What binoculars are best to start off with

[Amyb]

I've always been interested in astronomy and want to take my interest further. Looking online I've read it's best to start off with binoculars rather then go straight to a telescope. What would people recommend? In the uk. Thanks in advance. Amy  

[Piero]

Hi Amy and welcome to SGL  You will find a lot of information in this forum so feel free to ask more and more questions. 

You should give us more details about your interests, budget, whether your sky is light polluted at least.

Binoculars are a great tool for viewing the sky. This because they show a fairly extended field of view which means that it is quite easy to move them around and get acquainted with the sky. Said this, unless you plan to spend a bit for a model supporting exchangeable eyepieces, the magnification is generally 10x - 15x, which is not sufficient for discerning details on planets for instance. That's why knowing your interests would be important.

To me good introductory binoculars are 15x70 mounted on a tripod or monopod. 10x50 can also offer nice views though.

If you would like to see a bit of every thing, I would go for a telescope. 

[billyharris72]

Hi Amy and welcome to the forum. Generally, I think it's best to start with a decent all-round binocular suitable for hand-holding. You don't want something too heavy or with too much magnification, as you lose detail due to shaking. I would say either 10 x 50 or 8 x 42 would be a good starting bino.

There are a huge number of brands to choose from, and you should be able to pick up something decent in this size for under £100. For quality to price ratio, porro prism binoculars are usually better than roof prism, and BAK 4 prisms are better than BAK 7. The Nikon Aculon range is going for a good price on Amazon at the moment (though I have no experience of them), though better would be to visit an optical supplier and try before you buy, since binoculars tend to quite a personal choice. I'd also stick with recognised optical brands (Nikon, Olympus, Strathspey, Opticron etc); avoid the unbranded £30 jobs on Amazon and eBay like the plague.

If you don't know your way around the night sky then it's worth considering something like Mark Thompson's Down to earth guide to the cosmos, which combines monthly guides to the sky with a general discussion of observing principals and topics in astronomy. Personally, I think it provides really good grounding.

Hope this helps.

Billy.

[geoflewis]

Hi Amy, Welcome to SGL. I have a pair of Revelation Astro 15x70 binoculars that I purchased from Telescope House a few years ago for about £50. Whilst not the best glass out there, they are inexpensive and pretty good light grabbers with enough magnification, but not too much for hand held use. I love to lay back on a sun lounger in the summer and scan the rich star fields of Milky Way. The Moon of course looks great and you'll see the 4 Galilean moons of Jupiter changing position each night. They also give excellent views of targets like the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), Pleiades/Seven Sisters (M45), Great Orion Nebula (M42), Double Cluster in Perseus and much more. They are a great way to learn you way around the night sky and with patience its amazing just how many DSO (deep sky objects) you can find, e.g. many globular and open clusters, galaxies, etc. are within range even from fairly light polluted skies, but if you have access to dark skies so much the better. Of course they double up for daytime use too, so often get taken on walks for bird spotting, or just general use. Good luck, Geof

[Amyb]

Thank you all for replying. my budget originally was £300 for a small telescope but whilst researching over the last few days read that binoculars were best to start off with and my daughter is interested in space and thought they  might be better suited to her as she has autism so might find it difficult to look through a telescope. I am on the outskirts of Peterborough UK and 5 mins away is the countryside complete darkness we were there last night. I  am particularly interested in planets, constellations and kind of work my way around them. I know i will have to work up to a decent telescope to see the planets how  I  want to

[ronin]

Have always found that a pair of normal 8x42 birding binoculars do just about the best job.

One thing is that binoculars and a scope perform different things. The way it is often described makes it seem that they deliver similar experiences. They do not. One way I tend to describe it is that binoculars allow you to look around, a scope allows you to look at.

Binoculars are fine to search the constellations for the big things, the Plaides, M42, M31 and other globular and open clusters. If you want to see bands on Jupiter or Saturns rings then you need a scope. Ultimately you will want and use both.

