Question

I am looking for a pair of high magnification binoculars to be used primarily for deer hunting from a blind or stand. Weight and price are not constraints. I want the best optic quality and balance between light gathering and magnification. I am typically aging and rough scoring deer from 100+ yards, which is why the magnification is important to me. I appreciate any suggestion you might have for me.

Answer

Many people ask me about hunting binoculars, wanting to know what to get and don’t really give me any more details than that, so it is great that you are being a little more specific. As I suggest in my section on Binoculars for Hunting, the general rule is that a wider field of view is more important than the magnification and an easy to carry binocular is better than a larger bulkier one. But this is a general rule and assumes that there is tracking involved, possibly in dense vegetation, meaning that you need to carry the binocular with you, possibly for great distances.

So what if you are hunting from a hide (blind or stand) and there is some wide open areas where you can spot game at larger distances?

Magnification
The good news is that because you are in a hide, the extra image shake that you get with a high powered binocular can be countered by you either being able to rest your elbows on a steady surface or you could even consider mounting the optics on a tripod, Car Window Clamp/Mount or Hide Clamp using a Binocular Tripod Adapter. If you do decide to go down this route, you can get a very high powered pair of binoculars, you just need to make sure that they are tripod adaptable. Another option would be to get a pair of image stabilized binoculars.

The other down side to high powered binoculars is that the field of view tends to get smaller the higher you go. I personally feel that a magnification of 12x will be sufficient for your needs and you will easily be able to age and scoring deer from well over a 100 yards. It will also mean that you can also easily use your binoculars without any form of steady base (unless you have very unsteady hands) and can be used in a variety of different situations.

Size of Binoculars
Again because you are hunting from a hide, you rightly say that weight and size are not an issue, so we will mostly be looking at full sized binoculars (with a objective lens diameter of about 42mm). The good thing here is that the larger objective lens diameters will let in more light, producing a brighter image, which means that the binoculars will work far better in poor light conditions than compact or even mid sized versions. As most wildlife, including the deer and antelope that I am used to is most active in the early morning and late afternoons, early evening when the light is not at it’s best, this is a real bonus.

Waterproofing & Toughness
The general advice when choosing top hunting binoculars is to look for a pair that will easily handle anything that you can throw at them, again this usually assumes that you will be tracking the animal. I assume that this is not too important for you, so it’s nice to have but not critical and to be honest because you want a high quality pair of optics, they usually have an excellent quality exterior and are 100% fog and waterproof anyway.

I mentioned in the magnification section that you could consider a pair of binoculars that come with image stabilization. I wouldn’t normally recommend them as a pair of binoculars for deer hunting because of the added weight and the electronics make them less “tough” than standard optics, but in your case this may be a viable option?

Price
You say that price is not a constraint, which is great and means we can look for an excellent quality pair of deer hunting binoculars. The worst combination you can put together is a cheap high powered pair of binoculars – if you are looking for a high powered pair of optics, it is best to get the best quality you can afford.

Below are a few suggestions, I am sure there are many other options for you to consider, my personal choices would be either the Minox BL 15X56 or 13X56 BR Binoculars if I was to go over a 12x magnification, or the Steiner 12×42 Predator C5 Binoculars if I wanted to stick with a 12x magnification. I hope this helps.

Best Hunting binoculars – More than 12x Magnification

Minox BL 15X56 or 13X56 BR Binoculars

Whilst I have not reviewed either of these specific models, every pair of Minox binoculars that I have reviewed has really impressed me, this is especially true for the Minox 8×33 BL Binoculars – that are also part of the BL series that these more powerful versions come under.

The large 56mm objective lenses will ensure that plenty of light enters the system, so are ideal in poor light conditions. They also have multicoated lens elements which guarantee quality optical performance and natural color rendition of the subject in view.

Phase correction coatings have been added to the prisms, which is another sign of their high quality and will produce an image of exceptionally high detail and rich in contrast, even in poor lighting conditions.

Nitrogen gas filling prevents fogging of the optical surfaces on the inside, even with extreme temperature fluctuations. Based on a sophisticated sealing technology developed by MINOX engineers the BL 15×56 BR and the BL 13×56 BR are also fully watertight down to a depth of five meters.

The MINOX BL 15X56 has also been fitted with a tripod thread making it easier to attach a tripod using an adaptor.

• Tough and 100% Waterproof
• Phase Coated Prisms
• Fully Multi-coated Optics
• Tripod Adaptable
• Field of view: 263 ft at 1000 yds (13×56) / 215 ft at 1000 yds (15×56)

>> Buy & Compare Prices for Minox BL Binoculars in the UK

>> Buy & Compare Prices for Minox BL Binoculars in the USA

Canon 18×50 or even 15×50 Image Stabilized Binoculars

If you are looking for a very high powered pair of binoculars and don’t want to use a tripod or clamp, then either of these are ideal as the Image stabilization works well. The quality of the optics and their coatings are also excellent. More on Canon Image Stabilization Binoculars

• Very high powered 15x or even 18x Image Stabilized Binoculars
• Water-resistant construction – will be fine in light rain just don’t get them drenched
• Large objective lenses means they let in plenty of light
• Ultra-low dispersion (UD) glass elements for exceptional image quality
• Doublet field-flattener for sharp, distortion-free images from edge-to-edge

>> Canon Binoculars on Amazon.co.uk

>> Canon Binoculars on Amazon.com

Best Hunting binoculars – 12x Magnification

Steiner 12×42 Predator C5 Binoculars

The new Steiner Predator C5′s use a new optical system – they now have new fully multi-coated optics and completely new shock and waterproof housing. The new Predator C5 now has a much higher degree of light transmission, image resolution and color contrast than previously available.

