Guest Article: How to Choose a Binocular by John Riutta
If you're drawing a blank on what to get the birder in your life for Valentine's Day, how about a new pair of binos? In this article, which first appeared in Peterson Guides newsletter #2, our friend John Riutta gives helpful tips on how to choose a binocular. And John should know. Before becoming everyone's favorite nature writer, John worked in product development for optics manufacturer Leopold & Stevens.
How to Choose a Binocular
Of all the activities involved in bird watching, one of the most challenging does not involve birds at all; it is the selection of the right binocular. After all, there are dozens of books currently in publication that give advice on bird watching techniques and literally hundreds of field guides to help you tell one bird from another, but when it comes to picking the binocular with which you will be employing all those techniques, not a single book dedicated to the topic exists.
In some ways, rightly so; for there are a bewildering variety of technical aspects involved in the design and manufacturing of a binocular. However when it comes to selecting optics for bird watching, keeping three simple things in mind will go a long way to helping you select the right binocular for your bird watching needs.
First, don’t choose a compact binocular (anything with an objective smaller than 30mm). Oh compacts have their uses — quick glances, “just in case” carry alongs — but while they may be small, light, and easy to carry, the image even the best can provide won’t give you a satisfying experience when used for long periods of time in the field.
Second, don’t over-magnify. I know it seems like a 10x model will give you a better look at a bird than an 8x model, but it will also give you a smaller field of view, an image that is less bright, and be more difficult to hold without shaking. 8x is the most magnification you’ll ever need for a bird watching binocular. If you want more magnification than that, consider getting a spotting scope in which the objective lens is much larger to help balance the light in relation to the higher magnification level.
Third, choose a binocular that fits your hands and face. If you can’t hold it comfortably and see clearly through both sides at once with no “shadows” creeping in from the edges, pass it by and keep looking. If you wear eyeglasses, the binocular’s eye relief should be long enough to allow you to see the full field of view without requiring that you remove your spectacles.
Sure, there’s more that could be written, but why needlessly complicate matters? These three things will go a long way to making sure the next binocular you buy will be one with which you’ll be happy for years to come.
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John E. Riutta Writer, critic, lecturer, and publisher of The Well-read Naturalist, John was formerly the development and product line manager for binocular and spotting scope products at Leupold & Stevens, Inc.
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Peterson Birds Wins 2011 Best App Ever Award
We did it! Thanks to all Peterson Birds users who voted for us in the 148Apps.com annual Best App Ever contest. We won the number one spot for Best Outdoors App, beating some great apps including Nike+ GPS, Star Walk, and 360 Panorama.
Here's the list of ten finalists.
Winter-Blues Sale — Peterson Birds Now 30% Off
Folks in the North-East got an early taste of winter this week so I thought I'd do my bit to cheer them up. Peterson Birds is on sale! It's now 30% off at $9.99.
I was going to make it a Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival special, but then decided to let the sale run all month, so I had to find another name for it.
If you are going to RGVBF, now is a great time to stock up on Peterson and put it on your iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. You do know that buying the app once lets you run it on up to five devices, right? Apple thinks of everything.
And talking of Apple-thinking-of-everything, I sent out the first Peterson Guides newsletter last week with an interesting little item at the end that I thought I'd repeat here. It's a great idea for wiling away a few hours on a blustery winter day and making the most of your Peterson app.
Peterson Birds on a Big Screen TV
If you have an iPad, Apple's latest operating system release — iOS 5 — lets you wirelessly mirror the display of your iPad to the big screen of a digital TV. Check it out.
To mirror your iPad to the TV you need an AppleTV — a $99 gadget that attaches your TV to your home network and does all sorts of cool things like let you rent movies and TV shows, watch Netflix, etc..
The iPad communicates with the AppleTV using Airplay, a new wireless technology from Apple. To mirror the display, double-click the iPad home button and swipe the task bar from left to right. The task bar is the row of icons along the botton of the screen. You will see an icon like this
Tap the icon and then tap AppleTV. The iPad will now mirror everything that's on your iPad on the big screen. Fire up Peterson Birds and away you go!