Always a fear I have is that people spend a part of their budget on binoculars and really want a scope and then have used part of the budget.

Which bit of the UK, just there are clubs around and seeing what is available and used is very advantaguous for future selection of equipment.

[Amyb]

Reading up I thought I would eventually need both. I have no idea about telescopes and read they are quite complicated. Hopefully when I get to that you guys will help me :).  I guess my budget would need to be bigger for a decent scope? there is a group that run in peterborough (again browsing online lol) but I am so awkward with new people I dont think i would have the guts to go there and speak to people and get information in person. 

[dobbie]

Hi Amy welcome,  a nice pair of 8x42  light weight & your daughter would be able to hold them steady , there is a binocular section in the sky at night magazine every month to get you started. Regards John.  

[geoflewis]

Hi Amy, thanks for the additional info on where you live/view and your desire to provide something for your daughter; it is a great idea. Both of my daughters weren't much interested, but my eldest granddaughter (now nearly 18) is and we've had a lot of fun doing astro together over the past half dozen years.

I don't know your region, but a quick web search shows that there is an astronomy society in Peterborough and if they're anything like my own society in Farnham, Surrey, then they may have loan equipment for members, so joining them could be a great way for you to gain access to a range of equipment, with experienced members to show you how to use them and what they can do.

As already mentioned I think that binoculars are a great entry level option, but they can be tricky for children to use as they often don't have well developed eye / hand co-ordination, which may be even more challenge for your daughter depending on the extent of her autism. £300 will get you quite a respectable telescope, but it is so easy to buy the wrong thing, so I can't recommend strongly enough that you join a local society and use their experience to help you choose the best option.

Good luck, it is such a fun hobby and a great way to share precious moments with your daughter.

[Amyb]

9 minutes ago, dobbie said:

Hi Amy welcome,  a nice pair of 8x42  light weight & your daughter would be able to hold them steady , there is a binocular section in the sky at night magazine every month to get you started. Regards John.  

thank you John. I will check the magazine out.

[Ricochet]

£300 will buy you an 8" dob which is more than decent. I've got one and some 25x70 bins and as far as I am concerned the dob wins by miles on everything except weight and storage space. 

[Amyb]

10 minutes ago, geoflewis said:

Hi Amy, thanks for the additional info on where you live/view and your desire to provide something for your daughter; it is a great idea. Both of my daughters weren't much interested, but my eldest granddaughter (now nearly 18) is and we've had a lot of fun doing astro together over the past half dozen years.

I don't know your region, but a quick web search shows that there is an astronomy society in Peterborough and if they're anything like my own society in Farnham, Surrey, then they may have loan equipment for members, so joining them could be a great way for you to gain access to a range of equipment, with experienced members to show you how to use them and what they can do.

As already mentioned I think that binoculars are a great entry level option, but they can be tricky for children to use as they often don't have well developed eye / hand co-ordination, which may be even more challenge for your daughter depending on the extent of her autism. £300 will get you quite a respectable telescope, but it is so easy to buy the wrong thing, so I can't recommend strongly enough that you join a local society and use their experience to help you choose the best option.

Good luck, it is such a fun hobby and a great way to share precious moments with your daughter.

Thank you for the advice. I was so happy when my daughter started to take an interest as its sparked mine up even more and its a nice hobby to do together we sit in the garden most nights looking up at the sky and I point things out to her. I did see the society but I am terrible with new people especially groups I might give them a message though. 

its good to know my budget isn't too bad I am going to put more money aside whilst we use binoculars for a while. thanks again

[geoflewis]

Just now, Amyb said:

 I did see the society but I am terrible with new people especially groups I might give them a message though. 

Hi Amy, I total get your concern about meeting new people especially a large group of astronomy geeks - I've been interested in astronomy since I was 7, but didn't join a society until I was 57...!! I think that sending them a message is a great idea. I also see that that they run public observing sessions, so attending one of those might be a good way to see what goes on in an anonymous way - its easier to hide in a crowd ;-). That is exactly how I met the folks at Farnham Astro Society: I took my granddaughter along to a stargazing live event 5 or 6 years ago, then plucked up the courage to attend one of their meetings by myself as a guest about a year later...

