Binocular Guide - Magnification

On most binoculars there are two numbers. The first of these indicates the magnification of the binocular, the last number is the size of the front lens in millimetres.

Therefore an 8x30 binocular has a magnification of eight. This means that everything you see through them will appear to be 8x larger. Similarly, a 10x30 makes everything 10x larger, and so on.

However this does not mean that you should immediately get the highest magnification possible. Higher magnification binoculars have their own problems. Higher magnifications generally mean that the field of view will be smaller and that the image is not as bright. It will also be harder to hold the image steady.

For most uses 7x or 8x magnification is ideal, perhaps 10x or 12x if you wish to see a little more detail. Magnifications above 12x are hard to hold still and so are better mounted on a tripod. Have a look at the product selector to choose the most suitable for your main purposes.

Sometimes binoculars have three numbers on them, for example, 8-20x50. This indicates that it is a zoom binocular and in this case the first two numbers are the magnifications. The first number is the lowest magnification while the second number is the highest. So in this example the binocular can be used at magnifications between 8x to 20x magnification. However the downsides of a zoom mechanism are a loss of field of view and a loss of brightness.