San Francisco optics brand Nocs Provisions creates binoculars ‘with a touch of style for the modern-day adventurer’, featuring premium optics and high functionality. Its distinctive and colorful product range contains a host of quality, compact pairs and it’s a brand committed to doing things right. Like Patagonia, it’s a member of 1% For the Planet, donating part of its revenue to environmental causes, while its packaging is recycled and plastic free.
Where its bins are concerned, the range breaks down into the entry-level Standard Issues, the ‘Goldilocks’ Field Issues and the premium Pro Issues. I was excited to get hold of the Field Issues, which the brand state are built for ‘those going to far away places seeking the unseen’. In essence, these might just be the ideal pair for those adventurous souls who often venture out in their hiking boots. I tested the 10x32 pair, but they’re also available as 8x32s too.
Meet the reviewer
First Impressions
RRP: $175 (US)/ £185 (UK)
Size: 124mm x 112mm / 4.9” x 4.4”
Weight: 473g / 16.7oz
Magnification: 10
Objective diameter: 32mm
Field of view at 1000yd: 130m
Close focusing distance: 2.8m/9.3ft
I don’t want to be weighed down on the trail, but I also want a quality pair of binoculars for those magical wildlife encounters. At first glance, these Field Issue bins look to be exactly the ticket.
They also look great with their ribbed barrels, which make them both easy on the eye and easy to hold. The golden branding and specification overview on the focussing wheel is also a nice touch. Nocs Provisions calls this ribbed design a ‘rugged wave grip’ and it truly gives the brand's binoculars a unique and attractive aesthetic. My test pair were a pleasant ‘Ponderosa’ shade of green, though they’re also available in brown and grey, while the 8x32 pairs are available in red, blue and grey. It’s nice seeing such an infusion of color into the usually black and grey world of binoculars.
The next thing that jumped out at me was the oversized focus wheel, which makes adjusting the focus quick and easy. Straight away, I was impressed with the of the image they provide, as well as the good levels of contrast and brightness. The little carry sack it came with hardly screams protection, so I made sure to pop the lens caps on every time I placed the bins in my daypack.
A focus on the features
The Field Issues boast a feature set to suit those who’ll wield them while mostly on the move, making them a good option for people heading out for a walk around a reserve or even for multi-day backpackers. Their 473g (16.7 oz) weight and their compact design reflects this, putting them in the same league as the likes of the Opticron Explorer WA ED-Rs, which we are also big fans of, despite the steeper price point.
The high contrast and crisp image boasted by these bins is partly down to the fact the lenses are fully multi-coated. This results in high levels of light transmission thanks to the anti-reflective compounds present. Within its compact body, the Field Issues boast a Swiss-designed Bak4 prism, a type of premium porro prism (bit of a tongue twister that!) that’s used in many high-end binoculars. If you know how binoculars work, you’ll know the importance of this clever bit of internal optics.
The large, central focussing wheel is wonderfully smooth and offers the user a strong degree of precision when zoning in on a subject. Its large dimensions make it ideal for beginner use, as it’s so intuitive.
In order to find the optimum eye relief with or without glasses, there are three eye cup settings, which click into place with a swivel. The bins are marketed as waterproof and fogproof and they’re rated to IPx7, which means they can withstand submersion in up to a meter of water for up to half an hour.
The objective diameter is 32mm, which lets in more than enough light for daytime antics. However, if you’re after a pair of bins that double up as a stargazing tool for the night, it’s better to go for ones with a larger objective diameter. A dedicated pair, like the Celestron Skymaster 15x70, is ideal.
In the field
The weight and compact size of the Field Issues made them ideal for my kind of adventures, where I’m moving from place to place. The size of the focussing wheel makes it easy to quickly move from gazing at nearer to more distant objects. This kind of quick refocussing makes getting a good view of dynamic wildlife that much more intuitive. I found the mechanism to be incredibly smooth, so hats off to Nocs Provisions for some excellent engineering here.
While walking around Bristol’s Henbury Gorge, I enjoyed focussing on nearby spider webs, each glistening strand captured beautifully by the optics, and then adjusting to view rock features up close on the opposite side of the valley. The crispness of the image was impressive. There are almost 500 bird species that have been sighted here and I enjoyed watching the various species glide above the gorge.
With a magnification factor of 10, I was treated to real close ups on stationary objects and animals. However, for scampering deer, binkying rabbits and flying raptors, the 8x32 option is probably the better choice, as the wider view would make speedy animals easier to find and track. It all just depends on what you’re after from your wildlife watching. Nevertheless, I found tracking birds above the gorge during my walks around Gloucestershire straightforward enough.
The test period was a little early for the eruption of color and wildlflowers that spring will bring, but I was able to find plenty of subjects for close viewing. However, with a close focusing distance of 2.8 meters (9.3 feet), the Field Issues are not the ideal pair of bins if butterflies and dragonflies are your bag. For this kind of use, we'd recommend a pair of the Kowa BD32-8XDs.
