binoculars for birdwatching?

[200Plus Club]

Just after a bit of advice please for my dad who is wanting some decent binocs for birdwatching.
Hes not skint and wont mind paying for quality but nothing outlandish :-)
Suggestions and advice welcome

[nellyleelephant]

I recently bought a pair of Canon stabilised ones to use whilst out with the camera. Not cheap and they do suffer from a small amount of chromatic aberration but the stabilisation has been very useful!

These http://www.wexphotographic.com/buy-canon-12x36-is-...

[markmullen]

My dad just bought some Leica binos, he's not a birder, just likes nice things. They're beautifully made and superb IQ.

[CVP]

The majority of birders I see are using Swarovski binoculars. They have a good blend of price and performance. The EL range seem very good but you are looking at around £2k for a nice pair of 8.5*42's (max I would go for). I have tried a pair and the optical quality is just wonderful

Key for hand held performance is not to try and grab too much magnification (the first number) and then you just have to be able to carry the things all day, so a 42 width lens (the second number) is a good compromise on the amount of light coming in v's overall weight, 50 diameter lenses will let more light in but be heavier to carry around.

Personally for hand held I would stay under 10* magnification and I would focus on
(a) optical quality
(b) weight
(c) weather proofing

http://uk.swarovskioptik.com/nature/el-42-c2101010...

There is no doubt Leica make fantastic quality kit too so they are another good option, in fact I've tracked down a similar spec pair at a cheaper price from a UK retailer
http://www.cliftoncameras.co.uk/Leica_Ultravid_8x4...

The one thing I would get him is one of the harnesses for carrying the binoculars like this design http://www.cliftoncameras.co.uk/Bushnell_Deluxe_Bi.... It spread the weight over your shoulders and stops having all the weight being carried round your neck. They also keep the binoculars nice and flat against the chest when you're not holding them up to your eyes. This kind of carrier just makes it more pleasant wearing the binoculars for a long period of time.

Chris

[DIW35]

I have a pair of Celestron 9x33. They offer good magnification without being too heavy, and good optics would fool you into thinking the objective lenses are bigger than 33mm.

ETA: And they can be fitted with a tripod adapter.

[200Plus Club]

thank you for the replies, will have a look and pass this info onto him. :-)