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Anonymous
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After spending time here reading the various postings on different binoculars, my wife and I went out Saturday and bought a pair of Nikon 10x50 binoculars. These have a fitting for a tripod adaptor so I can use them on my Bogen tripod. We also picked up a copy of Terence Dickinson's "Nightwatch".
Saturday night was mostly cloudy here in the NW burbs of Chicago with a lot of reflected light. There were a few holes I was able to catch glimpses of pinpoints through, though. With it being so cold I decided to wait and try again the next night.
Fast forward to Sunday night. It's now 8:40PM here, and I just came in after spending the last two hours in total awe of what I was seeing. I am absolutely gobsmacked by the incredible beauty above us.
I spent most of the time alternating between Orion, where I couldn't get enough of the Orion Nebula, and the Pleiades, which I could "just" make out as the faintest smudge with the naked eye, but with the binoculars... OMG what a view!!!
Even with the cold causing my hands to shake, I was still able to get a relatively steady view, enough to make out details of things I still don't know anything about. All I can say is...
WOW!!!
I got my wife to come outside for a few minutes (she hates being cold and doesn't like standing outside at night unless she has to) and she was amazed at what she saw. She is going to wait till warmer weather though for more general viewing.
I found the Nightwatch book to be of value in identifying what I was seeing, and in being able to search for a particular star. I don't know the first thing about what's up there or how to navigate; I have a lot to learn. I still want to pick up one of the binocular-specific books, and the tripod adaptor, but so far my expectaions have been greatly exceeded.
We cannot wait until we are able to get to a dark site and be able to really explore.
Sorry for being long-winded, but I am just so excited I had to share!!!  Now all I have to do is thaw out. 
Tom
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Erik D
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 2565
Loc: Central New Jersey, USA
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Hi Tom,
Welcome to the wonderful world of Binocular Astronomy. "Night Watch" should keep you busy for a while. I msut have close to 50 Astronomy related titles in the house. Night Watch is one of my most used volume.
When you are ready for a binocular-specific book I recommend "Binocular Astronomy" by Crossen & Tirion. This 8 1/2 X 11 hardcover book covers what can be seen by "normal" size binos of 7-10X50 size with black and white photos of the most interesting regions of the sky. I find this book much more useful as an observing aid than other books full of color photos taken with 10-14 in scopes. Also includes the Bright Star Atlas 2000.0 by Wil Tirion at the back of the book. I purchased my copy from <universityoptics.com> for $24.95 which includes shipping.
Erik D
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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I second what Erik has said about "Night Watch" which is an excellent book. Unfortunately I lost my copy on holiday in 2001. 
If you get a bit more serious about astronomy you should also get a good star atlas, such as SkyAtlas 2000.0 (also co-authored by Tirion) which shows nearly all the stars visible with 10 x 50 binoculars. I use my copy all the time.
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lighttrap
Reged: 02/06/04
Posts: 3833
Loc: cloudy, foggy, humid NC, US
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Tom,
Welcome to the cult. I suggest that you get (or make) a small redlight and get a planisphere and (2) reclining lawn chairs. When the weather warms up, you and your wife are going to be amazed what a great, relaxing, mind expanding evening you can have simply laying out beside each other taking turns looking up items to see and viewing them through your binoculars. It' s a most enjoyable way to spend a warm evening together.
Another interesting thing to do with your binocs, after the initial awe lessens a bit, is to focus on a particular area of the nightsky, and learn all you can about it. There are several books that can help you do that. Two that I like are Rick Shaffer's "Your Guide to the Sky" and the "Audubon guide to the Nightsky". Niether is expensive.
Have fun,
Mike Swaim
--------------------
18" Starsplitter II f/4.5
8" Hardin Dob f/6
C5 workhorse mini SCT f/10 or f/6.3
70mm TV Ranger dual purpose birding/astro
77mm Leica Televid APO
16x70 Fujinons on UA Deluxe Mt.
12x50 Nikon SE
8x30 Nikon E2s
and many others
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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Tom,
Congratulations on the purchase of the Nikons. When I read Mike's suggestion about getting a reclining lawn chair I thought I would suggest a parallelogram binocular mount as a near future investment. I use the word "investment" as opposed to "purchase" because they can be made as opposed to only purchased. You can research do-it-yourself plans here on Cloudy Nights by searching "mounts" and "binoculars". The parallelogram is much more flexible than just a tripod with adapter, and the P-gram is easily stored and set-up.
I second Erik on getting a copy of "Binocular Astronomy" by Crossen and Tirion. Although it has a little too much history of the constellations and stars for my needs it is a good tool and walks one through in finding the various "goodies" up in the night sky.
Enjoy Orion but don't forget to take a peek at Andromeda. Oh yes, there is lot's of other good stuff that will be coming up over the horizon as each season emerges. Each will hold interesting sights from which you will no doubt develop favorites.
Happy viewing, Nick
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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I second all the books the previous posters have endorsed. I have the SkyAtlas 2000.0 and use it virtually all the time. I myself am also new to binocular astronomy. I love it. I experienced the same as you Tomcatt living in Boston....even with my 7x50s I saw stars that could never be seen bare eyed with the light pollution. I frequent northern NH all the time and now I'll never go up there without my binos!
Enjoy the heavens and clear skies!
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