Michigan G Hunters Blog

The Spotting Scope Compromise

Tue, 03 Nov 2015 23:16:05 -0500

When I throw things in my daypack for a day afield or into a backpack for a longer hunt-I usually hold a spotting scope in my hand and study it for a while. Do I really need it? All of us are likely to throw rain gear, perhaps an extra jacket layer, lunch, compass, extra knife and sharpening stone, extra ammo, flashlight, and so forth into our packs. Before you know it, your pack is full and getting heavy.

A spotting scope and tripod are just two more things to carry, but I’ve sure left mine at home or in camp a whole bunch of times and wished I had it with me. The problem with spotting scopes is that the really good ones usually aren’t compact. They are great for use from a vehicle or horseback, but as much as you’d like to have their capability on top of a sheep mountain, few of us are frisky enough to lug them up there even if there’s room in the pack.

So when the decision is made that a spotting scope should go in the pack, most of us compromise. We carry smaller, lighter scopes that will fit in the pack and are of bearable weight– “compromise scopes.” Calling them such is not a negative. Compact spotting scopes such as those from Burris, Bushnell, Leupold, Simmons and others do indeed greatly expand the range at which you can both spot game and judge trophy potential. Smaller spotting scopes are invaluable tools, and most of us get along perfectly well with only these.

But don’t kid yourself that these daypack-size scopes are the same as full-size telescopes; they will generally not be as bright, and there is usually a noticeable difference in the distance at which, even in good light, they will resolve small objects such as antler tips. You can see the difference if you try to focus on small caliber bullet holes at 300 yards, and you can definitely see the difference if you’re trying to figure out how many points a buck is carrying or how big a ram’s horns are at 1,200 yards or more.

The compromise of a small spotting scope is necessary because there is a limit on what can be carried, so compact models fill an important need. Within the confines of portability and affordability, the trick is to find the best resolution and the most brightness you can. There are some excellent spotting scopes out there that offer fine performance in portable packages, and now there’s one more.

Visit my blog by click on Hunting Optics Hub to read the best of reviews about Spotting scope

It is not the most compact scope by any means, but with a length of just under 12 ½ inches and an objective lens with an outside diameter of 2 ¾ inches, it is compact enough to fit into a daypack. It is also not the lightest scope, but it’s light enough at about 26 ½ ounces. The objective is a full 60mm, making it quite bright, and the power range is 1540X-a good low range for locating distant game and a high range powerful enough to zoom in at great distances. The body is aircraft aluminum coated with black rubber armoring.

The focusing ring and power adjustment ring (in that order from the rear of the scope) encircle the scope body just in front of the ocular lens. In my opinion, this is an ideal arrangement for speed and simplicity; I found it easy to focus the scope and increase the power without losing the image and having to relocate it.

Best of all, the optics are superb. Shepherd’s literature stresses the scope’s excellent resolution, and it’s not an exaggeration. I used the Spotting Scope on a recent hunt in the Yukon, and I was able to judge accurately sheep horns and moose and caribou antlers at quite amazing distances. The scope was bright in low light as well.

No, it won’t do what a scope that is twice as large and costs twice as much will do. Why should it, and how could it? But it is a clear and bright scope that’s small enough and light enough to carry to the top of the mountain. At a suggested retail of $675, it is certainly not the least expensive scope that fills this need, but this optical quality in a compact package makes it a whole lot of scope for the money. If you’re shopping for a spotting scope to take hunting as well as to the range, don’t overlook this one.

A spotting scope is only as good as the tripod you put it on. In conjunction with its Spotting Scope, Shepherd has also introduced a new stand called the Magna-Pod. This is not a stand you would carry up a sheep mountain, nor is it so designed. It is, however, an extremely clever setup consisting of a triangular base to be used on a bench or table; a circular magnetic base to be used on a steel surface (like a truck hood or door); a telescoping monopod; and an articulated head for spotting scope and camera that can be interchanged with a vinyl-padded rifle rest.

I used it quite a bit for spring and summer varmint; the magnet is powerful enough to provide stability as a rifle rest in the vertical position–and also powerful enough to hold either camera or spotting scope steady either vertically (off the hood) or horizontally (off a vehicle door). It’s a wonderfully versatile gadget, and it all nests together in a tidy package about the same size as the triangular road hazard markers we all carry in our vehicles.

