Wayne Mones grew up within bicycling distance of New York's Jamaica Bay Sanctuary where he first developed an interest in birding as a ten-year-old. He has remained an avid birder throughout his life. His father managed a camera store, which also sold binoculars, where Wayne worked on weekends and vacations through high school and college. His interest in birding and curiosity about optics has led him to read extensively on binocular design. He has been lucky to have had access to first-rate optics from the beginning, and has a critical eye.

Wayne frequently leads local bird walks for adults and children. He is also a frequent leader of nature trips in the US, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. He also lectures about bird migration and bird flight, and on selecting and caring for birding optics. He fields many questions from trip participants about purchasing binoculars.

Wayne has been a contributor to American Angler and Fly Tier magazines and to a number of professional journals.