Wearing glasses isn’t a problem with these small binoculars either. The eye relief is 18 mm so there is plenty of room for those who use glasses to see the entire field of view.

When you want to see something up close, you can focus as close as 8.2 feet away. Many small binoculars will not be able to match that close focus. If you want to view butterflies, you can get within ten feet and be able to view them as if you’re holding them in your hand! On the opposite end of the spectrum the field of view at 1000 yards is 262 feet.

Although it’s not waterproof the Triumph Porro is a great little field binocular. The outer covering is a brushed metallic surface, so it’s not shiny or slippery.

So, how many features are there? Magnification, objective lens diameter, weight, eye relief, close focus, and field of view are important to compare when you’re looking at the specs of several binoculars. By looking at the numbers you’ll see that many of these parameters vary between brands and sizes of binoculars. That’s why it’s best to pick up a pair and look through them before you make your decision. Visit a camera shop or outdoors shop near you and ask to see the binoculars. Compare the feel and the view of several models to help you choose the best compact binoculars for you.

Eye relief is a term that is used when describing binoculars. Eye relief is the maximum distance in millimeters (mm) that you can hold the binoculars away from your eyes and still see the whole view.

A rule of thumb is that a pair of compact binoculars should have a minimum eye relief of 13 mm for eyeglass wearers to use comfortably. Even if you don’t wear corrective lenses, you might want to consider the eye relief of binoculars if you regularly wear sunglasses in the field. An eye relief of 16 to 18 mm is even better for those wearing glasses.

The more you explore the features of binoculars, you will find out that there are trade-offs to be made. For example, the Eagle Optics Energy Lava 8×21 Binoculars – – has a close focus of 8 feet, which is really good for viewing butterflies, bugs and other objects up close. These 8x21s are also pretty inexpensive at $50, but the eye relief is only 8 mm. Not good enough for eyeglass-wearers. Darn, I like that dayglow color.

Contrast that with the Travelite, model 7508, 8 X 25mm V Binoculars – – made by Nikon which have a close focus of 9.8 feet (pretty good!) and an eye relief of 14 mm. Although these binoculars are more expensive than the Eagle Optics pair, the extra cost is probably worth it for the eyeglass wearer. The Travelites are still under $100!

Compare all the features before you put down any money for a pair of binoculars. Remember to consider what you will use the binoculars for and your budget, too.

Close focus is simply how close you can get to the object you’re viewing before it goes out-of-focus. Larger binoculars have close focus on the order of 15-20 feet or more. This means that any object viewed with these binoculars must be 20 feet or so away from you in order to view the object with the binoculars and have it in focus. Any object closer than the close focus distance will be out-of-focus and appear quite blurry.

Smaller binoculars will have smaller close focus distances on the order of 15 feet or less.

If you want to be able to use your binoculars for viewing butterflies or other cool insects, you’ll want a pair of binoculars that have a small close focus. For example, if you see a butterfly that is about 10 feet away, the Canon Waterproof 8×32 binoculars – with a close focus of 19 feet – will make you take a few steps back to view the butterfly in focus.

A better choice, although not as powerful, might be this one – Eagle Optics Ranger SRT 8×32 Binoculars – with a close focus of just 3 feet!

A less expensive model, the Lite-Tech Compact 8×25 Binoculars made by Brunton, has similar power and size, but the close focus is a whopping 28 feet. Not exactly what we’re looking for to view that butterfly. These binoculars are inexpensive, less than $50, but by paying less there’s gonna be trade-offs.

If you’ll often find yourself viewing such small objects up close, then the close focus is a feature that you should consider when selecting your binoculars. Be aware that the close focus of compact binoculars ranges from 3 feet to 28 feet.