Alpen Optics binoculars on display at the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival.
If you are entertaining the idea of buying a new pair of binoculars or a spotting scope, the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival is definitely one of your best opportunities to do so. The advantage to attending the Festival is that you can try out the entire line of binoculars, spotting scopes and all the accessories, and ask questions of the sales staff of all the vendors. Some of the optics vendors represented at the 2010 Festival were:
- Swarovski
- Eagle Optics
- Alpen Optics
- Kowa
- Nikon
- Leica Sports Optics
By the end of the Festival I realized that the cheapo Walmart binoculars I was pretending to use were holding me back. Other birders were easily finding birds in the treetops and seeing yellow rumps, white wing bars, white eye rings and other subtleties that my binoculars just could not bring out. Unfortunately my schedule was so tight that I was unable to try out the wares of each vendor. But I managed to attract the attention of Tony Proper, VP of Alpen Optics who helped me pick out just the right pair of binoculars. And he didn’t seem a bit disappointed that I wasn’t going to spend $500.
R to L, Captain Ben Evans of Wildside Tours stopped by the Alpen Optics booth to chat with Tom Hallett and Tony Proper of Alpen as I was leaving with my new purchase.
I actually did try out some of Alpen’s higher priced binoculars, but couldn’t see a big difference–possibly because my eyes are not yet trained to look through binoculars. So I settled on a pair of 8X42 Shasta Ridge waterproof binoculars. Final price was about $150. Several birders told me that when you get up into the really high price range binoculars there is a big difference in clarity and brightness.
My new Alpen binoculars, purchased at the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival.
Shortly after returning from the Festival I tried out my new glass at Fort Desoto Park in St. Petersburg, FL. I had a great morning watching Yellow-rumped warblers, a Yellow-throated warbler, a Blue-gray gnatcatcher, and several Palm warblers flitting about in the oaks and Australian pines, and some Northern Gannets diving in Tampa Bay in the Egmont Channel. The new binoculars were a joy to use, even while wearing my glasses.
No matter what kind of optics you are interested in, the vendors at the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival have you covered.
A good pair of binoculars is so important to a birder that after a while they seem like a natural extension of the hand.
Looking for a good pair of birding binoculars? Numerous top brands are represented at the Festival, including these Eagle Optics and Swarovski binoculars. This is the place to actually give them all a try before buying.
I learned a lot about binoculars at the Festival. One of the main things I learned was that an 8 power binocular is just about perfect. I used to think that the higher the power, the better. Problem is that once you get above 8 power, it’s a lot harder to keep the image steady without using a tripod. Binoculars have really improved over the years and the clarity and brightness you get with today’s binoculars is amazing. So if you are using an old pair you’ve had around since the 1970’s, it’s time for a new pair!
FTC Disclosure of Material Connections: I receive compensation from the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival for writing about the 2010 Festival. I also receive a great deal of personal satisfaction from writing about this wonderful event.
