, these glasses are heavier and command a premium price.

Hope this helps.

John

[rexin]

My only suggestion is to buy the best ones you can afford. There is a "huge" difference in ease of use, quality of vision, etc. from a cheap pair to a good pair.

[Italy52]

I am interested in buying binocs. for our Alaska cruise. If you go to the "Ports" board and look under "Alaska" there is a rather lengthy discussion on binocs.