Peterson Birds has a huge amount of detailed birding information, including the full text of Steve Howell's fantastic Peterson Reference Guide to Molt in North American Birds, details from the hawks, hummingbirds, and warblers books, and the East and West Coast nest books. Mirroring the iPad to a TV screen is a great way to view this information. It's also a great way to admire Roger Tory Peterson's illustrations on the big screen.
If you do have a go at connecting your iPad wirelessly to you TV, let me know how it works out. And if you have any trouble, post to the support forum and we'll try and help out.
Enjoy the Peterson Birds app discount. If you have any friends or relatives expecting an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad for Christmas, let them know about the sale. They can buy the app this month at the sale price and it will happilly sit in iTunes waiting for a mobile device to install on.
Happy Novemeber,
Nigel
In Memory of Steve Jobs
I suspect everyone who has used an Apple product over the past few years will be touched by the death of Steve Jobs, but for those of us who've had the pleasure of working with Apple devices day-in-day-out, it's especially affecting. The outpuring of condolences and memories on Twitter and blogs across the Internet and across the world is something you don't see everyday. Steve Jobs found a way to touch many people's lives, but I want to focus on the way he has specifically touched birders.
A few years ago I had the privelege of working alongside Mitch Waite, developer of the iBird apps. Mitch and Steve Jobs' lives have curiously intersected in different ways over the years, but if it wasn't for Steve, there would be no iBird. And if it wasn't for iBird, there's a good chance you might not be walking around with an electronic bird guide in your pocket.
The first incarnation of iBird was called Winged Explorer and Mitch developed it for Windows Mobile computers. It was something of a hobby, but an inordinately expensive one. And it failed miserably. People didn't take to Windows Mobile and very few copies of Winged Explorer were sold.
Enter the iPhone.
As soon as the iPhone hit retail stores, Mitch started to get requests from birders to rewrite Winged Explorer as an iPhone app. Having spent several years and untold amounts of money developing the app for Windows, Mitch was in no mood to go off and spend more money converting the software to work on an untried device. But, birders persisted in calling him and he eventually relented.
iBird Explorer took off like a rocket and was used by Apple in their early iPhone TV ads. Apple liked iBird because it was a perfect example of the kind of innovative new application that the iPhone made possible.
It's fair to say that if iBird Explorer had not been rewritten to run on the iPhone, birders would not have the amazing choice of apps that they have today. Publishers of paper field guides, like Peterson, Sibley, Audubon, and National Geographic, have always resisted technology and it's difficult to imagine them taking the risk to invest in putting their works out as apps, had iBird not lead the way and shown that it could be done. And iBird would never have happened if it wasn't for Steve Jobs and the iPhone.
So, whether you use one of Apple's mobile devices or an Android or Blackberry phone, if you're a birder, give a moments thought to Steve Jobs and his remarkable acheivments. He changed birding.
Nigel Hall
Introducing Peterson Guides Bird Finder
To try it for yourself, fire up Safari on your mobile device and go to PetersonGuides.com. Then navigate to Bird Finder. Then select a state and a location and tap ALL to download a list with birds and abundance data for the entire year.
If you'd like a more in-depth view into Bird Finder, check out the Introduction to Bird Finder page on our new Help Wiki.
We want to hear your feedback. Let us know what you like and don't like about Bird Finder and where you'd like to see it go from here.
People are going nuts about the Peterson Feeder Birds app
Peterson Feeder Birds has been out almost a month and the response so far has been outstanding. Everyone loves the app!
Here are a few of iTunes reviews for the app:
"AWESOME!!!"
"Want a terrific bird watching resource? This is a must have!"
"The most amazing free app I've seen. Very detailed right down to the bird's songs. I just bought the full version - North American Birds."
"Didn't expect such a comprehensive guide for a free app! Better than the one I purchased. Love the bird song and journal. Excellent app, thank you"
"Just right for the backyard birder! And free!"
