Nikon Monarch binoculars – practical applications
2. Small pairs of binoculars: 30 and 36 mm objective lenses
A used 36 mm Monarch, even though you can hardly call it a modern pair of binoculars, is still a very attractive offer, especially for people with bigger hands who would feel awkward or silly while handling a 30 mm device.
Small and lightweight Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 is taking a sunbath on Kościelec. In the background the north face of Świnica. |
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The Monarch 7 8x30 earned a „must-have” status in my small arsenal of binoculars mainly because of two passions: mountain trekking and sailing. It is currently one of the most attractive options available on the whole Sport Optics market, combining small physical dimensions, lightweight body, very good transmission, perfect colour rendition and sharp field of view almost to the very end. Add to that an affordable price and you get a really attractive offer. When I go to the mountains, no matter Tatra or the Alps, my Monarch 7 is always in my backpack. I don’t go trekking without that piece of equipment, it’s equally important as a camera and food. I completely agree with an opinion that “mountains are too beautiful to be admired by the naked eye”. Indeed, many times my small Monarch showed me something other people in exactly the same conditions failed to see. What’s more, sometimes they didn’t even imagine they could have seen it!
If you are armed with a pair of binoculars you can observe a climbing team making progress on Zamarła Turnia, a herd of chamois grazing on the slopes of Szpiglasowy Wierch or a bear looking for food among dwarf mountain pine under Liliowe pass. Despite small dimensions, the binoculars are a joy to use when you are wearing gloves as the participants of Avalanche Search and Rescue trainings had an opportunity to find out three times. Nikon binoculars were present regularly during these trainings in previous seasons – as an addition to an avalanche probe, an avalanche victim detector and a spade. For your own safety and the safety of others you should always see more in the mountains.
Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 in its natural habitat – on a sailing board. |
In order to change that a bit grim atmosphere let’s move to the sea level, more precisely on a sailing board. It is well-known that, next to a map and a sextant a pair of binoculars used to be a basic tool, appreciated by even serious sailors. A pop-culture stereotype of a pirate usually includes a wooden leg, a parrot sitting on his shoulder, a pipe in his mouth, a hook instead of one hand and a spotting scope. I follow that example and I have been sailing more than a dozen years equipped with optical instruments. Still I have to admit that neither the hook nor the parrot are as enticing as a good waterproof pair of binoculars. Quite deliberately I rejected the sea classic 7x50 model with a compass, for much lighter and smaller Monarch but with a much wider field of view. Imagine it or not, I can even justify my choice.
If you have to reach your port of choice by plane the size and weight of your luggage are very important. In that aspect the small Monarch 7 8x30 prevails decisively over the big and heavy porro 7x50 device. I put my Monarch into a cabin luggage, usually in one of compartments of my photo bag. It is always ready to use, way before I get to a marina. The Monarch doesn’t feature a compass but let’s be honest, in times when every boat is equipped with GPS navigation system and sailing can be based practically on your smartphone and mobile applications like Navionics, you really don’t need a compass anymore. Image brightness? I agree that the 7x50 pair of binoculars theoretically delivers over 2.7x of light more than any 8x30 model but it is true only when the eye pupil of the observer is no smaller than 7.1 in diameter. It is a very rare occurrence in real life. Such a wide eye pupil can be found only among young people (I don’t consider myself old but still…) and only after a long period of dark adaptation, an impossible thing during any tourist sea trip. A night watch on a big ship in complete darkness is another matter.
From experience I know that even at dusk the clarity of details provided by the Monarch is satisfactory and a field of view, amounting to as much as 8.3°, proves to be priceless. The ergonomics of the binoculars is also an important feature: small Monarchs are light enough and handy enough that you can hang them on your neck for a prolonged amount of time without feeling tired. What’s more, you can operate them with just one hand without the necessity of letting go of the wheel. You control your course and you watch the horizon at the same time! Is the 10x30 Monarch worse? Not at all, it’s just a pair of binoculars for slightly different tasks. Small Monarchs were presented for the wider audience during Forest Fairs in Rogów. Many participants, especially those who hunt, noticed at once that the 10x30 is, quote, “a pair of perfect day binoculars for a buck”. I know nothing about hunting but taking the possibilities of the small Monarch I wouldn’t like to be in that particular buck’s shoes. 10x magnification allows you to assess its prongs so also its age and the high image contrast means you are able to see even small details. Then you just shoot…Of course the binoculars don’t have to be used only in blood sport. Because of its small physical dimensions it is a perfect instrument to store in your car’s glove compartment, to be used when e.g. an interesting bird of prey flies nearby.
A little man with a small pair of binoculars so the Monarch 7 8x30 in hands of a six-year-old boy. Plenty of interesting things around! |