Need help choosing diopter eyepiece for Bessa R3M.

[jbtran]

I need help from anyone knowledgeable about this stuff.

Just got a Bessa R3M (has 1:1 viewfinder). But the red LED readouts in the viewfinder look real fuzzy to me so I am thinking of getting a diopter eyepiece to use with the camera. My most recent eye prescription reads as follows:

Right eye: Sphere = -0.50, Cylinder = -0.75, Axis = 52
Left eye: Sphere = +0.50, Cylinder = -0.75, Axis = 135

Based on the above numbers, what diopter eyepiece should I use? Available diopters for this camera are -3, -2, -1, +1, +2, +3. I do not wear glasses while using this camera.

Thanks in advance,
Joe

 

[Peter^]

Joe,
Since with a diopter eyepiece, you can only correct for sphere, you need to correct for the spherical equivalent, which is the sphere plus half the cylinder, I.e. - 0.875 in your right eye and 0.125 in your left eye.
If you shoot with your right eye, aou could use a -1 correction. For the left eye, there is not much you can do. Since most of your vision problems are from cylinder anyway, the best solution would be to just wear your glasses while shootiing.

- Peter

 

[jbtran]

Thanks for your reply Peter. I will take your advice and get the -1 diopter. I just want to be able to read the viewfinder LED numbers clearly with my right eye.

 

[kbg32]

Why don't you ask your Opthamologist or optometrist instead of guessing.

 

[paulfish4570]

i wear reading glasses to, well, read. 1.75x is the "power" that i use to read. for my nikon f2a AND my bessa r2m, i use a "0" nikon diopter, which is really +1. it brings the normal nikon/bess viewfinder of -1 to neutral. your prescription might as well be astrophysics for me. i realize my r2m viewfinder is different from yours (.85?). but you might want to take your bessa to walmart or a drugstore and try reading glasses until one "power" gives you focused readouts. maybe this will give you a strong hint ...

 

[jbtran]

Why don't you ask your Opthamologist or optometrist instead of guessing.

I thought of that, but my optometrist closed down his practice a couple of years ago and moved across the country. The other local optometrist is closed on weekends (I started this thread on Saturday). And who's "guessing"? I asked for information from knowledgeable people so I can make an informed decision and not have to guess. Did you even read/understand my original post? Thanks for taking the time to reply above anyway.

Oh, and it's spelled "Ophthalmologist", not "Opthamologist" as you have it above.