"Awesome app, lots of info and free! Thank you, thank you ^_^"
"Comprehensive and creative! I can't believe this is an app or that it's free"
"Wonderful app, thanks so much."
"I can't believe all the info packed into this free app. Most of the common birds in my area and around my feeders are represented. My pets like listening to the calls and I am trying it out on the birds tomorrow. Thanks a lot."
"I LOVE THIS APP! It's totally wicked! it gives u so many ways to find the bird in ur region, listen to it's specific calls, and gives u other birds on the same page to compare ur bird to! I got turned on to bird watching last yr and this app would have been the most awesome thing ever had I had it this yr during our zoological field research trip. I LOVE THIS APP!!"
"As a avid birder I would have to say this is a great free app"
"I used the audio to have a conversation with a chickadee this afternoon. Highly recommended!"
"Beautifully illustrated and informative app! Thanks so much!"
"Works equally well on the iPad and iPhone. Great information and very intuitive interface. The sound recordings are faithful (my dog is still searching for the Jay in the house that I played). The version has motivated me to purchase other Peterson guides."
"Having a good time with this app!"
"I thought it would be fun for me and my kids to try and ID some of the hummingbirds at our backyard feeder. This app does WAY more than that. I would have paid $ for all the cool features. I think my kids will really like it. Would be kind of cool to have a direct photo button so you could add photos from directly in the app, but that would just be a fun bonus. Thanks for the app!"
"Informative,easy to use. Wish they had sounds for each gender though!"
"Hard to believe with all the features that it is free. The pictures are great, the sounds excellent and the ability to keep track of birds you have seen is the icing on the cake. If you are a bird lover this is a must."
"You have to drill down a bit to access the depth of info offered by this app but it's definitely not just pictures as one review stated. Lots of interesting facts, easy to use once you're familiar with it. It gets a ton of use at our house :)"
"This app is packed with features. True, it is not A's comprehensive as the Peterson's Guide, but nearly everything I see or am likely to see around my backyard and hometown is represented. It's packed with features too!"
"Works as advertised and its free. It is not the whole Peterson guide, but what do you expect for this price."
"This has to be one of the best-designed free apps out there. Peterson's took care to make an intuitively easy-to-navigate application that has just the right amount of information for the novice birder. Would be awesome if they made a full version (even if you had to pay, it'd be well worth it)."
"I have the book and this app is filled with all the info the book has. Great color pics, migration chart and specifics on each species."
"Definitely worth the download! Extensive info and very precise images!"
"This app will address the more common birds to be seen at back yard feeders; however during migratory "seasons" other birds will be seen that may not be in this app. This is with out a doubt the best easy ID app I've seen. If you want to ID all the birds visiting your feeders you should consider an app with more birds, such as Petersons $14.95 north American field guide which is a good price considering other apps are $21 and up. This "starter" for free is a blow away deal for a beginner or "weekend" enthusiast. Happy birding! And always remember to wear a hat!"
"I downloaded hoping that this would be handy identifying birds in the neighborhood and at my feeders. "
"While it may have a limited catalog, it is a terrific value with A lot of features including some bird song samples. It took a few minutes to figure the user interface (I was stuck at the pics for a bit myself, just touch near the bottom of the images and the menu appears). I happily recommend this charming app."
"This is a great value for its designed purpose. Our family has received much enjoyment from this app this spring."
"Perfect app for those just getting into birding. This app included the most common feeder birds with tons of info on each just a tap away. Includes bird songs and pics of nests with eggs."
"This is a lot of fun to flip through. My cat enjoyed the sounds too!"
"Now I can birdwatch like a boss."
"I have wondered for 30 years what these funny looking, obnoxious sounding black birds with yellow eyes that come to the desert in the late spring are called. A few clicks and less than 1 minute after downloading I learned that it is a Great Tailed Grackle! Now what am I going to do with all the time I used to spend wondering about the name of those birds?"
"so thorough, well organized, and intuitive you wish it had all the birds in Peterson's North America guide."
Go check the reviews out for yourself on the iTunes store.