Good luck, once you break the ice I suspect that it won't be as bad as you imagine ;-).

[Amyb]

3 minutes ago, geoflewis said:

Hi Amy, I total get your concern about meeting new people especially a large group of astronomy geeks - I've been interested in astronomy since I was 7, but didn't join a society until I was 57...!! I think that sending them a message is a great idea. I also see that that they run public observing sessions, so attending one of those might be a good way to see what goes on in an anonymous way - its easier to hide in a crowd ;-). That is exactly how I met the folks at Farnham Astro Society: I took my granddaughter along to a stargazing live event 5 or 6 years ago, then plucked up the courage to attend one of their meetings by myself as a guest about a year later...

Good luck, once you break the ice I suspect that it won't be as bad as you imagine ;-).

Wow!! you took a long time then! oh do they, you clearly did more research then me lol. Thats a great idea to go to the  public observing sessions sound more like me and i think my daughter would enjoy that too, i will chck the dates out now. I'm sure it wouldn't be bad at all i would learn lots of information  from people who know there stuff .hopefully  i will force myself to go before 50 years go by  lol

[Paz]

I think getting some binoculars first is a good way to start - I only had binoculars for a long time and recently have moved into telescopes. Binoculars aren't really instead of a telescope but will complement a telescope that you can get later.

8x42 or 10x50 are ideal as they don;t need a mount and need not cost much. £50 will get a fine pair (Opticron Adventurer 10x50), £80 will get a better pair  (Helios Naturesort Plus 10x50), £150 will get an even better pair (Pentax SP WP 10x50). But you don;t need to spend much on binoculars - I'd go for something less expensive and not worry about all of the more expensive kit that is out there - unless you test them back to back and are picky you won't know about or notice the difference (but be warned - if you get into astronomy you may find that you start comparing things and you may become picky!).

A planisphere (David Chandlers) and a star map (Sky and Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas) or book about what is up there is also a good idea - books in particular are easy to get for very little on Amazon.

[Piero]

6 minutes ago, Amyb said:

Thank you for the advice. I was so happy when my daughter started to take an interest as its sparked mine up even more and its a nice hobby to do together we sit in the garden most nights looking up at the sky and I point things out to her. I did see the society but I am terrible with new people especially groups I might give them a message though. 

its good to know my budget isn't too bad I am going to put more money aside whilst we use binoculars for a while. thanks again

I also think that you should visit your local astro club, but on the other hand I also understand you that your feeling about showing up with people you don't know.. 

It would still be good if you can visit a shop before buying though. At least you could see the size of telescopes with your eye before buying one. Maybe I am wrong, but from the way I see, I suspect you are looking for a telescope which is easy to use/move, sufficiently capable for showing you the sky, and easy to maintain. For 300 pounds there are options for buying a good telescope and a decent binoculars 8x42. The former can show you planets and the brightest deep sky objects, whereas the latter can give you the feeling of looking around as mentioned by Ronin above, which is a really nice feeling to me.

A telescope which I would suggest is the Skywatcher 150 F8 Dobson £199): 

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

It comes with two eyepieces. If you check the specs, you can have a broad idea about its size and see whether you have sufficient storage space for it. The tube weighs no more than 7kg, the base 10kg. It can be put in the back seats of your car if you want to go to an even darker location. As it is a slow telescope (telescopes with f-ratio F>6 are called slow). For what this matter, the stock eyepieces will be completely fine as they won't be significantly affected by aberrations. It will not require much maintenance (mainly collimation - which anyway it is not difficult to do and you can always ask here for help). 

Don't be fooled by the price. I wish I had a telescope like that when I started!  

For binoculars there are good options for £100, but I'd prefer to leave other members to comment on this.

 

-> As I said above, I would suggest you to see it in a shop before buying it though. 