High-end spotting scopes: a team of 25 birdwatchers rank 16 of the best spotting scopes money can buy

Tue, 03 Nov 2015 23:12:19 -0500

A spotting scope can be your most prized possession. It allows you to find birds at much greater distances than binoculars can, and perched atop a stable tripod, it lets you study plumage and behavior for as long as your heart desires (or until your subject flies away).

But getting to the point of being a happy scope owner can be challenging. Surf the web and you’ll find hundreds of models from a few dozen manufacturers. And you’ll have to ask yourself a number of questions. Do you want an angled or straight scope? Special glass? How much does length and weight matter? Will you use your scope for viewing the night sky as well as birds? And, perhaps most important, how much can you afford?

To help you sort through the options, we asked manufacturers of the best spotting scopes on the market to loan us models that met the following criteria:

Full-size. Manufacturers typically sell scopes in mid and full-size models. Mid-size scopes have objective lenses that measure 60-65mm in diameter, and most full-size models measure 80mm or higher. We chose to test full-size models. Be aware that when you buy a bigger scope, its weight, length, and price tag are also bigger.

Angled. Whether you want a straight or angled scope is a matter of personal preference. We went with angled scopes because they’re easier for people of different heights to use. The one exception was the Leupold Kenai scope. The manufacturer makes an angled version but didn’t have one to loan us at the time of our test, so we used the straight scope.

Special glass. Most scopes are available, at a higher price, with lenses made of special glass. They come with labels such as HD (high definition), ED (extra-low dispersion), FL (fluoride ions), or FC (fluorite crystals). All of the models we tested have such glass.

Zoom eyepieces. An eyepiece that lets you zoom in and out on a subject relieves you of having to carry two or three single-power eyepieces. Most of the scopes in our test had 20-60x or 25-50x eyepieces.

High-priced. The best scopes for birders often carry manufacturers’ suggested retail prices of $1,000 or above. Dealers charge less, of course, and of the 16 scopes that met our criteria, we found them priced from $519 to $3,995. They are listed on pages 30-31.

We asked our friends at two Milwaukee-area nature centers to help. Fifteen birdwatchers evaluated the scopes on June 17 at the Urban Ecology Center, and nine other birders and I put the scopes to the test at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center on June 28. We asked them to judge the image quality, user-and eye-friendliness, and overall design of each scope. Summaries of their rankings are in the charts above and on the following pages.

Thirteen of our reviewers are scope-owners, and 12 are not, which appears to be a fairly representative sample of scope ownership in the birding community.

After we tallied the results of the tests, the Swarovski ATM 80 HD and Kowa TSN-883 Prominar led the pack.

Mitch Ost, one of the field testers at Schlitz, said the Swarovski was his favorite. Its focusing ring, known as a barrel band, encircles the body of the scope. “Initially I didn’t like the single ring to focus because it was so large,” he said. “But it allows both fine and coarse focus and is close enough to the tripod center not to be a problem.”

Tim Vargo, who tested scopes at the Urban Ecology Center, called the Swarovski’s optical quality “unbelievable” and noted, “I’ve never used a scope that had a seamless transition as I was zooming in and out as this.”

Carl Schwartz, who owns a Kowa scope and calls himself a “Kowa fan,” gave the model we tested high marks for being “compact, well-designed, easy to use, good field of view, and lightweight.”

We also asked reviewers to predict how they would rate each scope before looking through it. After the results were tallied, we found that testers rated the Kowa, Vixen, and Vortex scopes higher than they had predicted. It just goes to show that it’s best not to judge a scope, like a book, before you try it.

Overall, our reviewers were not as keen on the two Tele Vue models, which are manufactured primarily with astronomers in mind. Past reviewers of birding optics, including one who wrote for our February 2004 issue, have noted the excellent views that astronomical telescopes, including Tele Vues, can offer birders. In fact, many of our testers were wowed by the scopes’ clear, bright images. The tradeoff is in usability–size, weight, and a lack of maneuverability that our reviewers say is critical.

