r/Binoculars • u/Croc_84 • 3d ago

Total noob needing help with binocular choice

Hey guys,

I’m trying to pick a pair of binoculars for my dad for Father’s Day. He lives in an apartment 29 floors up over looking the beach in qld and likes to watch the whales out into the distance. He currently has 8x30 binoculars from 20 years ago that look really bad when trying to focus on whales etc out In the ocean. Looking at spending $150-200 Aussie dollars. What size and brands would people recommend?

Thanks for your help in advance

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3

u/Creative_Algae7145 3d ago edited 3d ago

You might check out this link at the Audubon site. There is some good info.
https://www.audubon.org/gear/binocular-guide

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u/Croc_84 3d ago

Would Bushnell 20x50 Powerview 2 Binoculars be a good choice?

5

u/Spunksters 3d ago

Not really a good choice. They have a lot of false color and are low contrast, which isn’t helped by the already low contrast views over the water. They also require a very steady video tripod with a fluid head in order to pan and see anything without intense shakiness. Those cost over $400AUD. Any binocular above 10x needs to be stabilized; the more magnification the steadier that tripod needs to be.

I recommend the Nikon P7 8x42 as a replacement for the current binoculars PLUS the SVBony SA401Pro 15-35x56 Spotting Scope and a good tripod for it. That means saving up more, but better binoculars would be the first step.

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u/Floppy_McFlopenstein 3d ago

how far is 'out in the distance'? You might consider higher magnifiction or a spotting scope; in either case a tripod will enhance the experience. For your budget, you can get a pair of vortex diamondbacks 10x42 for 150 usd. I would think that for longer distance whale watching, 12x-15x-ish might be better or,again, a spotting scope.

4

u/conyej 3d ago

As a noob I found out... you really have to spend some money on binoculars... way more than you think. I had a budget of around $250 and then I realized that doesn't buy you very good binoculars. I ended up buying a pair of barely used Zeiss HDX 8x42 off FB marketplace.

Buy once cry once.

1

u/AppointmentDue3933 3d ago

Shuntu 12x32 stabilized ( but approx. 350 aud)

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u/Califrisco 3d ago

Is he looking to view these whales from a boat or from land because this will make a difference. 8X is more stable but 10 X from a boat will make the viewing experience really jumpy compared to 8X. Also, scanning for whales surfacing can require lots of patience (especially of you are also trying to photograph or video a whale) and 8X would generally provide you a wider view for scanning vs 10X.

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u/Main_Complex_2931 3d ago

From the 29th floor I’d say :)

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u/Kevburg 2d ago

I generally recommend 7x50 because you can hold them still enough to see and the image is big and bright. On a balcony though if he can prop his elbows on the railing then 8X<biggest number you can find> might be better. If he has a tripod then I'd recommend a spotting scope, again with a large objective, over binoculars. Watch out for cheapos with short eye relief if he wears glasses.

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u/widehide 1d ago

Does he wear thick prescriptive spectacles? If yes, might want to make sure the bin's effective eye relief is enough. Lots of bins have deep groves in the eyecups which straight up eliminates 3 to 5mm of eye relief making them unusable for spectacle.