Lasik and rf cameras?

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hlockwood

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Like most people who require eyeglasses and who use rf cameras, I find that the view through the vf is hampered wrt focusing and using wide-lens frame lines. So, I'm contemplating having Lasik surgery to correct my vision sufficiently to do without eyeglasses under a wide variety of conditions (not just photography.) I have an appointment next week for an evaluation as a candidate for this procedure.

I'd appreciate hearing from others who have taken a similar route.

Harry
 
Xmm, interesting topic indeed...

My wife has went through it approx. 7 years ago by quite famous professor (one of the founders of that method) in his clinic in Jerusalem. She had -11 on her both eyes, her eyeglasses had thickness of the bottom of beer bottle..
She left the clinic after few hours and since then she has nearly 6/6 on both eyes.

Now, I'm considering the treatment for myself, one of the reasons is for my Leicas as well...
 
I too am considering the treatment, especially since the hospital I work for does the treatment and charges only about 1k per eye for employees.
 
alexz said:
Xmm, interesting topic indeed...

My wife has went through it approx. 7 years ago by quite famous professor (one of the founders of that method) in his clinic in Jerusalem. She had -11 on her both eyes, her eyeglasses had thickness of the bottom of beer bottle..
She left the clinic after few hours and since then she has nearly 6/6 on both eyes.

Now, I'm considering the treatment for myself, one of the reasons is for my Leicas as well...
Click to expand...

From your sig you have the M7/0.85 just as I do. Those 35 mm frame lines are hard to use. I have need for far less correction than your wife did, but my astigmatism (fairly mild) presents a vf problem.

Harry
 
Just ask about the failure rate first. I know people who have had their eyes ruined.

Get contacts or simply a 35 with goggles. It brings up the 50 mm frame but the 35mm field of view is compressed into it. Works best with an M3, but any .72 VF is fine.


My eyes have changed from normal to 20/40 in 6th grade to worse to 20/40 again. Plan on surgery yearly to accomodate the changes?

Just a few things to consider. I picked a 35 2.0 with goggles.
 
Be sure to carefully consider (with the help of your doctor) what will happen to your near vision as a result of the refractive surgery. Many middle aged, nearsighted individuals are surprised to learn that will not be able to see at closer viewing distances without some compensation - reading glasses or monovision (leaving one eye moderately nearsighted). Also make sure that you are checked for risk factors for complication - ocular surface disease and thin corneas, to name two.
 
I'm also considering this surgery. I'm currently using an Epson R-D1, with 1:1 finder. Even on a Leica M with 0.72 finder, I have a lot of trouble with the 28mm frame lines.

One thing to consider is that there's a potential for the surgery to result in a tendency for your eyes to "flare" a bit around point light sources at night, similar to what you see in many camera lenses. So you could end up always seeing halos around lights at night. Of course, you probably already see that due to your glasses (I do), but it's worth considering.

::Ari
 
I wear contacts, but a friend who always wore glasses had surgery, and no longer needs glasses. He was always trying to convince me to have the surgery.

As someone else had mentioned, your near field vision begins to suffer as you age. I wore glasses for about 5 years, so I didn't really notice as I would just take the glasses off for viewing something up close. When I started wearing contacts again a few years ago, I realized that I now have a hard time seeing very small print up close.
 
I got Lasik done on my eyes back in 2001 and it was the best money that I have ever spent. My doctor told me that I would start wearing reading glasses sooner and I said no problem. No issue with photography at all.

cheers
 
When you are shortsighted and over 40 and , after refractive surgery you will most likely see the effects of your diminished ability to focus on close objects. To lessen this effect, one of my eyes was undercorrected. I now have one eye that is perfect for far distances and another one that is quite good at close distances. The brain accommodates these differences quite well and don't notice the difference any more.
Time to get a Noctilux to test my rejuvenated focussing abilities ;-)
 
HMFriedman said:
Ronald M said:
My eyes have changed from normal to 20/40 in 6th grade to worse to 20/40 again. Plan on surgery yearly to accomodate the changes?

Refractive surgery should not even be considered unless one is older than eighteen and with a refraction that has been stable at least one year.
Click to expand...

I'm old enough to be grandfather to someone 18 years old. Also, my Rx for glasses has been the stable for at least 3 years.

