Advice for vision aid/magnification/optivisor

[JeffreyK]

Hi all,

I'd like to hear from folk here who use or can recommend equipment for improving your vision when modelling.

To outline the situation and requirements: I'm short sighted (-3.5) and normally wear either contact lenses or glasses. I can read without using reding glasses or taking my glasses off.

But for modelling I wear neither contact lenses nor glasses and have my head usually really close to the modelling subject, under relatively bright room light plus a bright "daylight" type desk lamp.

Problem is, whenever I need to take my eyes off the modelling subject (i.e. look at references such as the computer screen, books or I drop something onto the floor...) I need to put my glasses back on, then off again for modelling etc.

I also find that I sometimes begin to struggle with very small stuff, especially in low contrast situations (all grey or all white parts).

A borderline task is always airbrushing - I can't airbrush with the subject right in front of my nose of course, but I'm also struggling a little with seeing enough when having it at a suitable distance and wear my glasses. I find I frequently glance over the rim to check for details then look through the glass again...not very comfortable.

I'm not really sure which optical device would be the best in this situation or if indeed any will actually be of real use and if there's one that would work both with and without wearing glasses.

Cheers

Jeffrey

[brooker]

If you contact the blind association near you, they have a pair of reading glasses for blind people with a set of lenses connected to another pair which you wind out, either the left side or the right side to get your reading focal length right, for watching TV, but they would work just as well for close up work on a model.

Alternatively, you could look on eBay and see what glasses they have available there, my partner uses a pair she bought from eBay for embroidery and lace making, which work just the same way and were much cheaper.

Brooker

[JeffreyK]

Thank you, I'll look into this.

I was hoping I could get some opinions from people who use devices like Optivisors etc. and tell me how they actually fair in practice at the work bench and how a head-worn device compares to a desk mounted or free standing one.

Cheers

Jeffrey

[CedB]

Hi Jeffrey

I wear reading glasses and use one of these, cheap but effective IMHO.

The headband is not super soft but fine if you get it adjusted properly. It comes with four lenses and two lens slots in the band (I'm not sure if cheaper ones have this feature). Lenses are 1.2x, 1.8X, 2.5x and 3.5x so I have the 1.2 at the back and 2.5 at the front. You can choose your mix. This means I can...

Flip the whole thing up on my head and just use my glasses

Lower the first lens for 1.2 (or whatever)

Lower the other for really fine work, adding to the magnification

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

Note that I've ripped off the light as it's useless and just adds weight.

HTH.

[brooker]

That looks like the pair my partner bought online, except she uses the light as well, because we watch TV together and the light from overhead is distracting to me - also she finds the light in her pair helps her with the close up work she is doing - bought hers through eBay, did not cost very much - lost the first pair she bought - around our home somewhere - probably put them down somewhere safe where she could find them easily again and then forgot where that was.

Brooker

[JeffreyK]

That looks quite good, I was worried that the really cheap price of those things on Ebay is an indication of low optical quality and could actually harm your eyes...

I also found a few variations of lenses that clip to your existing glasses, perhaps that's a more comfortable solution of I want to keep wearing my glasses with the magnifier.

Cheers!

J

[CedB]

I wear my reading glasses as well as the magnifier so I can flip between magnification and 'normal'.

I looked at the clip on lenses and Optivisors but I thought it would be a pain to have to keep taking them on and off.

HTH

[Seahawk]

I wear my reading glasses as well as the magnifier so I can flip between magnification and 'normal'.

I looked at the clip on lenses and Optivisors but I thought it would be a pain to have to keep taking them on and off.

HTH

Don't understand this: my optivisor fits over my glasses and flips up readily so I can "flip between magnification and 'normal'" (ie just glasses).

I was slightly disappointed when my optivisor arrived at how cheap and plasticky it felt. However what counts is the quality of the ground glass lenses. Mind you, I haven't tried any of the cheaper alternatives to see if i can tell the difference.:

Couldn't get on at all with a magnifying lamp: it kept getting in the way between me and the model, invariably just at the wrong time.

[CedB]

Sorry Seahawk, I didn't realise that.

Still applies to the clip on lenses though?

[John Laidlaw]

I use an Optivisor in conjunction with my reading glasses. This is because I have fairly severe astigmatism in one eye, moderate astigmatism in the other, and they're at conflicting angles to each other. I find the extra magnification to be a great advantage, and am now so used to moving the 'visor out of the way that it's not an issue. The only negative thing I've found is the ratchet on the headband adjustment is wearing out, but I've been using it for years, so I can't complain .

