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best depth of field

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spot shooter View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spot shooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: best depth of field
    Posted: January/30/2006 at 21:07

What Binoc's give the best depth of field.

 

i.e.  Which one's have more distance in focus than others of comperable size.

 

   I'm looking at a pair of compacts 8x20, and  8x32 size (two one of eac).

 

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote anweis Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 05:44
most probably the 8x32. even better depth of field would be in the 7x binoculars
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spot shooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 07:47

Anweis,

 

      I was thinking which brand Leica, Nikon, .... has the best field of view given the same magnification.

 

I do believe the depth of view gets better as you say, i'm just looking for how the vendors stack up against each other.

 

Thanks,

Spot

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dale Clifford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 09:21
Without an iris, such as found in cameras, the depth of field (what there is of it) will decrease as magnification increases.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote anweis Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 09:27

Originally posted by Dale Clifford Dale Clifford wrote:

the depth of field (what there is of it) will decrease as magnification increases.

 

And that will be unrelated to brand/manufacturer.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lucznik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 12:20

 

To my knowledge, noone has ever actually measured for comparison purposes the actual depth of field of any binoculars. This would be a fascinating set of information to have as currently all depth of field claims are largely anecdotal and usually highly suspect. There are some optical illusions that can come into play here which will skew anyone's perceptions. (I'm not really qualified to explain them but, there have been some fascinating technical threads about this very topic over on birdforum.net if you have an interest in looking them up.)

 

 

What if the hokey pokey really is what it's all about?
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Roy Finn View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Roy Finn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 15:01
Steiner's have the best depth of field, period.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lucznik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 17:28

Originally posted by Roy Finn Roy Finn wrote:

Steiner's have the best depth of field, period.

 

Roy,

 

How exactly are you measuring this?  I know you like the I.F. feature that is almost germane to the Steiner name but, have you compared their "sport focus" to other makers' I.F. function?  Is greater depth of field (IYO) a funtion of the I.F. feature or is it something unique to the Steiners? And if so, what is it that they do that creates this effect?

What if the hokey pokey really is what it's all about?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spot shooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 18:21

I have read a few articles about DOF and most state that it becomes important with spotting scopes and high magnification.  Then it went on to say this is why you want Leica, or some other high quality optics.

 

   I was thinking that this is probably also true of binoculars.

 

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dale Clifford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/31/2006 at 20:46
A difficulty is that depth of field changes, even with the same binocular, depending on the distance of the object. So a given binocular will have a different depth of field for each focal range, greater for further and lesser for closer. Most binoculars don't have enough magnification to make this a real problem, if they did you wouldn't see so many for around $100, at around 12x things start to change fast in scopes, spotting scopes and binoc. In scopes this doesn't matter because you want everything in the same plane anyway. In spotting scopes around 40x this difference is what you are paying for. Bird watching probably falls into this latter catagory. If they are that far away it is to far for a shotgun anyway.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lucznik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/01/2006 at 10:12

So could you measure the DOF at a specific distance for comparison purposes or would it be essentially the same for a given magnification regardless of manufacturer? Would the changes for different distances then be predictable?  Or is all of this unrelated to magnification and due to some other aspect of optical design?

What if the hokey pokey really is what it's all about?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Roy Finn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/02/2006 at 22:20
lucznik, Steiners do not utilize " fast focus" type systems like all others. They utilize a diopter system which give them the depth of field, much like a riflescope.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lucznik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/03/2006 at 10:19

Roy,

 

I am familiar with the Individual Focus system of the Steiners. My question is more related to the specific dynamics of why and how such a system would create a longer depth of field than a Center Focus system. After all, when properly used, all CF designs incorporate a diopter adjustment process to "fit" each optical barrel to its coinciding eye. Thus the IF focus would not (at least not at "first blush") seem to have any apparent advantage on this score.

 

My further question relates to how you are measuring depth of field as I am unaware of any published figures relating to this aspect of binocular performance.  In all of the reviews I have ever read, depth of field is left to the very subjective assessment of the person doing the review and there is no apparent consensus among reviewers. In fact, they often can be found directly contradicting each other in their claims.  This leads me to suspect that such claims are largely the result of optical illusions coupled with reviewer bias. 

 

I hope that doesn't come off too strong.  I'm not accusing you of anything here, just trying to find out how this particular measurement is really accomplished.

What if the hokey pokey really is what it's all about?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Roy Finn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/15/2006 at 11:51

From the President of Pioneer Research:

 

The Nighthunters are very bright, especially the 8x56.   When we measured lighttransmission across the visible color spectrum comparing to the Zeiss and Swaro 8x56 models, the Nighthunter actually came out ahead across the entire tranmission range over the other two.   So don't look at the Steiner's as cost savings, but rather as the low light advantage.  The peak transmission for the 8x56 Nighthunter is in the 96-97% range, which is extremely high for a binocular, if not record setting.

The reason they cost a little less is also an advantage; they are a porro body style, which costs less to manufacture but has the great advantage of giving a very high depth of field; perfect for low light glassing - you set the focus once and everything is sharp from about 25 yards on out.    With a roof prism, you get slightly more compact size, but lack the depth of field and you will have to focus and re-focus more often.  The weight is about the same, in fact the Steiner is usually lighter becasue of the use of composites and polycarbonate materials, which are very durable and also very light.

Hope this info is helpful.

Sven Harms, Steiner

 

Also from Sven Harms:

 

The best thing the Victory have going for them are the optics; they're very good, have decent brightness and excellent resolution.   Durability however, is a different story - we ran a number of field tests on this glass and found it to be more fragile and far less waterproof than the Nighthunters, even with the Nighthunters extended lens barrels.   

We sell the Nighthunters best to low -light experienced users, there is absolutely no eyestrain on the NH'sl, in fact, the high depth of field in low light is a tremendous advantage over center-focus style binoculars.  CF style roofs have specific "focus windows" which are in most cases about 20 or so yards of depth for every time you need to readjust the focus.   Needless to say, this is difficult in extreme shadows or darkness.



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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gremlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/20/2006 at 23:51
For what it's worth, if it's just a question of depth of field in focus, no binocular I've used in over thirty years matches the depth of field on a Bushnell Xtrawide 5x25.

It's probably not what you're looking for, but having used hundreds of binoculars in my life, I found that particular binocular to have a depth of field second to none.

Not exactly a hunting binoc, but it's the answer to the question posed by the title of the topic "Best depth of field"...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote koshkin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/21/2006 at 20:25

Depth of field is inversely related to the magnification.  Also, porro designs tend to have better depth of field than roofs due to the wider spacing between the objective lenses. 

 

ILya

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Wheels Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/22/2006 at 10:37
what I've found to be true
If a binocular has a close focus, 10 feet or under it will have a poor depth of field.  I like the Swarovski SLC's the best for depth of field and they have an 8x30.  Not as good as the Steiner depth but a nicer size to carry all day.
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