In addition to learning what our reviewers liked as a group, we also found that for scopes like cars, homes, or TVs–no two people will want the same thing. A few people gave excellent scores to all of the scopes we tested. It proves, once again, that there’s no substitute for shopping around.

What we tested

Urban Ecology Center members tested scopes outside the center on a path overlooking a high-school sports field. Schlitz Audubon Nature Center members gathered on a deck in the woods next to a clearing. The weather on both days was warm and sunny, so the conditions during both tests were comparable.

Image quality

First, we had our reviewers judge brightness, sharpness, edge-to-edge clarity, field of view, depth of field, detail in shadowed areas, and freedom from color aberration for each model. Evaluators were instructed to take each quality into consideration to rank image quality on a scale ranging from 5 (excellent) to 1 (poor). Numbers in the first green column show the average response.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

User-friendliness

Next we asked reviewers to assess the size, shape, aiming, ease of focusing, and other usability features to rank user-friendliness on the same scale (5-1). Numbers in the second green column show the average response.

Eye-friendliness

Third, reviewers scored each scope’s eye relief, eyecups, and suitability with eyeglasses to determine overall eye-friendliness. Numbers in the third green column show the reviewers’ average response.

Design

Finally, we instructed testers to judge the appearance, tactile appeal, and color of the scopes. Numbers in the fourth green column show the reviewers’ average response.

Overall score

Numbers in the yellow column at far right are the averages of the ratings in the four green columns.

Notes: We did not ask our reviewers to carry the scopes or evaluate them based on weight. But a scope’s weight is important when you have a long hike ahead of you, so don’t overlook it when you’re shopping.

Street prices were obtained from Adorama, Binoculars.com, Eagle Optics, Optics4Birding.com, and Telescopes.com. You may find the same models available for sale from other vendors at different prices.

Our thanks

The editors thank our friends at Eagle Optics for generously loaning us eight Vortex STX tripods and heads to mount the scopes on.

And we thank reviewers Anne Bales, Jon Bales, Marilyn Bontly, Ethan Bott, Dennis Casper, Jean Casper, Suzy Clarkson Holstein, Seth Cutright, David Fenner, Ronald Gutschow, Judith Huf, Terry Knudsen, Lenore Lee, Thomas Nelson, Mitchell Ost, Sonny Ost, Don Quintenz, Bill Rumpf, Carl Schwartz, Carol Thomas, Barbara Todd, Carolyn Vargo, Tim Vargo, and Victor Vargo for their expertise and assistance.

Urban Ecology Center

www.urbanecologycenter.org

The Urban Ecology Center, an environmental education organization in Milwaukee, offers outdoor programs and resources for schools, families, adults, teens, and youth groups.

Schlitz Audubon Nature Center

www.sanc.org

The Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, located north of Milwaukee, connects people with nature and inspires them to become responsible stewards of the natural world.

Overall ratings

Our reviewers liked the Swarovski ATM
80 HD the most and the Tele Vue-85 the
least. Models were scored on a scale
from 5 (excellent) to 1 (poor). Overall
scores are shown.

Swarovski ATM 80 HD             4.6
Kowa TSN-883 Prominar           4.5
Leica APO-Televid 82            4.3
Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                        4.2
Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A          4.0
Vortex Razor HD 85              3.9
Pentax PF-80 ED-A               3.8
Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED     3.7
Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                 3.7
Bushnell Elite ED 80            3.5
Celestron Regal 80 F-ED         3.5
Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85         3.5
Celestron Regal 100 F-ED        3.2
Leupold Kenai 80 HD             3.0
Tele Vue-76                     3.0
Tele Vue-85                     2.9

Image quality

We asked reviewers to rate each
scope's image quality (i.e., brightness,
sharpness, edge-to-edge clarity, field of
view, depth of field, detail in shadowed
areas, freedom from color aberration)
on a scale of 5 (excellent) to 1 (poor).
The results:

