Hunting, bird watching, or star gazing every single activity requires a scope. Now, this isn't always the case nor a requirement for you to take part in any of those activities but it can be more exciting. With a spotting scope, you are able to enjoy a sport or activity more since they offer a better view of things. While a binocular would be a good idea too they are not as specialised as spotting scopes. The former is more versatile whilst the latter is made just for spotting animals or objects quite afar away. There are some features and properties found on a spotting scope that can make it easy to spot distinctive characteristics of birds or other game animals. But is that enough of a reason?
Why Get a Spotting Scope?
Unlike binoculars or telescopes which have their own advantages a spotting scope combines both of their pros and thus it can be used for different activities without any drawbacks. Quality spotter scopes feel like they're made for a specific kind of use but in fact, they can be used for a lot of different applications and deliver the best experience. Consider getting a spotter scope if you want something lightweight that has impeccable magnification abilities.
What Makes a Good Spotting Scope
Magnification
The power of a spotting scope's magnification usually comes between 15x and 60x. Because of this spotter scopes use either an interchangeable fixed-length eyepiece or a single zoom eyepiece. When it comes to magnification you want to have a broader range of it, not more of it. If you're able to zoom out quite far and zoom in quite a lot too then you've made a good choice but avoid getting a scope with a magnification level that you won't use. The most common magnification levels people use today are between 18x and 36x which can be found on the majority of scopes.
Eyepiece
Talking about the eyepiece, this crucial component determine how quickly you can zoom out or zoom in onto an object. As mentioned above there are two types of eyepieces fixed, vs zoom. Fixed eyepieces are the ones that offer higher magnification while zoom eyepieces better for those of you who do bird watching. There are also wide-angled pieces which are good if you want a wider field of view and not having to zoom in or out of an area all that much.
Light-Gathering
The light-gathering capacity of any shooting spotter scope is important as it determines how bright of and sharp of a viewing angle you get. This factor depends on the size of the lens. The size of spotter scope lenses vary from 50 mm to 100mm. Larger lenses provide brighter images but they will also make the scope a lot heavier. It's best to find a balance between weight and picture quality.
Focusing Mechanism
The focusing of a spotting scope can be done in one of two ways using a focusing collar or a small focus knob on the top of the scope. The former uses a rubberised knurled barrel that you just twist to make an image sharper. The latter might not be as intuitive and as fast as the former but hey are far more precise. If you don't mind doing some hand acrobatics then go with a focusing knob, but if hand dexterity is an issue go with a focusing collar.
Glass Quality
A top scope lens will be made with an HD (high density) or ED (extra-low dispersion) glass that has a fluorite coating added to it. The difference between this type of lens glass and a standard one is that you get better low-light visibility with a lot better contrast. Remember though if you use a scope with less than 30x magnification you won't benefit that much from having a fluorite coated HD or SD glass.
Straight or Angled
Whether or not to go for angled or straight scopes can sometimes leave you being indecisive. What you need to know is that with a straight scope it will be easier to spot something that aligns your eye to the body of the scope. You also get less strain on your neck whilst using straight scopes and their eyepieces collect less dust. One major downside of straight scopes is that they are not good when you're in a group. Having to set the scope to eye-level for every person to take a look at something can be frustrating.
Angled or 45° scopes can be used by multiple people without changing their or your position. You can also use a shorter and a lighter tripod when using these type of scopes while being able to view birds that fly high a lot easier. Angled spotting scopes are however awkward when it comes to getting into position and they can take some time to get used to. Once you get used to one you can view objects from a relaxing position with ease though and you can do so in a group.
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