Get by with 1 pair of binoculars?

[account4fun]

We are going to AK in June and need to purchase a decent pair of binoculars. We probably won't have much use from them afterwards so we want to get a reasonably priced pair. My question is if we have a camera with a 400mm zoom for viewing and one pair of binocs can we get by in places like Denali? We also are not people to sit on our balcony for ours with binocs either. Hoping to say myself some money here ;)

[whale-watcher]

Wildlife viewing through a telephoto lens is nowhere near as good as wildlife viewing through a quality pair of binoculars...too narrow a field of view, and the image is usually darker. I personally do not enjoy sharing a pair of binoculars...bird and wildlife sightings can be fleeting, and I hate to miss out...but YMMV, and many people seem content with a quick glimpse.

[InternetAgeTraveler]

You certainly can "get by" just expect some contention when you see a bear, whale, caribou, etc. at a distance and everyone wants a chance to look. Plus everyones eyes are a bit different which means some adjusting each time you switch.

 

We took multiple pair but you should have seen the look I got when I let another couple borrow my DW's pair when we ran across some mountain goats on a hill side.

[tjroadster]

we are planning to take two pairs of zen-ray ZRS HD binoculars with us. It will be shared among 4 of us. We may have to get one more pair so we don't miss a good wildlife sighting opportunity.

[vbmom87]

My DH and I shared a pair and my sister had her own. They were nice to have in Denali, but my DH and I had no problem sharing. We even let some people who didn't bring any, look through ours. My sister hardly ever pulled hers out. Everyone is different. I had told my sister that the recommendation on this forum was to have your own binoculars. So she bought decent ones. We also bought a new pair. Frankly, I didn't like being bogged down with cameras, binoculars, backpacks, etc. When we went to Hawaii this year we left the binoculars and the good camera home. Just didn't want all that extra baggage to lug around. We didn't get quite the quality of photos with the pocket camera, but we are more than satisfied with what we did get.

[account4fun]

Thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts. Other then money I also am concerned about lugging them around in addition to our camera and lenses. I think we will try to get by with one pair unless we find a really good deal on lightweight ones!:D

[Cabunit]

Our trade-off sweet spot is one pair of "eyes" and one DSLR with a good lens. One spots - the other shoots. As noted above the lens look isn't as good, but we want the pictures as well as the (fading at our age) memories.

[Putterdude]

We only take one pair of binoculars for the two of us and find that is quite adequate.

[Traveller20074]

I had the only binocs on our Alaska cruise last May.

 

My cabinmates kept borrowing them and changing the settings :mad: :rolleyes:

 

 

I will NEVER SHARE mine ever again. One pair per person IMHO :D

[Traveller20074]

We only take one pair of binoculars for the two of us and find that is quite adequate.

 

You must have exactly the same vision as your partner.

[account4fun]

You must have exactly the same vision as your partner.

 

My husband has 20/20 and I have that with my glasses. That's fine right?

[kathynorth]

To properly use binoculars you need to adjust the settings. You may find it difficult to share if your eyesight is different. By the time you change the settings you may lose sight of where the whale or eagle was that was spotted by your other half. Also, there are different magnifications that impact how far you can see and the width of the vision field. My DH prefers the 10x42 for distance, while I preferred the 8x42 because they seemed less shaky. I had never used binoculars before going to Alaska, but now take mine with us to on routine beach trips, hikes in the mountains, etc. We spent lots of $ on our cruise, so IMO I thought it was worth another $100 to enhance both our experiences. A poster on another link mentioned that Zenray has a current 20% off coupon on their website. We ordered their waterproof versions and were very satistied.

[vbmom87]

My husband has 20/20 and I have that with my glasses. That's fine right?

 

should be...my DH and I had no problems. Any change in adjustments was minor. All I can tell you is we will never lug two full sized pair of binoculars. The older we get, the lighter we want to travel. Perhaps two super serious wildlife watchers would likely need their own. However, for the vacationer who is not so serious about catching ever aspect of every animal spotted, you will be fine.

[SFAM]

If you're only going to get one pair, make it a decent one. I personally LOVED the Cannon Image stabilizer binoculors (the 8x25 works fine). This is really great if you're viewing off the ship. You can focus on whales far away and still really see them fine. Normal binocs will be bouncing around a lot. But we had 3 for a family of 4 (only one really good pair) - two would have worked just fine.

[slamminsalmon]

Heck yeah, you can get by with one pair. My wife and I don't mind sharing one bit. We are both considerate of each other and share well, so it works fine. I've got a pair of 10x40 leupolds that are small, rugged and super clear. Good for hunting, but work great for wildlife viewing too. They cost like $300.

[OJ46]

I agree, unless you are serious wildlife viewers sharing is just fine. Since you don't already own good binoculars, my guess is that this is not the case. ;) I too, don't like to be bogged down on vacations with carrying lot of extra stuff.

[kGCAL]

during our first cruise to Hawaii, one pair of binoculars didn't really work well for us. We decided to get some zenray VISTA binocualars so we don't have to share. When we got them, they were on sale for $150. DH claimed it is better than our $300 binos.

[tjroadster]

Do people take 10x or 8x for their trips?

[vbmom87]

Do people take 10x or 8x for their trips?

 

Those seem to be the most common. We ended up with 8x, because we were told you need to be more steady holding the 10x.

[account4fun]

I just found out my parents have a pair of Nikon 7x35(approx) for boating. I know there are better ones but this would at least be decent (not ideal) for denali right? They are not fixed focus either. I think this makes sense for us because I hate to just waste money and for us buying binoculars would be!

[vbmom87]

I just found out my parents have a pair of Nikon 7x35(approx) for boating. I know there are better ones but this would at least be decent (not ideal) for denali right? They are not fixed focus either. I think this makes sense for us because I hate to just waste money and for us buying binoculars would be!

 

Lots of people go with NO binoculars, so yes, you will be better off than others. When you read these boards too much, you can quickly end up spending lots of money on all the items that are recommended.

[account4fun]

When you read these boards too much, you can quickly end up spending lots of money on all the items that are recommended.

 

 

I absolutely agree! :D

[tjroadster]

Those seem to be the most common. We ended up with 8x, because we were told you need to be more steady holding the 10x.

 

We have 8x and 10x. Since we need another pair so we don't have to share, we are debating whether 8x is better for teenagers?

[vbmom87]

We have 8x and 10x. Since we need another pair so we don't have to share, we are debating whether 8x is better for teenagers?

 

Best thing to do is take them to a park or zoo and let them try out your 8x and 10x. Let them decide which they like best.

[kGCAL]

Best thing to do is take them to a park or zoo and let them try out your 8x and 10x. Let them decide which they like best.

 

yes, let your kids decide which one they like better. For us, our 14-year old really like the 10x42 Zen-ray VISTA we bought for him.