binoculars

As a kid, perhaps unsurprisingly, I was the only person I knew interested in birdwatching. Nevertheless, I regularly went out in nature armed with my binoculars, bird book, and camera, ready to document as many species as I could.  The process was largely manual — spot a bird through the binoculars, snap a pic (if it stood still for long enough), and then try to figure out what species it was, if I didn’t already know. But the times they are a changin’.  Austrian optical specialist Swarovski…

I can’t say I’m a bird watcher. It’s quite the contrary, I don’t spend enough time in nature, though I want to fix that. I can say that binoculars have always appealed to me, or rather, the prospect of using a pair in the wild. Add smart features to them, especially features powered by AI, and I’d be immediately drawn in while fully knowing that I’m not the kind of person who would get the most out of them. With that in mind, I’ll tell you that the Swarovski Optic AX Visio binoculars that showed up at CES 2024…

Swarovski has turned up at CES 2024 in Las Vegas with its first ever pair of smart binoculars that will identify the bird you’re looking at. All you have to do is point the gear at a bird and make sure the view is in focus, and then press down an action button. Within a few seconds, the system will overlay a bird’s name over your view, using data pulled from the Merlin Bird ID database. That has over 9,000 species tagged, and will even let you know the degree of certainty it has if the bird in question is in an unexpected…

Amateur astronomy is so hot right now, and it’s never been easier for backyard enthusiasts to gaze into the cosmos and contemplate their puny, meaningless existences. We’ve assembled a collection of exceptional gift ideas to help your favorite space enthusiast take their skywatching skills to the next level.Google’s AI Isn’t a Gimmick, It’s the Future | AI UnlockedFor those looking to enhance their night sky experience, finding the right equipment is key. From advanced robotic telescopes to essential accessories like…

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Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Thursday, Feb. 2.Some of my most vivid memories of growing up in Ventura County are from second grade — mostly thanks to my teacher that year. She rode a motorcycle, she wore those quintessentially ’90s sundresses, she made learning whimsical, and she put together the best field trips. She was basically Ms. Frizzle without the child endangerment.One excursion brought us to a nearby park, where we took in a spectacle still fresh in my mind today: a…

Jupiter will appear larger and brighter than usual Monday night, as it makes its closest approach to Earth since 1963.Jupiter—a massive, milky-orange gas giant—is the largest planet in our solar system. The strips of color on the planet are swirling gases that churn in huge storm systems. Some of those systems, like Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, last for centuries.The planet’s awesome features will be in sharp relief tonight thanks to the way it orbits the Sun. Both Earth and Jupiter’s orbits are slightly elliptical, meaning…

Binoculars, often referred to as binocs/ bins/ nocs are the birders best ally in the field helping them spot, identify, and fully appreciate the beauty of the birds. Like a superior tool enhances the craft of an artisan, so does a good pair of binocs enhance the ability and overall experience of the birder.Binoculars come in all shapes, sizes and more importantly prices, which can get shockingly high. So the ability to pick the right pair for oneself is very crucial. While the more expensive binocs tend to have higher…

As an ardent birder, nothing gives me more joy than the simple act of cleaning my binoculars (‘bins' in birder slang). A clean pair of ‘bins' is the most indispensable tool that a birder needs to spot and observe birds doing what they naturally do. Bird-watching or ‘birding' is watching and observing birds and their behaviours in their natural habitats. In other words, all birders like to watch birds, or ‘go birding', or simply, ‘bird'. Birding, as an activity, includes watching or admiring birds, photographing or filming…

Time and again in the course of my experience as a birdwatcher, I have fallen in with persons who have left me with a feeling, as they withdraw, that they were inwardly tapping a pitying finger on their foreheads. Their first glimpse of me very often has, it is true, been of a distinctly shabby khaki-clad individual of the garage mechanic type, wandering leisurely and rather aimlessly about the countryside and surreptitiously peeping into bushes, and holes in tree trunks and earth banks. At times they have seen me…