Trying to tell someone how a binocular fits and feels in your hands is like trying to describe to someone how one chair or another feels when you sit in it.
Binocular handling, then, is one of those elusive and very subjective
binocular features that you can’t describe with a number or rating. So, how do you know how a binocular will feel in your hands? Really is only way to know for sure, of course, and that is to pick up the binocular in question and try it.
Unfortunately, there are very few stores, anymore, that have much in the way of binocular selection, so most
binoculars sold, today, are sold sight-unseen from internet retailers such as
OpticsPlanet. There are very general binocular guidelines that might help, a bit, though. Most people prefer the way that roof prism binoculars (binoculars with the straight barrel body design) fit in the hand, but there are still some people who prefer the way that porro prism binoculars (binoculars with the offset body design) fit in the hand. To further confuse the issue, there are now roof prism binoculars with an open bridge design, such as the superb
Swarovski EL binocular that offer even better handling and balance than the typical roof prism binocular. The first time I picked up a Swarovski EL, I feel immediately in love (not just for the handling, though).
I have owned and used many examples of each binocular design and I really can’t say I have a solid preference for one or another; really depends on the individual binocular. Unless a binocular annoys me as to how it feels in the hand, I quickly adapt and forget it. Other binocular features are generally more important to me. Still, a binocular that is sweet to hold will also be a binocular that is hard to put down and that is not at all a bad thing.