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Binoculars etc for opera, theater viewing

post #1 of 6
1/6/09 at 5:14pm
Thread Starter 
I couldn't think of a better place for the question, and I figure no harm in throwing it out there. I'm an opera fan living in NYC on a rather limited budget, so I frequent Met's Family Circle. I decided to get myself a nice set of binoculars to enhance my viewing experience (won't be watching birds or anything like that since I'm an indoorsy type). I was about to shell out $100 on a compact 6.5x Pentax binoculars, but then I read somewhere that opera glasses are usually 3x-5x. I can't seem to find decent binoculars less than 5x. Has anyone used 6.5x or above for theater-viewing, and would you recommend it?
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post #2 of 6
1/6/09 at 5:39pm
I use these compact Leica binoculars, which are far better than regular opera glasses:

http://us.leica-camera.com/nature_ob...ltravid_20_bl/

They are great for the opera and the theatre, and I have also found them to be an excellent way of looking at frescoes in Italy. They are more expensive than the Pentax you were considering, but also *much* nicer.
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post #3 of 6
1/6/09 at 7:06pm
Thread Starter 
That's some serious binoculars! I'm not ready to drop $700 for the sole purpose of theater-going, but what I gather from your recommendation seems to be that it's fine to use a higher-powered binoculars for opera and theater. I'm asking this because I had read that with higher-powered binoculars, your field of view may not cover the whole stage and your hands will have to be super steady.
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post #4 of 6
1/6/09 at 7:08pm
Go to B&H. I have a small pair--maybe Nikon, I can't remember--which were at most $25. They did a good job steering me to the pair I picked. They work perfectly fine from where I sit in the family circle, row D or something like that.
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post #5 of 6
1/7/09 at 12:59am
The rule of thumb is, the greater the magnification the smaller the filed of view, though the greater the number after the "x" in binocular specifications, the greater the field o view, when compared to other binos at the same magnification. I don't believe most higher end optic manufacturers make a model dedicated theater patrons. I think anything up to 10x magnification is a good choice for hand holding. I've used my Zeiss 10x25 at the theater for a few minutes at a time. I guess, if you plan to look through the binoculars during the whole performance you may wish to go with a 7x or 8x magnification.
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post #6 of 6
1/7/09 at 1:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeway2000 View Post
I couldn't think of a better place for the question, and I figure no harm in throwing it out there. I'm an opera fan living in NYC on a rather limited budget, so I frequent Met's Family Circle. I decided to get myself a nice set of binoculars to enhance my viewing experience (won't be watching birds or anything like that since I'm an indoorsy type). I was about to shell out $100 on a compact 6.5x Pentax binoculars, but then I read somewhere that opera glasses are usually 3x-5x. I can't seem to find decent binoculars less than 5x. Has anyone used 6.5x or above for theater-viewing, and would you recommend it?

Bless you, really. It is people like you who will keep high culture alive in America.
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