Recommendation: Ideal binoculars for ornithology - bird identification, bird species, native birds, ornithology, even insect observation

The Birdwatching is one of the most important areas of application for binoculars. Ornithologists or amateur birdwatchers lurk in nature and try to get pretty and, above all, rare birds in front of their binoculars. Once you have a beautiful bird with its fantastic colours in front of your Lens 4 properties must be right:

  1. Resolution of the binoculars - image sharpness
  2. Colour reproduction - absolutely true to life
  3. Brightness in coordination with the colour rendering
  4. Reasonable, pleasant Edge sharpness - a little edge sharpness corresponds to the nature of the eye
  5. as large as possible Field of vision to experience the whole picture spatially

Special requirements of ornithologists for bird identification and bird watching

The following is also required:

Binoculars handiness

On the "Picture hunt" for birds it is very important that you have the binoculars quickly to hand and that they are not bulky. It is best if they can be gripped easily with one hand.

The situation is different if the Binoculars with thread on tripod and makes continuous observations. Then a weight of 1.6 kg, for example, does not matter. For all freehand observations, we recommend a maximum weight of 900 grams.

Flexibility and focussing travel of the adjustment wheel

With the Birdwatching you have to pan back and forth a lot. Birds are almost always on the move. You have to Then frequently refocus the imageas the distance also changes frequently. With binoculars, it is therefore important that the focussing can always be adjusted very finely and, above all, without play. It is also very important that the focussing wheel does not have to be turned for too long to get the "fast image" in focus. This is best tested directly on the binoculars. It is important that the "Focusing speed of the rotation" is matched to the rotational resistance.

The magnification has a direct effect on the Binoculars focusing from: Binoculars with 7x magnification need to be focussed less often than 12x binoculars.

Binoculars image quality for birdwatching

The most important thing in birdwatching is image sharpness coupled with colour rendition!

Only if the Colours of the feathers can recognise them as they really are, it's fun. Highest quality Remuneration from Prisms and Lenses are unavoidable. In the case of roof edge glazing, this means that the prisms must have a Variety of dielectric layers must have. Only binoculars with Porro Prisms can do without them - but the small field of view prevents many people from using such binoculars for birdwatching.

Recommended binoculars for birdwatching

For birdwatching, we recommend at least a 10x Enlargement and a 42 mm lens.

General binocular comparison and suitability according to objective lens diameter

Luminous intensity Lens Utilisation
low 25mm Lightweight and small pocket binoculars Ideal for normal lighting conditions
medium 30mm, 32mm Small all-round binoculars Ideal until the early morning Twilight
medium higher 42mm, 45mm All-round binoculars Ideal until (late) dusk
high 50mm, 56mm, 60mm Heavier night glasses for astronomy, for low light conditions, in the evening and at night

Comparison of binoculars and suitability by magnification

Magnification medium
 7x, 8x, 8.5x, 10x, 10.5x  Binoculars for sport, nature observation, astronomy, travel, ornithology, safari, observation
General scope for selection: Small and handy with low light intensity or high light intensity with normal size and weight
Magnification high
 12x, 15x  Binoculars for birdwatching, nature observation, safari, security, surveillance or border protection