To See or not to See? That is the burning Binocular question

Quite often, when on safari, guests will comment “Gee Grant you have good eyes!” after I’ve spotted something of interest, to which I normally answer, “No, actually I just have good binos!” When I’m watching wildlife with an excited group of tourists, I occasionally get asked by someone if they can use my binoculars, so I want to clear something up. Asking to use my binoculars is like asking to wear my underwear – just not something you do in polite safari company! This is THE tool of my trade. I feel naked without them, a feeling not too dissimilar to that of going commando!  I don’t know any guide who feels comfortable handing over his second ‘wife’ (or husband) for someone else to handle – I do it grudgingly with a polite smile that hides my anxiety and the traveller’s innocent slight to safari etiquette.

On a recent safari to Kenya and Tanzania I was lucky enough to watch two cheetah kills from beginning to end in crisp close-up detail – through my binoculars. Those people in the group who either didn’t have a pair or shared with a partner missed so much of the action I almost felt sorry for them, but only almost. As a percentage of the total cost of a safari, the layout for a decent pair of binoculars is insignificant, so it baffles me that some folk will elect to do without, or pay for something totally inadequate, or buy something cheap and nasty, or share a pair between a couple. Even if said couple will happily share underwear, it is just not the done thing when it comes to binoculars.

Without Binos

Every safari comes with a hefty price tag so it stands to reason that any participant would want to get the absolute most out of the experience – bang for their buck …. or lion, or cheetah, or leopard! Almost all national parks and reserves in Africa have strict rules about driving off-road, and the high-profile animals everyone wants to see are more often than not some distance from the track. How can you appreciate a sighting without at least eight times magnification?  Even when an animal is close, there is an appreciation of the finer details to be had – the hairs on an elephant’s trunk, the non-retractable claws on the cheetah, the exquisite chevron on a Zebra’s face. Then there are the birds! According to Prof. Google (who consulted Birdlife International) Africa has 2477 species of feathered dinosaurs ranging from the giant ostrich down to the diminutive Cape Penduline Tit. They display every colour of the rainbow, and then a few more that we can’t see because we are blind to infrared and ultraviolet. To appreciate this bounty of beauty to the max decent quality binoculars are a must.

With Binoculars

So, dear reader, let me help you make a wise and measured choice you will not regret, and which will dramatically enhance your safari experience.

There are three main considerations to make when buying binoculars:

1. Magnification

2. Field of view

3. Quality of product

Magnification

Speaking plainly this is the number of times the lenses of the binoculars will enlarge the scene they are pointed at. It is displayed as the first number on a binocular’s specifications, e.g. 8 x 30 refers to a magnification of 8. This is the baseline magnification you should opt for – anything under that will be barely, if at all, adequate. At the other end of the scale, you can get naval binoculars that have 24 x magnification (and higher). They are heavy, impossible to hold still enough to not get seasick when you look through them and really an overkill for the task of watching wildlife - unless it’s on the ocean’s distant horizon. What is the magic mag? Most professional guides have settled on 10 x – for good reason. Closer is better but shake and field of view are also important to get a crisp view and ‘ten’ is the happy medium.

Field of view

Those cute little binoculars that fold into a tiny bag and fit into your pocket…. rubbish. Do not be tempted! They may check off the magnification and quality requirement, but their field of view is so limited that by the time you find the animal or bird pointed out to you another geologic epoch has passed. Field of view is determined by the second number on the displayed specs – the 30 in our example of 8 x 30. It specifically refers to the diameter, in millimetres, of the objective lens (that’s the lens you point towards the object you want to get a closer look at). Once again 8 x 30 is a good baseline requirement for your purchase.

Bee Eaters up close

However, as you go up in magnification, you need to go up in lens diameter – greater magnification results in narrower field of view that needs to be compensated for so if you want to go for a 10x magnification then 40mm lens is the bare minimum you should look out for. A decent field of view has one very important added advantage – light gathering. At dusk, when the lions are rousing for their nocturnal wanderings, our eyes are adjusting to the fading light and frankly don’t do a very good job. However, binos with a wide field of view will give you twenty minutes or more of really good viewing because of the intrinsic light gathering properties. If we use my professional brethren as a yardstick again, most guides’ 10x binoculars have objective lenses between 40 and 50 mm – mine are 10 x 50.

Quality of Product

Get on to any online store and you will be bombarded by choice. Each product comes with a whole vocabulary of sales-speak designed to hook the customer. It can be daunting and overwhelming. As a general rule, if you, one, have heard of the brand, and two, the price raises your eyebrow a little bit then you are on the right track. With binoculars, price is almost always linked to quality. Top brands like Swarovski enter the market at about $3000 a pop, but well-known brands like Nikon have models in the $270 range. If your budget is limited to something a little less eye-watering than Swarovski (they do come with a lifetime guarantee) then I believe you cannot go wrong with something in the $350-500 range. My exceptional Vortex Viper HD 10x50’s are retailing at around $430.

Other ‘quality’ markers to look out for: -‘Nitrogen filled’ which enables the binoculars to operate in a variety of climatic conditions without fogging up.  - ‘Roof prism’ binoculars are less bulky and more robust than Granpa’s old Porro prism ones and can be nitrogen filled and waterproofed. - ‘Coated lens’ means that special materials are used to coat the objective lens which increases light gathering and reduces light reflection.

If your online choice is hitting all these notes, it really only comes down to your personal style, ergonomic preferences, and budget thereafter. You would do well to remember that a good pair of binoculars could well be ‘for life’. They will enhance visual experiences, long after your first (and hopefully not last) safari and for all the other wild places you may visit around the globe.

A frequent traveller observation I hear is “we have a weight limit and the binoculars were too bulky to bring”. Then when we must dip our footwear at the Botswana border (where paranoia about Foot & Mouth disease prevails) folk will bring out 4 EXTRA pairs of shoes! My advice is three extra pairs is more than enough (and two more than what I carry). So, when it’s time to pack for the much-anticipated safari the very first item to go in the bag should be the binoculars. After that you can worry about whether the loafers are really necessary …. or whether you have enough underwear to avoid sharing.