Binoculars? We Don't Need No Stinking Binoculars

We invested in some 60X optical zoom digital cameras this year. This is what Gunnar could see of a Brewster's Warbler with the camera at 1X. Then he zoomed in to 60X with image stabilization and he could see the bird perched on the tower quite clearly (the location is marked in this image by the red circle).

These cameras cost about 20% of what I paid for my last pair of binoculars, and weigh far less too, and the cameras are a far better tool for getting great looks at distant birds. Even better, when you only catch a glimps of the bird or the bands you were looking for, the camera can take a ton of pictures per second and let you confirm things on the screen. Such a cool tool.