The Mask ???

One that fits well and is black. It works for me. Mark

I currently use black Mares X-Vison which fit my face very well and is very comfortable. I have a back up black Cressi Sub Big Eyes which also work very well for me.

Speaking of masks, I could use some help. My eyes are failing me at 44, and now I use cheap reading glasses to read, even on Wetpixel. When I am shooting, I have a really hard time focusing my eye on the subject, relying on the focus lock indicator to tell me it is in focus. I happen to like the comfort of seeing what I am shooting. So the question is this. How do those who have this problem use a perscription mask? Do they make bi-focal masks? Seems very akward to have to sort of tilt your head back to look through your viewfinder. You certainly cannot have corrected face plate glass or you won't be able to see far away clearly. Any hints? I gotta do something soon.

Joe

Joe,

I've been diving with a prescription mask for years - I carry two. It corrects for my near-sightedness, but does make reading gauges/computer displays with small text/numbers more difficult - one reason I rely mostly on computers with BIG display numbers. Not great for pygmy seahorses and the like, but I can see them. (I sometimes carry a magnifying glass, but with the 105 mm lens and an aiming/focusing light, the viewfinder usually does a better job.

It's fine for the viewfinder without adding any dioptic correction on the camera viewfinder or (on my older Subal miniflex housing) on the housing optic.

Frogfish

Hi Joe:

It took me a heck of a long time to realize the photographic optical system I employed actually extends from the frontmost filter over the camera lens right back to the actual retina of my eyeball. After spending a small fortune on top grade optics for the camera system (and the autofocus was also a big reason for doing it), I decided I should have my eyes checked to make sure they are operating at their best also. While there was nothing dramatically wrong with the way my eyes functioned, it did give me an idea as to why my pictures could have been sharper in some cases.

Doctors I have talked to, have said a person's eyes start to degrade in their mid- twenties. I am quite a ways past that. Regular eye examinations should be undertaken for such visually oriented people as ourselves. Most photgraphers take very good care of their equipment--their eyesight should be no different.

After buying and trying several different masks and even trying the stick on corrective lenses, I found a mask made by Seavision with built in dioptres at a local dive store. It allows me to see distant objects, as well as, being able to read my gauges again. The ability to really see well underwater has re-invigorated my desire to dive more and more.

Employing top grade optics (good eyeglasses, sunglasses, contact lenses, and dive masks) for the most sensitive sensor in your camera system (your eyes) is probably the best money you will ever spend on Photography and Diving.

Thanks Robert & Poliwog. I will be seeing (nopun intended) an eye doctor in a week or two. And the tip on the seavision mask is a good one, assuming it fits. I currently use the SCUBAPRO tri-view mask. It is very expensive but I have not used another mask sincve the black rubber days in the 70's.

Joe 'kelpfish' Belanger

Joe,

As mentioned earlier in this thread, I use the TUSA Liberator II. The problem with (most?) of the Scubapro masks for us visually impaired types is that they have a single plate rather than two separate glass lenses, so can't be fitted with corrective glass. I dive (and travel) with two identical Liberator IIs.

One other option, if you find reading/seeing small close stuff (like gauges) more difficult than you like, is the big Mares ESA, with six lenses. In addition to the main forward looking lens for each eye, which can be replaced with a corrective lens, there is also a downward looking smaller rectangular lens which can be left as plane glass, or optionally replaced with a (different) diopter corrective. You look down through these at your gauges (or pygmy froggies), but ahead for distance stuff and the viewfinder.

In effect, you end up a bifocal mask. (The additonal two side lenses are not replaceable, but they give you better peripheral vision.)

The downsides of the ESA are that it is (1) big (this is not a low-volume mask), (2) a bit funny-looking, and regrettably, (3)rather fragile. You need to be very careful packing them. The frame can crack easily. I always packed mine carefully, but I lost two before giving up. Both times, I didn't notice the crack above water - it's hard to see. You find it when you're at depth and one of the main lens suddenly pops out, at which point distance vision and reading your gauges both become much harder than it was with an ordinary mask.

I did like the ESA, but after I went through two of these expensive masks in only two years, I decided it was time to move on. The Liberator II has proved very durable, and you should be ok with reading gauges and computers as long as you don't overdue the correction factor. (If your eyes are different than mine and you have more trouble reading gauges than I do, you could replace one of the original lenses (the one for the eye you don't look through the viewfinder and focus with).