Swarovski ATM 80 HD             4.7
Kowa TSN-883 Prominar           4.6
Leica APO-Televid 82            4.3
Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                        4.3
Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85         4.1
Vortex Razor HD 85              3.9
Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A          3.8
Pentax PF-80 ED-A               3.7
Tele Vue-85                     3.7
Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED     3.6
Celestron Regal 100 F-ED        3.6
Celestron Regal 80 F-ED         3.5
Bushnell Elite ED 80            3.4
Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                 3.4
Tele Vue-76                     3.4
Leupold Kenai 80 HD             3.2

User-friendliness

We asked reviewers to rate each scope's
user-friendliness (i.e., size, shape, aiming,
and ease of focusing) on a scale of
5 (excellent) to 1 (poor). The results:

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar           4.7
Swarovski ATM 80 HD             4.6
Leica APO-Televid 82            4.3
Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                        4.2
Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A          4.1
Pentax PF-80 ED-A               4.0
Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED     3.8
Vortex Razor HD 85              3.8
Bushnell Elite ED 80            3.7
Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                 3.7
Celestron Regal 80 F-ED         3.5
Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85         3.1
Celestron Regal 100 F-ED        3.0
Tele Vue-76                     2.6
Leupold Kenai 80 HD             2.4
Tele Vue-85                     2.4

                              STREET
           MODEL               PRICE      MSRP    OBJECTIVE

Swarovski ATM 80 HD            $2,799 *  $3,110     80mm

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar          $2,144 *  $2,570     88mm

Leica APO-Televid 82           $3,995    $4,395     82mm

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                       $2,399    $2,999     85mm

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A         $1,259    $1,800     82mm

Vortex Razor HD 85             $1,599    $2,000     85mm

Pentax PF-80 ED-A              $1,029    $1,332     80mm

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED     $799     $1,600     80mm

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                $1,449    $1,569     82mm

Bushnell Elite ED 80            $699     $1,325     80mm

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED         $519     $1,078     80mm

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85        $3,299    $4,800     85mm

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED        $639     $1,303     100mm

Leupold Kenai 80 HD             $799      $999      80mm

Tele Vue-76                    $1,699    $1,725     76mm

Tele Vue-85                    $2,150    $2,775     85mm

           MODEL              MAGNIFICATION   EYE RELIEF (mm) **

Swarovski ATM 80 HD              25-50x               17

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar            20-60x             17-16.5

Leica APO-Televid 82             25-50x               19

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                         20-60x               16

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A           21-63x               19

Vortex Razor HD 85               20-60x              20-18

Pentax PF-80 ED-A                21-63x              18-22

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED      20-60x               17

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                  20-60x               19

Bushnell Elite ED 80             20-60x               18

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED          20-60x               20

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85          20-60x            18.4-16.5

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED         22-67x               20

Leupold Kenai 80 HD              25-60x            17.4-17.9

Tele Vue-76                      20-60x              15-20

Tele Vue-85                      25-75x              15-20

           MODEL              LENGTH (in)    WEIGHT (oz)

Swarovski ATM 80 HD              15.5            55.6

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar            15.5            54.7

Leica APO-Televid 82             14.75           63.7

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                         15.38            51

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A            16             54.8

Vortex Razor HD 85               14.5            65.7

Pentax PF-80 ED-A                19.13           75.8

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED      16.88            56

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                  16.38           51.4

Bushnell Elite ED 80              17              53

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED           19              72

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85           17             71.6

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED         21.5             89

Leupold Kenai 80 HD              14.5            58.5

Tele Vue-76                       21              96

Tele Vue-85                      24.25           128

                                CLOSE
                                FOCUS           FOCUS
           MODEL                 (ft)          DESIGN

Swarovski ATM 80 HD               16         Barrel band

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar            16.4         Two knobs

Leica APO-Televid 82             12.2         Two knobs

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                         16.4         One knob

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A            49          Two knobs

Vortex Razor HD 85               16.4         Two knobs

Pentax PF-80 ED-A                 19          One knob

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED       20          One knob

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                  39.3         Two knobs

Bushnell Elite ED 80              15          One knob

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED           20          Two knobs

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85          16.4        Barrel band

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED          26          Two knobs

