For birdwatchers who also enjoy watching butterflies, dragonflies and other insects purchasing binoculars with close focus is very important. “Close focus” describes binoculars that can focus on objects as close as 10 feet, and preferably as close as 6 feet. This is also useful for viewing birds hiding in dense shrub cover close to you.
NOTE: There are binoculars made specifically for insect watchers that focus closer. They also work for viewing birds , but they are inferior to conventional binoculars because their depth of focus is so shallow and that makes the image look flat.