Bushnell Powerview 12×25 Compact Folding Roof Prism Binocular

DECEMBER GRAND PRIZE CONTEST-WINNING ENTRY!
bushnell.com, 11.3 ounces
A raven sits on a tree stump on the forested ledge above me, cocking his headas I imitate his graaking noises.  For all I know, I’m saying something ridiculous or excoriating his lineage, but he looks at me bemusedly, the way we politely listen to a well-intentioned foreigner stumble along in our language. I raise my Bushnell binoculars to get a closer look at his eyes and gleaming feathers. As a roving documentarian who specializes in following ravens, I pack lightly—water bottle, pencils, notebook, camera, sunscreen, and Bushnell portable binoculars. In the high desert, the badlands, or the aspen-covered mountains in New Mexico, the compact Bushnell 12 x 25 affords me a light  (11.3 ounces), sturdy (rubber housing), and inexpensive (under $30) way to focus on quick movement that is otherwise just a rustle in the leaves or a flash in the corner of my  eye. I can see the snow dusting far-off ridge lines as well as a Cooper’s Hawk surveying his territory. A more powerful scope would mean more weight, longer adjustment time, a tripod, and planting myself in one place instead of walking through this glorious landscape. However close the raven allows me to be when we converse, the binoculars show me the intricate details that I incorporate in my drawings and  stories of this iconic bird that flies through time and world cultures.
-Beth Surdut