Paultricounty
Well-known member
To drive this even further -- I think it is better to have 100 vintage binos for 30 bucks each than to have one super-duper-alpha.
But a couple of more thoughts on the matter:
Until rather recently the larger FoV didn't seem of much concern to the alpha brands. Part of the reason being maybe that a birder or hunter doesn't absolutely need a wide FoV but prefers perfect color rendition, low-light performance, therefore the best coatings, etc.
At the moment I am all about large FoVs. Doesn't even have to be 100 % sharp to the edge. Just the wide view in itself is what I enjoy. Therefore, my most used bino at the moment is a vintage 1973 8x30 Made in Japan "Eschenbach" Luna Super (AFAIK Eschenbach never made any binos themselves, they just imported them) with a stated 10° FoV (comparisons to other binos suggest it might be more around 9.3-9.5). And I compared it for quite some time to the APM 6x30 with 9.3° and Kowa BD II 6.5x32 with 10°. But the vintage one is still the most impressive of the bunch. Less rolling ball effect therefore better panning, better sharpness to the edge (and even center sharpness and contrast is really good) compared to the Kowa (maybe not the APM which is rather good at the edges but feels narrow compared to the Luna Super and has a weird effect when panning as the slight pincushion distortion is not symmetrical -- so you get a "bathtub-effect" when panning).
And I don't care that the coatings are old and it's not as bright. In fact, on a sunny day I get the feeling that a slightly dimmer bino has better contrast and seems sharper -- same effect as when wearing sunglasses. It was Holger Merlitz who wrote on his homepage that most of the advancement in binos in the last decades were the coatings.
So just recently the "alphas" noticed that there might be a few customers out there who value a large FoV. But if that wouldn't be the case -- I'd never even consider buying an alpha.
And another thing -- if I want a certain size, weight, etc. that the alphas don't offer -- they can have the best optics they want to and I wouldn't choose them over something else that does have the characteristics I want. Light transmission (I guess that is meant by "sparkle") or edge-to-edge performance is in my eyes not the "be all -- end all" of the bino world. Considering sharpness -- none of my modern day "low to mid price" binos like my DDoptics models are really looking sharper to my eyes than some of my best vintage ones. My almost 50 year old Eschenbach is more than sharp enough.
But -- yes, if someone gifts me an NL Pure I will not reject it. But would I give up any of my beloved vintage models for it? Nope. If I had to choose -- so if someone said, "here, you get this alpha bino but you are never again allowed to use any of your vintage ones", I'd not agree to that. So luckily, we don't have to choose but can have all of those.
Will I buy an NL Pure one day? Or at "least" a Habicht 8x30? Maybe. I spent more on my collection than what those cost (in fact when counting all my astrophotography equipment -- much more). Still -- collecting vintage binos is so much fun -- I'd not trade that for any alpha.
Couple of pics taken free-handedly through the Eschenbach in my garden -- the shadows at the edges are from the camera not being positioned well enough:
Are alphas "better"? In what way, shape or form are they "better" than this? Is it better to have a brighter view but less FoV? Do they offer the same joy I have when putting those vintage super wides to my eyes and feel like I am zooming into the scenery -- like Wayne Watts in "Ready Player One" when he puts on the VR-goggles to visit the oasis? Maybe the NL Pures will offer that but still ... those wide angle binos are only the newest models. So no -- I wouldn't choose an alpha over everything else "for all occasions". There is more to binos than brightness or even build quality (those vintage porros are often quite sturdy). As soon as Swarowski comes out with a 10° 8x32 in the size of a Kowa 8x32 I will reconsider. And I might get a Habicht or NL Pure if I wanted to spend that much on one single bino -- I think I'd actually prefer the habicht as I like porros and don't like the strap attachment on the NL Pure. I still wouldn't trade any of my vintage treasures for it though.
I enjoy the vintage binoculars and those with wide FOV as well. I go back and forth with using the vintage binos, they bring a lot of joy. I have a nice little collection. Not to sound facetious but they all have their place in our hearts , visual and haptic pleasure. With the money spent on so called alphas being discussed here I could have a 100 vintage binos 🤣.To drive this even further -- I think it is better to have 100 vintage binos for 30 bucks each than to have one super-duper-alpha.