[JeffreyK]

Thank you gents, that's great info there. The thing is though, I don't use reading glasses, I wear "normal" glasses to correct short sightedness (i.e. minus dioptre) . This makes focussing on small things close up a little difficult and straining on the eyes. As I said in my initial post, I can still read books and do all other activity WITH glasses (or contact lenses), it's just modelling that's difficult and I therefore have to take my glasses off for that.

Because of my short sightedness however all activity has to then take place just a few inches in front of my face. And if I want to see something only a little further away I have to pop my glasses back on.

Airbrushing is the most tricky activity as it's happening at a difficult distance - too far away for not wearing glasses, not far enough so it's not straining the eye and yet again too far away for seeing enough detail.

I was wondering whether an optivisor or the like will make it possible to keep wearing glasses or contact lenses and still be able to focus up close and see the required detail. Also, optivisors (and others) often come with choices of lenses or orders of magnification. Are there any recommendations for that?

Thanks again,

Jeffrey

[John Laidlaw]

Wearing prescription glasses with an Optivisor is going to work whatever the type of glasses you have - the overall magnification will be the sum of both. In your case, that will mean less magnification than just the Optivisor alone. I'd say try it with the standard included lenses, then get the stronger replacement lenses if you need more magnification.

HTH

[Seahawk]

Are there "standard included lenses" with Optivisors? I had to speicfy when ordering and took a punt on 2.5 (or was it 2.5?). I haven't had reason to regret it but wish I could have tried some of the others before purchasing to be sure. Think I lit on 2.5 (or -2.5) because that's what most people on here had plumped for.

PS For an extra £10 (2010 price) you can also have a loup, which can be swung down in front of your Optivisor to give even greater magnification (+3.5?) for one eye. Have to say I have never got on that well with it personally: too much one-eyed squinting. Your experience may be different.

[Pouln]

Jeffrey, I think your problems may be solved if you switch to varifocus glasses (or bi-focus).

The correction of your glasses just do no longer work for reading and other work nearby your eyes.

Therfore you would need reading glasses with a better suited correction, but then you would have trouble seeing further away. Hence bi- or varifocal glasses should fo the trick.

[JeffreyK]

Thanks for that, but the thing is I'm OK for everything, except modelling. I can read, even small print, without issues with both glasses and contact lenses. It's just building and/or painting.

Cheers

Jeffrey

[Graham Boak]

I can't help feeling that you'd get better advice from a professional, particularly this business about no being able to model without assistance yet still reading - at what distance, I wonder? The trend of your eyesight is worth checking, not just whatever it is at the moment. You may do this already, of course, but you could perhaps throw in the odd question about close work.

However: I have bifocals, and have had for some time. I agree that the external large lens + light is too clumsy and awkward - mine is now left at the side of the desk in light mode, and I may swing it across for the odd detail look. Waste of a good anglepoise linkage, really. I had a pair of the fold down/up lenses, and although they did the job I found them too heavy with the bifocals. I suppose I could have tried them with just a pair of reading glasses - maybe I did and have just forgotten. My wife now uses them for fine crochet work and swears by them, with a strong additional light by her side. Extra light is good. I did get an Optivisor headband and again this worked well but I found wearing it uncomfortable. That's probably a matter of more practice.

Can I suggest that you look for a pair of cheap frames with plain lenses (or none at all - an old pair with the lenses removed?) to which the clip-on fold-down lens can be attached? This would seem to meet your requirements whilst being fairly cheap if it doesn't suit.

One more general comment is the more light the better. If you have one strong daylight bulb get two. I've recently changed from having one daylight above/behind my head, plus one on the desktop, to having one over each shoulder plus the desktop. This was partly to light corners of the bookshelves, but it has helped the modelling too. I wish I'd done it years ago.

[noeyedears]

I need prescription glasses to focus on anything closer than about 18 inches. I wear mine with both my optimisers. I have the two lens ones but find they are too heavy. Also if I flip the front one up it keeps getting in the way. I prefer my single lens ones.

41yy8++1i7L._SX342_ by omgpainful, on Flickr

[JeffreyK]

Interesting, thanks. I keep investigating. Perhaps I'll have to wait until Telford though where I can hopefully try something out.

Cheers

Jeffrey

[Derek A]

I use an optivisor and find I can position it so that I can easily look through it or my glasses, it's a bit like using bifocals!  I tried a cheaper version of the headband magnifier with plastic lenses and couldn't get on with it at all, but I wouldn't be with out my optivisor, it's one of my top 3 tools!