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Friday, July 30, 2010

The Power Measurement Is An Important Feature Of Binoculars

By Ken Dragki

Basically, all binoculars work along the same principles, so your first step to choosing a pair binoculars is to understand the jargon associated with binoculars.

The first feature you should look at is the binoculars' power measurements. The power is listed by a pair of number such as 10x25, pronounced "ten-by-twenty five". The first number is the amount of magnification. In this case the image would be magnified by a power of 10, or in other words would appear 10 times closer than without the binoculars. The second number listed is the size of the lens in millimeters. In this case the lens is 25 mm in diameter.

A binocular with Porro prisms tend to be heavier and bulkier, but because of their design tend to let in more light and produce sharper and brighter images. When you see a pair of binoculars that look more like straight tubes with no offsets, these are roof prism binoculars.

A binocular with roof prisms are a much newer design that makes for a more compact pair of binoculars. Roof prism models can still have fairly large lenses, but the physical weight and size of the binoculars are greatly reduced. However don't expect to see any giant binoculars that utilize roof prisms. The image you see in roof prism binoculars is not always as sharp or as bright as traditional Porro prism binoculars.

Something that can greatly affect the price of a pair of binoculars is special anti-reflective lens coatings. These special coatings are designed to cut down on glare and help ensure that as much light as possible is collected by the optics. While coated optics are desirable they can quickly make the price of your binoculars.

If you just want to observe birds at your back yard feeder, then a small birding binocular or spotting binoculars that are light and simple to use would be the best choice. If you plan to mount your binoculars on a tripod and use them for astronomy study, you should choose a larger Celestron binocular. If you plan to use your binoculars for camping, fishing, hunting, hiking, boating or any other outdoor activity, you should probably choose a weatherproof or waterproof binocular. Waterproof binoculars have a rubber coated body which keeps out moisture and protects the optics and internal parts from corrosion.

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