The Steiner Predator binocular was developed as a special tool for hunters and nature observers and for the American hunter in particular enabling them to more easily spot animals in a woodland setting. Developed about 10 years ago, the concept is simple – boost the transmission of red and brown shades (the “right” side of the color spectrum towards infrared) while slightly reducing transmission of the “left” side of the spectrum (blue, green and UV light) to make animals and other objects “pop out” of the background.

• Tough and 100% Waterproof
• Fully Multi-coated Optics
• Field of View – 276 feet @ 1000 yards

>> Steiner Binoculars on Amazon.co.uk

>> Steiner Predator Binoculars on Amazon.com

Steiner 12X40 Predator Pro Binoculars

These Steiner binoculars have been designed for hunting, and give you a high power magnification and amazing contrast with a high depth of filed into one. The Predator Pro binocular’s have a unique high contrast lens coating that helps you to more easily distinguish subjects (like deer) against green-colored foliage. This latest Predator model, with the “Pro” designation, offers high light transmission while maintaining optimal levels of contrast.

• The 12×40 Predator Pro uses what Steiner call their auto focus system that, once set for the user’s eyes, keeps all subjects in focus at distances from approximately 30 yards to infinity. These “Self Focusing Binoculars” make it easier for hunters to scan an entire landscape without having to readjust focus. It can also be faster in locating wildlife since the entire depth of field is constantly in focus. For more on this take a look at my page on Auto Focus/ Always in Focus Binoculars
• Tough and 100% Waterproof
• Field of View – 264 feet @ 1000yards
• More on Steiner Predator Binoculars

>> Steiner Binoculars on Amazon.co.uk

>> Steiner Predator Binoculars on Amazon.com

• Image Stabilized Binoculars
• Water-resistant construction – will be fine in light rain just don’t get them drenched
• Field of View – 262ft at 1,000 yards
• The Image stabilization works well and as size and weight are not issues with you – this may be a real option. More on Canon Image Stabilization Binoculars

Steiner 12×30 Wildlife Pro Binoculars

I have included these Steiner binoculars as an option if you want to consider a smaller more compact pair, but still with a 12x magnification.

• Mid Size Binoculars – Dimensions: (inches) 5.9Lx1.85Hx4.2W
• Water & Fogproof
• Field of View – 220ft at 1,000 yards
• Quality optics including phase corrected roof-prism mirrors

Best Hunting binoculars – Other Options

Kowa 10.5×44 Genesis XD Binoculars

• Full Sized Binoculars
• Water & Fogproof
• Field of View – 324 ft at 1,000 yds or 108 m at 1,000m – not bad considering the 10.5x magnification
• Down on power, but these are one of the best full sized binoculars I have ever reviewed, with a super high quality as well as bright image

Binoculars for Hunting – Further Reading
Take a look at my section on the best binoculars for hunting, that includes some general advice and reviews of some binoculars that are suitable most types of hunting.

Question

OK, I hunt. I watch birds. I go to football games. About the only thing I would anticipate NOT using Binoculars for is a safari.

I am very confused by the array of Binoculars by use. Why wouldn’t a safari binocular be good for hunting and vice versa? I would also expect that a birding binocular should be a good hunting binocular as well.

I guess what I am looking for is somebody to sort out all the confusion for me, and the advice I have heard to spend the most you can afford on optics seems equally pointless upon reading some reviews on some of the products available from some of the lesser brands, i.e., Nikon Monarch. or even Cabellas.

My Answer

There is no reason why a good pair of Safari or Birding Binoculars would not be good as hunting binoculars as well – it is just that each discipline or specific use have their own unique requirements and so the “ultimate” safari binocular will have a few unique needs that a hunting or birding binocular may not have. This is not to say that the best birding binocular won’t also be good for hunting or vise-versa, it just probably wont be the best at it’s secondary use.

So for example the best hunting binocular would probably have all the same characteristics as the best safari binocular. Except for that fact that the best binoculars for safaris must also be compact enough to easily carry in your luggage on holiday with you, so this would eliminate some of the larger hunting binoculars, but not the compact ones.

Like wise a good hunting or safari binocular would be fine for birdwatching, but the ultimate birding binoculars would have a wide field of view, which is not necessarily that important for hunting or taking on safari (this depends on what you are hunting of course).

Some specialist binoculars for hunting also come with rangefinders, like the Carl ZEISS rangefinder binoculars which obviously would not be of use when looking at birds, this is not to say that that binocular would be a useless bird watching binocular, just not ideal.

If you are going to use your binoculars for a variety of purposes, there are many excellent binoculars that I would call good all rounders.

Buy the best you can afford
As for spending the most you can afford, I think this is generally good advice, depending on how often you plan on using the binoculars.

More expensive binoculars will not only have a better build quality, but will have better quality lenses, prisms and coatings. There is nothing wrong with a good pair of binoculars in the $100 to $200 range, something like the Bushnell 10×42 NatureView’s and they will be fine for most people, but if you compare them side by side with a real quality and expensive pair of binoculars like the Swarovski 10×42 EL Binoculars, that have the same size objective lenses and magnification you will notice the difference, in the clarity and brightness of the image produced.

What ever you do don’t go for very cheap binoculars, most of which are little more than toys.