Intro

Hey there, birders — welcome to The Birding Academy! If you’re brand new to birding, one of the most important tools you’ll ever own and use isn’t high-tech at all — it’s just a good pair of binoculars.

Binoculars are one of your most basic, but most important tools. They allow you to see features that you would never be able to note with your bare eyes, they are crucial to being able to ID the warblers in the trees or waterfowl out on a lake. There are so many options out there when deciding on your first pair, that it can seem overwhelming. You can start out with the cheapest you can find or treat them like an investment and buy a top of the line pair. 

In this lesson, we’ll go over why binoculars matter, how to choose the right pair, and how to actually use them like a pro — so you can start spotting birds with confidence.

Birding is all about details — the flash of wingbars on a warbler in the trees, the placement of white markings on a duck swimming out in the middle of a river, or the subtle eye ring on a sparrow.

Without binoculars, you miss the fine details that turn a “small brown bird” into a Song Sparrow, or a “big brown bird” into a Red-tailed Hawk.

They allow you to be able to see the difference between a Savannah Sparrow and a Song Sparrow, or a House Finch from a Purple Finch from even quite the distance away.

They are your main tool to truly experience the amazing diversity that’s found in the world of Birds.

So lets get started!