 

[Dave In Vermont]

Hi Amy - and a welcome to SGL - it's nice of you to join us!

There's a monthly web-magazing with lots on information, reviews, reports, and a wealth of other good data for those who like their binoculars:

http://binocularsky.com/binoc_links.php

It's free. Brought to you by Steve Tonkin, who is also the author of 'Binocular Astronomy.' An excellent read. And which binoculars would be best for beginners? You'll find as many answers to this as there are people who use them! But the Celestron Skywaster 15 X 70mm are highly regarded and a good choice if you like to hang onto your money - they are quite inexpensive.

Keep on asking questions - we love helping folks find answers here!

Clear and dark skies -

Dave

[Amyb]

4 minutes ago, Paz said:

I think getting some binoculars first is a good way to start - I only had binoculars for a long time and recently have moved into telescopes. Binoculars aren't really instead of a telescope but will complement a telescope that you can get later.

8x42 or 10x50 are ideal as they don;t need a mount and need not cost much. £50 will get a fine pair (Opticron Adventurer 10x50), £80 will get a better pair  (Helios Naturesort Plus 10x50), £150 will get an even better pair (Pentax SP WP 10x50). But you don;t need to spend much on binoculars - I'd go for something less expensive and not worry about all of the more expensive kit that is out there - unless you test them back to back and are picky you won't know about or notice the difference (but be warned - if you get into astronomy you may find that you start comparing things and you may become picky!).

A planisphere (David Chandlers) and a star map (Sky and Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas) or book about what is up there is also a good idea - books in particular are easy to get for very little on Amazon.

thanks for the advice . that was going to be my next question recommendations for books at the moment we use an app 'sky view' which is quite good, my daughter was fascinated last night when it was finally clear to see Jupiter we would of never known it was Jupiter without the app  

[Amyb]

7 minutes ago, Piero said:

I also think that you should visit your local astro club, but on the other hand I also understand you that your feeling about showing up with people you don't know.. 

It would still be good if you can visit a shop before buying though. At least you could see the size of telescopes with your eye before buying one. Maybe I am wrong, but from the way I see, I suspect you are looking for a telescope which is easy to use/move, sufficiently capable for showing you the sky, and easy to maintain. For 300 pounds there are options for buying a good telescope and a decent binoculars 8x42. The former can show you planets and the brightest deep sky objects, whereas the latter can give you the feeling of looking around as mentioned by Ronin above, which is a really nice feeling to me.

A telescope which I would suggest is the Skywatcher 150 F8 Dobson £199): 

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

It comes with two eyepieces. If you check the specs, you can have a broad idea about its size and see whether you have sufficient storage space for it. The tube weighs no more than 7kg, the base 10kg. It can be put in the back seats of your car if you want to go to an even darker location. As it is a slow telescope (telescopes with f-ratio F>6 are called slow). For what this matter, the stock eyepieces will be completely fine as they won't be significantly affected by aberrations. It will not require much maintenance (mainly collimation - which anyway it is not difficult to do and you can always ask here for help). 

Don't be fooled by the price. I wish I had a telescope like that when I started!  

For binoculars there are good options for £100, but I'd prefer to leave other members to comment on this.

 

-> As I said above, I would suggest you to see it in a shop before buying it though. 

 

yes thats exactly what im looking for. You are definitely right i need to go to a shop, thats why i did research because i didnt want to buy any old telescope or binoculars and for them to be totally useless for what i want. thats a great price i was wary of the ones that were cheaper. thank you for the advice

 

[Amyb]

9 minutes ago, Dave In Vermont said:

Hi Amy - and a welcome to SGL - it's nice of you to join us!

There's a monthly web-magazing with lots on information, reviews, reports, and a wealth of other good data for those who like their binoculars:

http://binocularsky.com/binoc_links.php

It's free. Brought to you by Steve Tonkin, who is also the author of 'Binocular Astronomy.' An excellent read. And which binoculars would be best for beginners? You'll find as many answers to this as there are people who use them! But the Celestron Skywaster 15 X 70mm are highly regarded and a good choice if you like to hang onto your money - they are quite inexpensive.

