Field of view - Binoculars
An important characteristic of binoculars is the field of view. The field of view determines the size of the image you see. For instance, at a distance of 1,000 metres, ask yourself whether you see 2 poles standing 100 metres apart or whether you see them closer to each other or in fact further apart? The field of view is obviously greatly influenced by the magnification factor. The stronger the magnification, the smaller the field of view.
However, there are also variations among binoculars with the same magnification factor. These variations are caused by the ocular lens used, among other things. Binoculars with a larger field of view often make concessions to the eye relief. This is again something to take into account if you wear glasses. However, a large field of view is certainly very comfortable for viewing birds in motion, for instance. You are not likely to lose sight of them so quickly if your binoculars have a wide field of view.
In the image above the distances are listed in yards and feet. This, however, doesn't change the outcome:
- The value in yard / 1000 yards equals the value in meters / 1000 meters
- For the value feet / 1000 yards the value needs to be divided by three to end up with meter / 1000 meters
- At an angle in degrees the following applies: 1000 x sine (angle/2) to get meter/ 1000 meters
