Are you an enthusiastic photographer stuck with a standard camera? If yes, then you are in the right place. This article will help you get out of such a situation by providing a detailed understanding of spotting scopes and discussing the best spotting scopes under 100 dollars.
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Introduction
Taking distant images can be difficult, especially with a standard smartphone or camera. That’s mainly because they usually do not have the required resolutions or focusing ability to capture the image. Moreover, higher magnification camera lenses can be very expensive for some people. Not everyone can afford them. This leaves many photographers hanging with their low-resolution images. This keeps them from improving or exploring the further aspects of photography.
As a matter of fact, this problem is no longer valid. This might surprise you, but it is true. Spotting scopes have been introduced to solve this issue. They are a simple and affordable solution to this super-annoying problem. Let’s dig deeper into spotting scope and learn more about them.
Best Spotting Scopes Under 100 Dollars
FireField Spotting Scope
Firefield presents one of the most advanced and sophisticated spotting scopes. With the 50mm objective lens, this spotting scope offers a vast field of view ranging up to 149-73ft. per 100 yards. It collects a large amount of light to form a detailed image. Its multi-coated lens adds to the enhancement of the picture quality.
It has a magnification of 12x to 36x. This magnification is quite preferred for good image quality. The spotting scope has a close focus of 12ft. and an eye relief of 74-6inches. So won’t have any trouble viewing through it even with glasses.
The spotting scope has quite a durable construction. Its nitrogen purged, waterproof body enables you to use it in rainy weather too.
This spotting scope comes with a compact tripod stand and a carrying bag. You can easily adjust it according to your needs. The Firefield spotting scope has a built-in sunshade to protect the harsh sunlight from damaging the view or user’s eye.
Pros
- Comes with a tripod stand and a carrying bag
- Quite affordable
- Durable construction
- Weather-friendly build
Cons
- Eye relief get limited at higher magnification
Verdict
This is one of the best spotting scopes for under $100. It is a great value for money with its enhanced image formation.
Blackhawk Spotting Scope By BARSKA
BARSKA has been producing great sports optics since 1994. This Blackhawk by BARSKA is a perfect example of it. It has a 60mm objective lens which gathers a large amount of light to enable viewing in dark or low-light as well. You can easily shoot at dusk or dawn with its large objective lens. Additionally, the multiple coating on the lens keeps it clean of any dirt particles. This helps the lens in producing a near-to-real image.
Its 20-60x magnification power offers a strong zoom-in feature. This magnification enables the spotting scope to provide images with amazing details. Its field of view at 20x is 91ft/30m, and for 60x it is 45ft/15m.
The spotting scope has an eye relief of 18 mm at 20x and 15 mm at 60x. So you do not have to worry about your glasses with this one either. Moreover, its angled eyepiece lets you adjust to a comfortable viewing position.
The body of the spotting scope is quite durable. It is 100% waterproof as well as fog proof. So you do not have to worry at all about dropping it in water. Its strong rubber body makes it shock-proof too. You can protect your lens from harsh sunlight with the extendable sunshade. The scope does not come alone. It has a carrying bag and a tripod stand too in the package
Pros
- Highly-durable
- Weather-friendly construction
- It has a waterproof body
- It is lightweight
Cons
- Has a limited eye relief
- Has a narrow field of view
Verdict
This BlackHawk is a good choice for people on a budget. It is easy to use and preferred for beginners.
Colorado Spotting Scope By BARSKA
Here comes another great product by BARSKA. It’s fully-coated 50 mm objective lens with BK-7 prism offers exceptional bright and contrast-rich pictures at any zoomed-in point.
It offers a powerful magnification range of 15-40x. You get a good-quality image at 15x and a detailed view at 40x. Higher magnification requires a better focusing system. For this, BARSKA has added an adjustable objective lens to its spotting scope. You can easily adjust the lens to the desired focus point.
You can get a clear image at 15x from a distance of 24.26 ft. This enables you to cover wildlife from a secure distance clearly. The spotting scope is quite portable, with a weight of 1.5 lbs. only. It also comes with a carrying bag and a tripod stand.
Pros
- It is quite light in weight
- Has good magnification and zoom-in ability
- It can capture good-quality images in low-light as well
- The large objective lens provides detailed images
Cons
- The cover of the scope is tight
- Tripod is flimsy and weak
Verdict
It is a good deal based on its price. It serves the purpose quite well and is especially preferred for hunting. However, it requires improvement.
- The spotter features powerful and versatile 20-60x magnification that allows easy targeting and then zoom in for a closer and...
- The spotting scope comes with fully-coated optics and large 60mm objective lenses, bringing you bright and crystal clear...
- The included tabletop tripod ensures steady viewing in any situation. Also comes with a soft carrying case and lens cloth.
- The rubber armor exterior makes this spotting scope waterproof, fogproof, shockproof, reliable in demanding conditions.
- The grooved zoom dial allows the user to make fine adjustments while maintaining a visual on the target object.
Landscout Spotting Scope By Celestron
This spotting scope by Celestron has a 50 mm objective lens. It is large enough to gather maximum light for a bright image. It is fully coated for enhancing light transmission and eliminating chromatic aberration to produce sharp images.
