binoculars auto focus - how work

[johnalison]

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and both my wife and I with totally differnet eyesight get on with them fine.

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You've put your finger on the point; anyoneone can pick up a pair and they are ready to use without the trouble of re-focussing every time. Handy in the cockpit even if you may want a better pair for special uses.

 

[Anonymous]

My Canon auto focus bins have a servo motor to drive the lenses - you can hear it. Works fine with glasses and I have an astigmatism and vari-focals. One of the best bits of kit on the boat and one of our best ever buys. But pricey, we paid £250 at the SIBS 2004.

 

[Lakesailor]

From a page on binos
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Finally comes the question of focusing. tf you are interested in wildlife you might find it useful to have glasses which focus very close. Figures for this are rarely quoted so you just have to try them and see. Some focus free binoculars have a compromise optical design so that everything from about 12m/40 feet (which is not very close) is reasonably sharp without any focusing being necessary. In my experience the best of these can work quite well (although they don’t have a very wide angle of view); the worst are not worth bothering with. They are also no good for astronomy. My advice is not to buy a pair of these unless you have tried them out in comparison with conventional glasses and are satisfied that they work well for you; they work best for people with normal eyesight. It is now possible to buy autofocus binoculars using battery-powered systems developed from cameras, at a significant increase in price.

Another feature from the same source is image stabilisation, which makes it easier to use hand-held high-powered binoculars as it stops the image from jerking about so much. This also adds significantly to the price and weight, and requires batteries.

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Whole page Here

 

[Anonymous]

Suddenly realised - my Canons are Image Stabilised, not Auto Focus. Sorry.

 

[johnalison]

Well spotted! But they are terrific on the boat aren't they? Well worth the price, but not waterproof, so we keep the old Yashica pair for rough use.

 

[jamesgrant]

Thanks again guys.

There is a lot to this bino business.

The ones I have just bought are a present for someone and not for marine use, but I have learnt a lot from your posts and links about maritime binos.

There is certainly something to be said for being able to pick up a pair and have them work from all users.

 

[ean_p]

If your in Hull then try Cookes on Lowgate. They'll fix em if worth fixing.

 

[Gunfleet]

Thanks. The boat is five minute's walk from Lowgate, though I am an bit of an ingenue southerner in Hull. I'll explore.

 

[doug748]

One use of the ability to close focus is lying on the deck to peer at the masthead when there is summat up. A rare event but I seem to end up doing it at least once a season.

 

[macd]

Agree: I wouldn't have felt ripped off if I'd paid £80 for them, but at £40 they're astounding. They're no more autofocus than Bertie Wooster's monocle, but the depth of field is truly impressive. I wear specs, but usually take them off to use the Plastimos and the image is fine. Some bins I simply can't get on with at all, and perhaps others might have trouble with the Plastimos, but for me, they're the biz.

 

[jamesgrant]

Good point.
I have certainly had to do that more than once or twice.

 

[misterg]

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You obviously haven't tried Monk's then, as bright and clear an image as you will need.

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No, I've not tried Monk's. 2-3 years ago, I was prepared to spend upto £100 on a pair of bins for general use, but including astronomy.

I trawled through pretty much every shop near me and went through pretty much everything Jessops had to offer (OK, I know!) and came away with one of their mid-price 7 x 50's (ca. £70). The first time I tried to look at stars through them, I realised what a P.O.S. they were - Tiny exit pupil, vignetted image despite being BAK4 prisms, field curvature - very unhappy. In fairness to Jessops, they gave me the money back without any hassle.

I then went to Cambrian Photography (a plug, but no connection), and tried several different makes, probably the best being Olympus. While marginally better than the Helios, they were more than 3 x the price, so I came away with the Helios Field Master 7x50, and I haven't been disappointed. I'd have happily bought the Olympus ones if they'd impressed me. I'm sure there are better bins around, but I can't really pick fault with them - the whole image is in focus, and is bright and crisp with good eye relief and exit pupil. There is some chromatic aberration on bright edges, but there was with most of the ones I looked at. At ~£30, I'm not afraid to get them out and use them. They are a different breed to the Jessops £70 ones.

Plug for Cambrian Photography (Colwyn Bay), who really seem to know what they're talking about, and having been faced with a man waving £100 sent him away happy with a pair of £30 bins. The other caveat, is that price is no guide until you get to (what is for me) Serious Money.

YMMV.

Andy

 

[Gunfleet]

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They're no more autofocus than Bertie Wooster's monocle

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please don't be so funny while I'm drinking tea. I've inhaled it. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Lakesailor]

Cookes are just beyond the market hall (past the church) Whilst there go into the toilets below the King Billy statue. The cisterns are made from marble and glass and use to have goldfish in them (true).

 

[Gunfleet]

I forgot you were from there. Thanks. What we need now is for someone to post the inside of that amazing marble and granite urinal in Bute!

 

[Lakesailor]

 

[Gunfleet]

I sincerely hope that place is grade 1 listed! ps is this classic Fred Drift?

 

[Lakesailor]

Don't really know. More info

 

[misterg]

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I don't normally like people 'quoting' photos, but *that* is a pissoir par excellence.

Andy

 

[Lakesailor]

See how they've arranged a steep gradient so the effluent doesn't hang around!!