Hi, Mary,

Consider that you'll be looking through a pair of binos at something that's
moving, or far off, or in dim lighting, like deep in a shrub, or has features,
like superciliums, that may be hard to discern at first glance.
Often the bird has only one or two things that make it different than a very
similar species. For instance, Eastern and Western Meadowlarks differ, in
appearance, only by a small portion of yellow on the chest. (their songs are
vastly different, however, which makes it easy..). A cheap pair of binos isn't
going to help you in any of these endeavors. Most cheapys are made for viewing
a stationary target at about 100 feet away.

The better the binocular, the less chance you have of developing eye strain,
or motion sickness (yeah, that's all I can call it..that's where you're
following a bird while it's rocketing away, or worse, looking through the
binos while in a moving car.). The better binos have better light gathering
qualities, take abuse more readily, and are usually covered by a lifetime
warranty.

Don't succumb to sticker shock. Yeah, they can be VERY spendy. I bought my
Zeiss's from Cabela's for a little over $900.00.
To balance it, though, let me tell you that when I bought my Zeiss's from the
Cabela's catalog, I was living in Germany at the time, about 25 miles from the
factory where they are made. I checked the factory store prices, and they were
about $250.00 MORE than what Cabela's wanted for them. And that WASN'T
including the 14% VAT!!
Before I bought them I was using a pair of cheapy Tasco's. They were usable,
but heavy, dull in light intensity, and gave me a headache while I was
sweeping for hawks.

Spend the money. Save it up if you have to, but definitely buy the best you
can afford. It will pay off in the long run.
Personally speaking, I won't use anything else but Zeiss. Great glasses. ANd,
as I said, lifetime warranty. A bird bander I know sent hers back to the US
factory. They cleaned them inside and out, replaced the rubber eyepieces,
though only one was screwed up, ( which is why she'd sent it in), and they re-
calibrated the innards. (I don't know the proper terminology.) This is just
Zeiss policy. I betcha the other spendy bino companies do it too.

Good hunting, and good birding!
Michelle