Birding Blind?

I suppose that title can have a couple different meanings. You can bird from a blind, or you can blindly bird, or you could feel blind while you bird. I'm dealing a bit with the third. I wear glasses at work, not because it's hard for me to see, but because I easily get eye strain when staring at a computer all day. My vision isn't 20/20, but it's still pretty good. I can see things far away, I can see things up close, I can see things that are small.

However, on our recent trip to the RGV, I was in charge of the camera for a time. I'm clearly not the best photographer, but I don't do it for the best pictures in the world. I like taking pictures of the birds because 1) I think they're pretty, 2) it reminds me of all the fun I had on a specific trip, and 3) it helps me see the field marks on various individuals which may have a different pattern than the standards in a book, which makes me a better birder. Looking back at some of the pictures I took on this past trip, I realized something that made me feel much older than my true age: I can't see nearly as well as I thought I could. The things with the bins and camera is that I can adjust the fine focus to make the birds look clear to me through the lens. Unfortunately, that doesn't always translate to an in-focus image once I've taken the picture.

In concession to my age, I think it's time to start birding with my glasses. I'm due for a new pair, so maybe I can get a cheaper pair for birding and keep my nice ones for work. I just hope that'll solve some of my problems when it comes to taking pictures. It's hard to ID field marks from a smudgy pic.