Peterson Birds App Giveaway - How to use a promo code
This week we will give away 10 copies of Peterson Birds of North America for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Each day, we will post two promo codes for the app on the @petersonguides Twitter account.
If you have a Twitter account, follow @petersonguides and watch for the post with the codes.
If you do not have a Twitter account, you can still participate by watching the Peterson Guides Twitter account on the web at http://twitter.com/petersonguides. We will also mirror the Twitter post to Peterson Guides on Facebook. So if you have a Facebook account, please Like our page and keep an eye open for the codes.
When you see a post with codes, copy the code and then go to iTunes on you PC or Mac. In the iTunes store, look for the Quick Links box on the right hand side of the screen and click on Redeem. Paste the code into the box and click on the Redeem button. This will take you to the download page for the app.
Each code can be redeemed only once, so you will have to be quick!
There you have it! It's that simple. Just follow http://twitter.com/petersonguides and watch for the codes.
If you are one of the lucky winners, please Tweet about it, or post to our Facebook wall, of comment on this blog post.
Good luck!
Update: For those of you on PCs who don't currently have an Apple iOS device (iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad) you will need to download and install the iTunes software from Apple to redeem the code. Go to http://www.apple.com/itunes/, click on the Download button, and follow the installation instructions.
Appweavers honors ABA Young Birder of the Year
[caption id="attachment_144" align="alignleft" width="216" caption="ABA Young Birder of the Year Rachael Butek receives iPad 2 and Peterson Birds app from Appweavers, Inc."]
Here's the full text of a press release we sent out earlier today. You can see the original on BusinessWire.com
SAN ANSELMO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--American Birding Association (ABA) Young Birder of the Year Rachael Butek could not believe what she was reading. Only one week ago, Rachael learned she had won the ABA Young Birder of the Year contest. And today, an email from Nigel Hall, President of Appweavers, Inc., arrived to let her know she would receive a brand new Apple iPad 2 along with Appweavers’ latest app, Peterson Birds of North America for the iPhone and iPad.
Ms. Butek, a homeschool graduate from Colfax, Wisconsin, completed the ABA’s seven-month long contest taking first place in two of four competition categories. A second and third placement in the two remaining categories gave her the overall win and title Young Birder of the Year.
The ABA’s Young Birder of the Year contest is an annual competition that tests the wits of birders aged 10 through 18 years. Participants submit entries in four modules—field notebook, writing, illustration, and photography. Submissions are judged by a team of volunteer birding experts who this year included noted birding author David Sibley, nature writer Laura Kammermeier, and director of guidebooks at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company Lisa White.
“We are 100% behind the ABA’s push to encourage young birders, and when we heard Rachael had won the Young Birder of the Year competition, we knew we had to find a way to recognize her achievement,” said Nigel Hall, President, Appweavers. “The iPad is such an amazing tool for birders, and our unabridged adaptation of Roger Tory Peterson’s classic Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America looks astounding on the device.”
Appweavers is a San Francisco Bay Area software company focusing on nature guide apps for mobile computing devices. The company has a multi-product licensing agreement with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for development of mobile apps based on the highly respected Peterson Field Guide series of books. The company is getting ready to release its second app, Peterson Feeder Birds of North America.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is the world’s largest provider of educational products and solutions for pre-K–12 learning. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt education products and services are used by 57 million students throughout all 50 U.S. states and 120 countries. With origins dating back to 1832, the company also publishes an extensive line of reference works and award-winning literature for adults and young readers.
Appweavers hits a home run with Peterson Birds - MyMac.com Review
My favorite quote:
" ... Appweavers, Inc. hit a home run with their version of the Peterson Birds of North America ..."
You can read the review here.
Nice Review of Peterson Birds at BirdingIsFun.com
Scot Tuthill at BirdingIsFun.com wrote a nice review of Peterson Birds. Here's what he thinks of the app:
"Appweavers has done a stunningly good job ... I would feel confident using this app in the field. "
You can check out the review at BirdingIsFun.com