And I will not enter into this without a serious investigation of the risks.

I really do appreciate the comments being offered here; They are valuable. Please do keep them coming.

Harry
Click to expand...
 
At my age I have become both near and far sighted. When wearing contacts for my far sightedness, which I have done for years, I was having trouble reading/adjusting camera settings etc.

The answer for me was monovision contact lenses where one lens (your dominat eye) is optomized for distance and the other for close work. It sounded unworkable when my optometrist described the system to me and apparently some people never adapt to it but for me it's been a godsend. Prior to this I'd been fumbling around with a pair of readers to adjust camera settings when out shooting and was finding that process really frustrating!
 
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Hi, Keith...

Yep. It works for me too!

Unfortunately, I lost my non-dominate lens and am using an old one that is a bit too strong but cannot afford to get a new one right now, so it's back to my reading glasses.

dave
 
I haven't had, and won't have, lasik, but that advice about deteriorating near vision as we age rings true.

My eyesight is good corrected with glasses. I have no trouble seeing any of the framelines in an R4M or an M3. That's a variable, however. Others may have, depending on the thickness of their lenses and how they sit on their face.

I recently made a serious try at wearing contacts again, specifically for photography. I tested several lenses. None of them could provide a combination of adequate near and far vision. E.g., with lenses that provided good distance vision, I couldn't read the numbers on the aperture ring.

Some things are inevitable as we age.
 
dave lackey said:
Hi, Keith...

Yep. It works for me too!

Unfortunately, I lost my non-dominate lens and am using an old one that is a bit too strong but cannot afford to get a new one right now, so it's back to my reading glasses.

dave
Click to expand...


Hi Dave,

The other thing my very astute optometrist talked me into was using daily disposables ... which seemed a little expensive initially but then I discovered I could get them on line which exactly halved the price the opticians were charging me for a three month supply! Being able to put in a fresh set of lenses each day and not going through that anguish of losing one while out (I always carry a spare set) is liberating.

I was considering Lasik myself until I started wearing disposables!
 
I agonized over this some years ago, and decided against it. The problems of a Lasik procedure gone wrong - though rare- would be awful, and not easy to correct. I have tried contacts without success ( I have Astigmatism) - many types and times- but have resigned myself to glasses. This is safe, but far from satisfactory. I am now reconsidering Lasik,as procedures are getting better, but then, I am older. So, for now I remain on the fence...
 
I'm about with patrickjames, except that I've never even tried contacts -- and I've worn glasses since age 9. Lasik sounds great, and I know people who swear by it. I also have been told by an ophthalmic surgeon friend that he won't have it done, and his colleagues are basically of the same opinion. It would be great to not have to peer around in a viewfinder, but until some procedure is developed that doesn't negatively affect close vision and is reversible if necessary, I'll pass.
 
I had 20/600 vision in my right eye and 20/800 vision in my left eye with astigmatism in both. I had lasek/prk, the one where they scrape the front of the cornea instead of cutting a flap. I was out for three weeks of recovery but I now have better than perfect vision in both eyes.

Find a good reputable doctor and research everything to the point that you feel comfortable.

I wore glasses starting when I was 7 years old. It has been 5 years since my surgery and I still sometimes reach for my glasses in the morning. It was by far, the best investment I ever made.
 
I'm 58 and have worn glasses since about the 3rd grade. My vision was 20/250, so I could see great for about 5 feet and then everything was a blur. Tried contacts and (1) contacts aren't as good as glasses and (2) reading glasses only work for about 3 ft distance - everything from 3 ft to 6 ft was blurry. Note that I did not need glasses for objects within 3~4 feet.

About a year ago I had my right eye (dominant) corrected by Lasik to 20/20. So my left eye has perfect vision out to about 5 feet and my right eye has perfect vision beyond 5 feet. My vision is now about 20/40 without glasses. I can see from near to far. It's wonderfull and I wish I had it down 30 years ago (or whenever Lasik became available). The success rate is about 99.99% with the worse problems being dryness of the eye and glare. However as you get older you'll find that glare, dryness and night vision all become a problem. For night driving I still wear glasses.

As far as photography is concerned it's heaven sent. No more scratching a $500 pair of progressive lenses on an M3. No more being blind because I lost or broke my glasses.
 
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