Leupold Kenai 80 HD               12         Barrel band

Tele Vue-76                      28.5      Two-sided wheel

Tele Vue-85                      29.1      Two-sided wheel

                              FIELD OF VIEW    IMAGE         USER
           MODEL              (ft. at 1,000   QUALITY    FRIENDLINESS

Swarovski ATM 80 HD              138-89         4.7          4.6

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar            115-55         4.6          4.7

Leica APO-Televid 82             134-92         4.3          4.3

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                         129-60         4.3          4.2

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A           94.1-42        3.8          4.1

Vortex Razor HD 85               117-60         3.9          3.8

Pentax PF-80 ED-A                93-49.5        3.7          4.0

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED        98           3.4          3.8

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                105.3-51.1       3.4          3.7

Bushnell Elite ED 80              98-50         3.6          3.7

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED          112-56         3.5          3.5

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85          115-58         4.1          3.1

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED         100-50         3.6          3.0

Leupold Kenai 80 HD            113.1-63.8       3.2          2.4

Tele Vue-76                        NA           3.4          2.6

Tele Vue-85                       84-38         3.7          2.4

                                  EYE                  OVERALL
           MODEL              FRIENDLINESS   DESIGN     SCORE

Swarovski ATM 80 HD               4.3         4.6        4.6

Kowa TSN-883 Prominar             4.3         4.2        4.5

Leica APO-Televid 82              4.1         4.4        4.3

Zeiss Victory DiaScope
85 T* FL                          4.1         4.2        4.2

Vixen Geoma II ED 82-A            3.9         4.1        4.0

Vortex Razor HD 85                3.9         3.9        3.9

Pentax PF-80 ED-A                 3.6         3.9        3.8

Brunton Eterna 80 Angled ED       4.0         3.5        3.7

Swift Sport Optics
NightHawk 82 ED                   3.8         3.8        3.7

Bushnell Elite ED 80              3.2         3.6        3.5

Celestron Regal 80 F-ED           3.6         3.3        3.5

Nikon Fieldscope EDG 85           3.6         3.3        3.5

Celestron Regal 100 F-ED          3.3         3.1        3.2

Leupold Kenai 80 HD               3.1         3.3        3.0

Tele Vue-76                       3.4         2.6        3.0

Tele Vue-85                       3.1         2.3        2.9

* Eyepiece sold separately

** At lowest and highest magnifications

Top choices in lightweight binoculars and spotting scopes for the traveling hunter

Tue, 03 Nov 2015 21:21:34 -0500

Binoculars and spotting scopes are crucial to the hunting experience. With the aid of optics, you’ll observe more interesting wildlife behavior and find more magnificent trophies than you ever could with the naked eye. Hunting in this day and age without magnifying instruments is like listening to Rachmaninov on AM radio.

The problem with telescopes of all types is that size matters. The bigger the device, the better its optical quality, all else being equal. A 50mm objective lens will resolve a sharper, brighter, more detailed image than a 20mm objective. It’ll also weigh four times more and fill four times more space–and that’s a problem when you’re traveling, especially by air. Who wants to trust baggage handlers with glass? But then, who has room for big binoculars and spotting scopes in a carry-on?

One option is to ship your binocular and spotting scope in a strong, padded gun case if there’s room. With a bit of luck and a top-quality case, this can work. I’d add a few sheets of bubble wrap around the instrument. Don’t fret about dramatic pressure changes causing fogproof binoculars to leak. Virtually all commercial airliners have pressurized luggage compartments.

I’ve wrapped spotting scopes in layers and layers of clothing sandwiched between many more layers deep within soft-sided luggage, but that was before the TSA and its hand searches–none of which ever leaves contents as precisely packed as before the search.

Your best vehicle for safe transport of expensive glass is your personal carry-on bag. And that’s when space becomes an issue. If, as you should, you carry all personal papers, medicines, basic toiletries, a change of clothing, Gore-Tex jacket and pant, cameras and lenses, video camera, GPS, and cell or satellite phone in your carry-on, you’ll be pressed to squeeze a binocular, let alone spotting scope, in.

Time to compromise–buy smaller glass.

