Some bird photography questions

It's just Newton's second law; F = ma. Given a force that affects an object, the acceleration experienced by the object is inversely proportional to its mass.

Ok, thanks.

but I was referring specifically to binoculars here

Guess you could try stabilsed bins...;)

Another way to consider your decision is shooting FF on your D750 and cropping.

I try not to crop *too* much, I crop to 8x10 and then a little more, maybe I just need to get more comfortable with more cropping.

Guess you could try stabilsed bins...;)

Mayhap, but I fear we have veered too far from the original topic. My apologies, @yardkat.

Tried a pair of stabilised Canon bins - very nice, but out of my price range even used.

I think 8x is about right for garden use. Any more and you run the risk of the birds being closer than the minimum focus of the bins. In the wild a zoom spotting scope might be more appropriate, but of course you really need a solid platform for that.

Boating bins of 10 to 12x mag can be reasonably priced. I have a Fujinon pair that are crystal clear. They have to be focussed using each eyepiece separately, which personally I don't find too tedious.

maybe I just need to get more comfortable with more cropping

I think ensuring it's nice and sharp is much, much more important than ISO noise or not-enough pixels when it comes to cropping.

Sorry, if I am too far off-topic.

...I think 8x is about right for garden use. Any more and you run the risk of the birds being closer than the minimum focus of the bins...

Mayhap, but I fear we have veered too far from the original topic. My apologies, @yardkat.

Totally fine! I want future readers to get some good info.

Perhaps it is an illusion, but I seem to find binoculars with roof prisms easier to hold steady than the older porro prism versions. They're also lighter and easier to carry. I had a Nikon 7x35 pair of the old style, but now a 10x42 in-line version. You don't need large objectives for birding. Finding icebergs in the dark, maybe. Extra magnification, however, is a real asset when identifying warblers in the woods.

Stabilized binoculars are not on my short list. I might be tempted by night vision, or even a Leitz binocular rangefinder, which compensates for azimuth and windage.

Perhaps it is an illusion, but I seem to find binoculars with roof prisms easier to hold steady than the older porro prism versions. They're also lighter and easier to carry. I had a Nikon 7x35 pair of the old style, but now a 10x42 in-line version. You don't need large objectives for birding. Finding icebergs in the dark, maybe. Extra magnification, however, is a real asset when identifying warblers in the woods.

 

Stabilized binoculars are not on my short list. I might be tempted by night vision, or even a Leitz binocular rangefinder, which compensates for azimuth and windage.

I agree about the roof prisms - used them ever since I started serious birding, slowly working my way up through the quality of optics to Leica - tried Swarovski, but they 'felt wrong'. I find, however, the wider field of view of 7x42 very helpful in woodland (in the UK, anyway), and in darker areas the greater light gathering power is a real boon, at least to my weary old eyes :). Scope comes into its own for sea-watching, and on reserves where the scrapes are so large bins just won't cut it. Also very useful when trying to show birds to other people, as it locks into place and people are not trying to interpret directions as to where a bird is (and some overheard 'directions' are hilarious).

With you on stabilised bins, though.