Understanding Magnification on Binoculars by Redstart Birding

What do those numbers mean on your binoculars? The first number, often an 8 or a 10, indicates the magnification power. Learn how magnification impacts your viewing experience and discover what to look out for when you're choosing your own binoculars for birding.
Do you want to find out more about magnification, birding optics, or bird watching in general? Visit us at redstartbirding.com/ or give us a call at [phone] or visit

[@Burps___]

I own 15x56 binoculars that I adore. Sure, I must hold my elbows against my sides, perform deliberate shallow breathing, and reduce my pulse rate via mind control, but once that’s accomplished, easy peasy to use.

[@schbasdy]

Very poor comparisons: The difference between 8x and 10x is NEVER as significant and drastic as shown in your example. To me the amount of zoom you applied for the "10x" demonstraion looks much more like 20x or even 25x, the low end of spotting scopes. And it would be more correct to say that looking through a 8x gives you the impression that your distance to the object appears to be only one eighth of the real distance instead of "it shows everything 8 times larger". As an example: a bird in 100m distance watched through a 8x bino appears to be in a distance of just 12,5m.

[@bassamerica7203]

Thank you! Your comment helped me more than the video

[@epidausxoxo8616]

Make sense

[@justinle998]

great video production. good editing, colors, transitions, music, animations.

[@billmoyer3254]

8 to 10 comparison was false!

[@swagatda1644]

I am very new with binocular but your video helped me to know the difference of 8x 10x.
Thanks for that...

[@henrifischer1119]

you failed to explain when and why a 10 times magnification would be better than an 8 times magnification.