Keep on asking questions - we love helping folks find answers here!

Clear and dark skies -

Dave

thankyou  i will check the magazine out. I do like a bargain I was trying to get a gist on what sort of lens etc would be good then would scour ebay before i look at new. its a good forum everyone is very helpful 

[Dave In Vermont]

If you haven't already found Stellarium - and you like a bargain - Stellarium is an excellent 'planetarium-program.' One simply tells it your location, and it will provide you with a very realistic and accurate image of your current nighttime sky. Or any other time - past or future - you wish. And as detailed as you want or need. Similar software can easily run you £200. Stellarium is absolutely free to downlaod and use anytime you want. Here's my Cut & Paste of Stellarium and two links for full instructions. I'll leave you with a screenshot of my copy. Don't let it intimidate you - mine is quite advanced. Your new copy will be far less detailed - until you load what you wish to have it show you. Even current locations of artificial-satellites! Here you are:

On this link is the main page for downloading Stellarium. Choose which version is correct for your computer. Here you go:

http://www.stellarium.org/
 
As for instructions, the most current one's are posted in Wiki due to there being new features & functions being created almost daily. There is also a Pdf. that's almost up-to-date, absolutely enough 'up-to-date' in all needed ways. Here's the Wiki-Link:
 
http://www.stellarium.org/wiki/index.php/Stellarium_User_Guide
 
And the Pdf. is here:
 
http://barry.sarcasmogerdes.com/stellarium/stellarium_user_guide-new.pdf
 
This should help you to find just about everything under the Sun.

Enjoy!

Dave

Click on image for full size.

[Amyb]

9 minutes ago, Dave In Vermont said:

If you haven't already found Stellarium - and you like a bargain - Stellarium is an excellent 'planetarium-program.' One simply tells it your location, and it will provide you with a very realistic and accurate image of your current nighttime sky. Or any other time - past or future - you wish. And as detailed as you want or need. Similar software can easily run you £200. Stellarium is absolutely free to downlaod and use anytime you want. Here's my Cut & Paste of Stellarium and two links for full instructions. I'll leave you with a screenshot of my copy. Don't let it intimidate you - mine is quite advanced. Your new copy will be far less detailed - until you load what you wish to have it show you. Even current locations of artificial-satellites! Here you are:

On this link is the main page for downloading Stellarium. Choose which version is correct for your computer. Here you go:

http://www.stellarium.org/
 
As for instructions, the most current one's are posted in Wiki due to there being new features & functions being created almost daily. There is also a Pdf. that's almost up-to-date, absolutely enough 'up-to-date' in all needed ways. Here's the Wiki-Link:
 
http://www.stellarium.org/wiki/index.php/Stellarium_User_Guide
 
And the Pdf. is here:
 
http://barry.sarcasmogerdes.com/stellarium/stellarium_user_guide-new.pdf
 
This should help you to find just about everything under the Sun.

Enjoy!

 

Thanks im going to download this now. i have just been using sky view app on my phone it cost £4 but so far my daughter and i have enjoyed using it,  nothing like the screen shot though! looks amazing 

[geoflewis]

+1 for Stellarium. I use it all the time to plan my observing and imaging sessions.

[Amyb]

6 minutes ago, geoflewis said:

+1 for Stellarium. I use it all the time to plan my observing and imaging sessions.

downloading as i type

[Demon Barber]

Hi Amy and welcome to SGL, if you look on Firstlightoptics website you will find a really good quality bino at a reasonable price, link here:http://www.firstlightoptics.com/clearance/celestron-skymaster-dx-9x63-binoculars.html

I can highly recommend starting with binoculars,these offer a large 63mm objective lens and a handholdable 9x magnification,they are easily mounted on a tripod for an even steadier view.

I still have my 8x56 (same family) that i bought when starting out,the glass is very good quality and i have no hesitation in recommending the 9x63.

Hope this helps!

Mike