Wait a second. Didn’t I just write that small optics weren’t as good as large ones? Well, yes. But they’re still good. The highest quality 8x32 or 8x20 binoculars can transmit pretty impressive images. The key is highest quality. Don’t cut corners with small glass. Everything has to be top quality and precisely put together. The reason huge objective optics are so bright is because they produce a large exit pupil (EP). That’s the circle of light that exits the eyepiece and enters your own pupil. If it’s bigger than your pupil, you get all the light you can absorb. If it’s smaller, the image looks darker than it could be. The human pupil opens to about 7mm and gradually declines to perhaps 5mm by middle age, perhaps 3mm in the geriatric set. So you don’t need a binocular EP of more than 7mm, and 5mm is sufficient if you’re 50. In truth, I find a 4mm EP adequate for viewing game until 30, perhaps 40 minutes after sunset. Since most hunting is over by then, you don’t need those huge 50mm objectives.

EP is determined by dividing the objective diameter by magnification, thus a 10x50 binocular yields a 5mm EP, an 8x42 produces 5.25mm, an 8x32 4mm, and an 8x20 2.5 mm. That last one is pretty small, but it’s more than adequate for daylight viewing because our pupils shrink that small in full sunlight. If you’re really pressed for space, tuck in your shirt pocket a top-quality, 8- to 10-ounce 8x20mm or 10x25mm mini binocular like the Zeiss Victory, Leica Ultravid BR, or Swarovski B. The little Leica is so small and light that I keep it in my travel pack at all times. Perfectly ground and polished objective lenses, fully multi-coated lenses, phase-coated BaK-4 prisms, and bright mirrors make these mini binoculars critically sharp. The biggest drawback with such small exit pupils is the need for perfect eye/lens axis alignment. Shift your head even slightly off center, and you see edge blackout. As a result, minis are tiring to use for extended viewing.

An ideal compromise between too big and too small are the 8x30s and 8x32s–my choice for an all-round travel/hunting binocular. Most models weigh 19 to 24 ounces and are about 5 inches tall and 4.5 inches wide. Optically, I can’t detect a difference between these and their 42mm siblings. I once tested an 8x32 against an 8x42 and 8.5x50 in waning light. The bigger glasses gave me less than five minutes more viewing during which I could read the small lettering on my test target.

Regardless of which binocular you buy, insist on fully multi-coated lenses, which reduce glare and maximize light transmission without adding weight or bulk. Also insist on phase-coating in any roof-prism models. After that you’ll realize slightly better light transmission with dielectric mirrors over silver metallic mirrors. Aluminum mirrors are usually reserved for lower-priced models.

If you feel the need for a spotting scope, buy the finest. As magnification increases, so does any imperfection in the instrument. Worse, high magnification exacerbates color fringing, in which bent light rays don’t refocus on the same plane, resulting in a halo of green or yellow around objects, softening them. Extra-low dispersion, high definition or apochromatic lenses fix this with the least weight. I insist on them in my bigger spotting scopes. High magnification also reduces EP diameter, which can only be offset with a large objective lens. Alas, to get a 4mm EP in a 40X spotter, you’d need a 160mm objective! Few manufacturers build larger than 80mm objective spotters, and few hunters wish to pack more than 65mm versions. The solution is a variable-power eyepiece such as 15-30X or 20-60X. With these you can dial up or down to maximize image quality under all conditions. If space is at a real premium, try a 50mm compact. I’ve seen amazing images through a Leupold 15-30x50mm Golden Ring spotter, which is 11 inches long and weighs just 21.5 ounces.

Another option is to pack a big binocular and add a doubler. Brunton, Swarovski, and Bushnell offer these “add-on” eyepieces that double or triple the power of the binocular. Of course, only one barrel is used and the new magnifier reduces EP accordingly, so you must begin with a big objective, preferably 50mm. Thus, with the addition of a 2.5X doubler, a Bushnell Elite 10x50 becomes a 25X spotter with 2mm EP. Any magnification above 12X mandates a steady platform such as tripod or bean bag, adding more baggage to your load, but a tripod can be shipped as checked luggage and a zip-open bean bag can be filled on site with local grain or sand, then rested on hoods, window sills, logs, etc.

Think small, think high quality, and think creatively when purchasing travel optics and you’ll see the light–without overpacking.