Binocular Help - Outdoor Gear Forum - Outdoor Gear Forum

Brian,

Not knowing a whole lot about binoculars, I did a little research on the web. Here’s some info…

From web sources:
“What does the magnification mean (ex. 7×50)?

magnification x diameter of aperture

Aperture is simply the size of the front lens in millimeter. Magnification is the factor the objects appear to be bigger when looking through the binos. Please do not believe the statement that ‘higher magnification is always better’! The opposite can be true…

A magnification higher than about 10 means that you need a seperate mount or tripod. The little shaking of your hands, which is always present, is magnified by the bino too!

The higher the magnification for a given aperture the darker the image! That’s easy to understand if you look at it that way:
A part of the sky contains a certain number of stars. They deliver a certain number of photons expressing how bright that sky looks. Now if you magnify the image two times more you will only see one half of the stars. And that means half of the photons and therefore half of the brightness.

…The 10×25 is very compact and light weight. While not as strong in light amplification as the 7×50 it is a very good all purpose bino.

With it’s 10 times magfnification the 10×25 is a perfect choice for beginners with additional interest in daylight watching and if maximum portability is needed, i.e. for bird watching at daylight….

Magnification: High magnification (factor 9 or 10) generally leads to diminished image brightness.

Exit Pupil: To determine the exit pupil size of a binocular, divide aperture by magnification. A pair of 7 x 35 binoculars would have an exit pupil of 5 millimeters. On bright days, the exit pupil size will have little effect on the clarity of your image, but for low-light viewing, you’ll want a minimum exit pupil of about 4 millimeters.

Antireflection Coating: Most lenses and prisms are coated to decrease reflection and prevent distortion. These are advertised as being coated, fully coated, multicoated, or fully multicoated, the latter offering the best brightness and clarity.

Prism Style: The highest quality prisms are made with high-density BAK-4 glass, giving optimal clarity and brightness.

Focus, Please

For focusing purposes, most binoculars feature a centrally mounted wheel or lever that adjusts both eyepieces simultaneously, and some have a focusing devise on one of the eye tubes that will compensate for differences in the strength of each eye. Pay attention to the near focus, which refers to the shortest distance from which an object can be viewed with complete clarity. This feature is especially important to bird watchers who normally prefer a near-focus factor of 13 feet…

To clean your new binoculars, you’ll want to take special care not to rub in any abrasive particles that might scratch and distort the lenses or remove their optic coating. Use a squeeze blower or a soft hair lens brush to dust the glass surfaces. Then clean with a microfiber lens cloth or tissue to remove oils and smudges, and stash them safely in their carrying case and out of harm’s way.”

So Brian, What I got from all of this is the Tracker 8-16X25 looks to be a good choice because you can set it on the lower mag. setting to reduce “shake” and to increase lighting, but you can also set it higher as needed to increase magnification. It’s also not too big and bulky for storage and handling. And, Olympus has a good reputation for quality.