A binocular is certainly a great asset to carry at any time and I'm always interested whenever a topic on Binoculars comes up, as is thecase now.Unfortunately I am no authority on the subject, but I really enjoy any information I can get from guys who've tested and used these accessories.
With so much to choose from, it isn't easy deciding on what to buy. Of course from what I have gathered, different hunting situations would require different optics.
I have over the years purchased, let's say more than a few, binoculars--as low as a $25 pair of binoculars from Costco and have even push my limit, spending $1100/CAD$ getting myself a Steiner Predator 10 X 42 phase-coated binocular.
Until you see the difference, testing different optics, onlythen you'll get atrue picture of what good optics really does.
However, for most of us there's a limit to what we can spend on optics. I'm sure we would all love to own say,a Swarovski--I would for sure, but this brings our spending power into the equation.
Just recently I was over at Bass Pro (there is no Cabelas here in Ontario unfortunately) and was again standing infront of the binoculars show case looking at the different choices.
Just adding my two cents here, a binocular that stood out among the rest for 'deer/turkey hunting' in hardwoods/fields, say distance within 150 or so yards, was theNikon Action ZOOM 7-15X35 I was very impressed with it and actually bought myself a pair for our upcoming turkey season. This binocular is very affordable, taxes in, it ran me $179 CAD$ and I think I've gotten myself a good deal for what it can do. Now I'll shelter my Steiner for a while andsee how well the Nikon stands up to the test.
I would say anyone looking for a binoculars at a reasonable price for relatively close ranges, take a look at the Action ZOOM you may be quite pleased with it.