But a couple of more thoughts on the matter:
Until rather recently the larger FoV didn't seem of much concern to the alpha brands. Part of the reason being maybe that a birder or hunter doesn't absolutely need a wide FoV but prefers perfect color rendition, low-light performance, therefore the best coatings, etc.
At the moment I am all about large FoVs. Doesn't even have to be 100 % sharp to the edge. Just the wide view in itself is what I enjoy. Therefore, my most used bino at the moment is a vintage 1973 8x30 Made in Japan "Eschenbach" Luna Super (AFAIK Eschenbach never made any binos themselves, they just imported them) with a stated 10° FoV (comparisons to other binos suggest it might be more around 9.3-9.5). And I compared it for quite some time to the APM 6x30 with 9.3° and Kowa BD II 6.5x32 with 10°. But the vintage one is still the most impressive of the bunch. Less rolling ball effect therefore better panning, better sharpness to the edge (and even center sharpness and contrast is really good) compared to the Kowa (maybe not the APM which is rather good at the edges but feels narrow compared to the Luna Super and has a weird effect when panning as the slight pincushion distortion is not symmetrical -- so you get a "bathtub-effect" when panning).
And I don't care that the coatings are old and it's not as bright. In fact, on a sunny day I get the feeling that a slightly dimmer bino has better contrast and seems sharper -- same effect as when wearing sunglasses. It was Holger Merlitz who wrote on his homepage that most of the advancement in binos in the last decades were the coatings.
So just recently the "alphas" noticed that there might be a few customers out there who value a large FoV. But if that wouldn't be the case -- I'd never even consider buying an alpha.
And another thing -- if I want a certain size, weight, etc. that the alphas don't offer -- they can have the best optics they want to and I wouldn't choose them over something else that does have the characteristics I want. Light transmission (I guess that is meant by "sparkle") or edge-to-edge performance is in my eyes not the "be all -- end all" of the bino world. Considering sharpness -- none of my modern day "low to mid price" binos like my DDoptics models are really looking sharper to my eyes than some of my best vintage ones. My almost 50 year old Eschenbach is more than sharp enough.
But -- yes, if someone gifts me an NL Pure I will not reject it. But would I give up any of my beloved vintage models for it? Nope. If I had to choose -- so if someone said, "here, you get this alpha bino but you are never again allowed to use any of your vintage ones", I'd not agree to that. So luckily, we don't have to choose but can have all of those.
Will I buy an NL Pure one day? Or at "least" a Habicht 8x30? Maybe. I spent more on my collection than what those cost (in fact when counting all my astrophotography equipment -- much more). Still -- collecting vintage binos is so much fun -- I'd not trade that for any alpha.
Couple of pics taken free-handedly through the Eschenbach in my garden -- the shadows at the edges are from the camera not being positioned well enough:
Are alphas "better"? In what way, shape or form are they "better" than this? Is it better to have a brighter view but less FoV? Do they offer the same joy I have when putting those vintage super wides to my eyes and feel like I am zooming into the scenery -- like Wayne Watts in "Ready Player One" when he puts on the VR-goggles to visit the oasis? Maybe the NL Pures will offer that but still ... those wide angle binos are only the newest models. So no -- I wouldn't choose an alpha over everything else "for all occasions". There is more to binos than brightness or even build quality (those vintage porros are often quite sturdy). As soon as Swarowski comes out with a 10° 8x32 in the size of a Kowa 8x32 I will reconsider. And I might get a Habicht or NL Pure if I wanted to spend that much on one single bino -- I think I'd actually prefer the habicht as I like porros and don't like the strap attachment on the NL Pure. I still wouldn't trade any of my vintage treasures for it though.
Each category, vintage , wide field, low magnification etc. etc. has a place and I wouldn’t want to give any of them up. With that said there is a whole lot of joy in the modern day alphas. Wether small (Habicht 742) , medium or large fields of view. For years I enjoyed trying, buying and using vintage binocular. Then I tried one of the high end binoculars, then I tried another and I was hooked. Vintage is just one aspect or category of binocular optics. Forget about build quality or FOV, when looking through NL‘s or Habicht’s, it takes your breath away.
Nice photos!
Paul
