I have a Leica T77 with 32x eyepiece. It has a wonderful wide range
view, is crystal clear, sharp to the max, no halo or rainbows. I get
every minute detail of the bird every time and it's a pleasure to
use. You feel like you're standing next to the bird with a magnifying
glass. The eyepiece is extremely generous and you'll never want to
use those peepshow things which cheaper brands supply once you've
used the Leica. The Leica has a nice quick focus ring to get you from
distant to close very rapidly which is sometimes useful and a fine
focus ring, which is always useful.
I've used Swarovski scopes and the optics are as good or perhaps
better if possible. They are more compact, lighter and I think easier
to manage. I also like the large focal ring which encompasses the
body of the scope. Both scopes are excellent in low light conditions
- the very time when birding is frequently at its best.
I'm not sure about the strength of Swarovskis but I think that the
Leicas must have the toughness edge. They certainly look more robust.
Recently my scope took a tumble when wind caught it on a rocky reef.
The tripod was on top of a large boulder, so the scope fell a
distance of three metres. It got one small impact mark on the front
rubber-coated lens hood and the scope still functions as perfectly as
the first time I used it. The tripod was shattered and had to be
repaired at a welders. In summary: they're very tough.
When at the Broome Bird Observatory we used to have some old Kowas
(they've updated their scopes recently). The old Kowas must have
really stood up to some tough treatment over many years but despite
their battered exteriors, they still did the job very nicely and I
have to say that I have produced some beautiful digiscoped images
through them (I'll send copies of images if you wish).
As for eyepieces, I would steer away from zoom lenses on Kowas or any
of the cheaper brands as you loose quality when zooming at higher
magnifications. They're fine on Swarovskis and guess they would be on
Leicas (though I haven't used one on this brand to memory). I cannot
think of any reason why you would want anything but an angled
eyepiece. They'll save you considerable back ache, are vastly
superior for most digiscoping and make viewing raptors overhead quite
achieveable without kneeling on the ground. You can't do that so
easily with a straight eyepiece. I think that straight eyepieces are
for people who use these scopes for other applications, like hunting.
My only word of warning is don't buy a cheap scope.
Ricki Coughlan
Sydney
On 24/09/2007, at 2:41 PM, Dave Torr wrote:
I too love my Kowa - TSN823. I have the 20-60x zoom and 28x wide angle
- in practise I always use the zoom although in reality it is rarely
useful over above 30-40x. I wear glasses and it has a fold back rubber
cap which is good - only minor issue is that you can't screw the lens
protector on when the cap is folded down. I have an angled one - I
think opinions differ on which is the best to get.
On 24/09/2007, Bill Stent <> wrote:
I, too, love my Kowa.
Bill
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of Alistair
McKeough
Sent: Monday, 24 September 2007 2:20 PM
To:
Cc:
Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] RFI spotting scopes
Martin, I'll make no comment on specific brands other than to say I'm
very happy with my (relatively) cheap Kowa.
However, I really wish I'd bought a wide angle fixed 30x eyepiece and
not a zoom version. If possible, look through both and see whether
you
can really resolve much more detail at 50-60x on a zoom to 30x on a
fixed.
Alistair
On 24/09/2007,
<>
wrote:
Some advice from list members would be appreciated on currently
available spotting scopes for birding. As a first time prospective
buyer of one, I'm keen to hear people's thoughts on what they would
recommend.
I am not a regular wader-viewer and don't especially know the group
very well either. My use therefore is likely to be as much on
land as
it is at the coast or at large wetlands.
It would need to be
- durable,
- weather and water proof and
- easy to use for spectacle wearers.
I quite like the idea of using the angled eyepiece but am open to
people's thoughts on this as well.
Thoughts on the current Swarovski and Leica spotting scopes would be
most welcome and whether I should be considering a zoom eyepiece and
other 'accessories'.
Martin O'Brien
Melbourne
Notice:
This email and any attachments may contain information that is
personal, confidential, legally privileged and/or copyright.No
part of
it should be reproduced, adapted or communicated without the prior
written consent of the copyright owner.
It is the responsibility of the recipient to check for and remove
viruses.
If you have received this email in error, please notify the
sender by
return email, delete it from your system and destroy any copies. You
are not authorised to use, communicate or rely on the information
contained in this email.
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
|