It offers you to magnify your image ranging between 10x to 30x. So you can easily zoom in to have a detailed view with fine magnification. Its extra-large and central focus dial makes it quite convenient to adjust the focus.
The eyepiece is surrounded by a soft rubber eyecup. It makes viewing really comfortable. You can also view it with your glasses on as it has an eye relief of 18-14 mm. The spotting scope comes with a rotating tripod for comfortable viewing. A carrying bag, objective lens cover, eyepiece cover, cleaning cloth, and user manual are all included in the package.
Pros
- The scope is lightweight
- It is highly portable
- Water-resistant and durable body
- Powerful magnification
Cons
- The field of view is narrow
- It has a limited clarity
Verdict
The Landscout by Celestron is a great small, portable, and affordable spotting scope, which has already satisfied a lot of customers.
What Is A Spotting Scope?
A spotting scope is a modified form of telescope, which is connected to a smartphone or digital camera to enhance viewing or image capturing. A telescope is an optical device designed to see distant objects, mainly celestial objects. However, this modified form of the telescope is quite different from the original one. Some of the main differences are:
Magnification
A spotting scope has lower magnification than an astronomical telescope. A spotting scope can magnify up to a maximum of 60x. Whereas a telescope can magnify over 100x.
Uses
We use an astronomical telescope mainly to view and focus far-off objects like the moon or planets. However, a spotting scope has various purposes like birding, hunting, surveillance, etc. You can use it to view a flying bird at a distance but not the stars.
Image Formation
A telescope produces reverse images. Astronomers convert them into an upright position for use. But a spotting scope forms upright and erect images that can be viewed, used or even shared on the spot.
Size
A telescope is larger than a spotting scope. Spotting scopes are made small so to make them more portable.
Mount
There are specialized telescope mounts for astronomical telescopes. They are required to support their mass and help the viewer in getting an accurate position for viewing. However, the spotting scopes do not require such specialized mounts. You can adjust them on simple photo tripods.
Body
Spotting scopes are usually made waterproof and fog-proof. They are preferred to be weather-resistant. Whereas, astronomical telescopes do not have these features.
These differences make each type of telescope suitable for certain tasks, due to which you cannot use them interchangeably. They are both unique and useful in their own ways.
Things To Consider Before Buying A Spotting Scope
If you plan to invest in a spotting scope, then you must be aware of all the key features to look for in it. That’s because there are many appealing products on the market, but they hardly serve the purpose. Below are the details of features that you should know about before purchasing a spotting scope.
1. Magnification
You use a spotting scope to enhance your camera results, be it your smartphone camera or a separate digital camera. The maximum magnification a spotting scope offers is 60x, and the minimum is 15x. Many spotting scopes offer a wider magnification power, ranging between 15x to 60x. Some scopes offer lower magnification too. They might range between 15x to 45x.
Regardless of your scope’s magnifying capacity, two things have a significant impact on your scope’s magnification power. One of them is the atmosphere. Humidity, dust, winds, etc. drastically reduce the picture quality. However, in the absence of these atmospheric factors, you can get an exceptionally magnified image even at a lower magnification power. Usually, dry atmosphere and high altitude contribute to higher magnification than lower altitudes or wet climates. These atmospheric factors affect the details your scope can cover too. In unfavorable weather conditions, you’ll probably get a blurry image.
Another factor is the optical system of the spotting scope. A good-quality optical system can help you magnify your images without losing their quality. The most preferred magnification range is 30x to 40x. It works for almost all functions of a spotting scope.
2. Objective Lens
The objective lens is the lens that faces the object under observation. It gathers light and directs it inwards to form an image, which is then observed by the viewer. A larger objective lens can gather more light, contributing to better image quality. However, the size of the objective lens becomes useless with a poor-quality lens. Some high-quality glasses to be used in the objective lens are HD, ED, and APO glass.
3. Close Focus
The distance at which you achieve a clear image is the clear focus of your spotting scope. It is usually around 25 feet.
4. Eye Relief
Eye relief is the maximum distance from the eyepiece at which you can see the complete field of view. It is usually 14 mm, but more for scopes with thick glasses. It is important to consider because some people cannot be too close to the eyepiece for various reasons.
5. Lens Coating
To improve the quality of image and magnification, many spotting scopes come with a lens coating. It improves light transmission and cut-off any chromatic aberration. The coating is of three types:
- Fully-coated
- Multi-coated
- Fully multi-coated
They vary in price and performance. You’ll find the fully multi-coated inexpensive spotting scopes for an exceptionally true image.
6. Image Quality
Image quality does not depend on anyone factor. You need to consider all the features mentioned above to get a good quality image. A spotting scope with excellent features requires more money than a random spotting scope. So you must also set your budget according to your needs.
These features will, for sure help you with choosing the right spotting scope to buy. To help you out a little more, here is a list of the four best spotting scopes under 100 dollars.
Conclusion
These above-mentioned scopes are the best spotting scopes under 100 dollars. They are a valuable choice not only in terms of money but on the basis of performance and quality as well and are all among the most high-rate spotting scopes on the internet.
You can choose either one of them based on all the features discussed at the beginning of the article that affect the performance of the scope. They are all important to consider so to choose the best one for you.