Frogfish

I use the Scubapro frameless, black. I have 2 of them.

As far as "aging" eyes. Yes you can get a bifocal prescription. Use the top for focusing through your viewfinder. Use the bifocal for looking at LCDs and gauges. I use a soft bifocal contact lens. The proclear multifocal. All other soft bifocal contacts aren't for s##t. Yes, that is a professional opinion. I think the easiest solution for divers who need help is daily disposable soft contact lenses. If they don't have too much astigmatism. You can correct one eye to see far away and one for near (mono vision). Throw them away when you are done diving to void the risk of an infection.

Far sighted people start to have problems at near around the age of 40. Near sighted people mid forties.

As mentioned above the better the optics the greater the benefit to aging eyes. I see where the "doctor" doesn't think the magnified viewfinder is that necessary with a D2X/Subal combo. As "A" doctor I can assure you it makes a big difference if you have aging eyes.

The problem is most acute when reviewing LCDs. Even the very best have poor resolution compared print and even worse when compared to the image through the viewfinder of a dSLR. Also you are looking at them at a very close distance putting a lot of stress on your eye's accommodative (focusing) system.

I think this is the reason older UW photographers gravitate to dSLRS. Yes the have more money (sometimes) but they also have kids in college and 2 mortgages. But it just becomes too hard to get a good look at the image in the LCD as you get older.

Far sighted people start to have problems at near around the age of 40. Near sighted people mid forties.

 

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Great, another thing to look forward to in the next several years. I have been myopic since college days and prescription lenses on my mask seem to do the job pretty well so far. I am dreading the day of bifocal

Big viewfinder magnifier definitely helps. An opinion from another "Doc"

I had (2) TUSA Liberator masks back in the 90's and I was quite happy with them at the time. Then about 6 years ago age caught up with me and I had much difficulty seeing the camera settings. After a little research, I purchased a Sea Vision 2000 http://www.seavisionusa.com/index.html with my custom prescription at Oceanfest. Make sure that you order it with the black skirt.

I also have the Color Correcting Filter (magenta) shield that I really like. Never had a problem until last summer when I switched to a digital SLR. New strobes, housing etc. and could not believe how hot the strobes were!!! Started to change the camera's white-balance and realized that it was the mask filter. A few dives later I did not notice that the camera monitor is off with the white-balance.

.....Leonard

Yellow filtered lenses can improve contrast and reduce glare. This can be of value in shooters glasses and ski goggles. Sometimes for drivers. But any filter reduces the amount of available light. Diving is always a low light situation. I'm not surprised that the web site above says they are of most value in shallow clear waters. I would test thoroughly any filtered lens you look through before buying. Under all conditions in which you dive.

Dave:

I should have had you check my eyes on our last trip. If I'd had only known.

Joe

Having a very slightly below average smaller face the Seavison mask I have is very comfortable. The Tusal Liberator II is a great snorkel and backup mask with the excpetion of deep dives ,it pushes above my nose bridge bewteen the eues causing slight discomfort. Many masks do, so the first thing I do when trying one is to push top center simulating pressure. Sea vison was a good choice for $99.00 super comfortable. Most scubapro's are great too but they are a little to wide for me. Black is a given.

anyone tried a Tusa Visualator?

Hi all,

 

Does anyone have any recommendations for masks that are especially suited for underwater photography?

I just used a new mask that I really like ... Atomic frameless, black silicone of course. But for the real differentiator between this and other black silicone masks (enhanced visual acuity), see:

http://dive.scubadiving.com/insider/

FWIW, I can second the Atomic frameless Ultra Clear mask....excellent mask

Karl

If you have the vision for it, try a Hydroptix mask. You get your complete field of view back (75% more visible area), things look their normal size, and everything is sharper. It's a dome port for your eyes. I love mine, and so does my wife who's a videographer.

The downside is that it's -4.5 diopter, so you need to be nearsighted to wear it. My prescription is -2.5, though, and I find it much crisper than diving with a flat mask and contact lenses. If you have perfect vision you need to wear contacts to screw up your vision -- which is a tough sell. I can't image that there are many people doing this.

It also leaks slightly, so when you look straight down you get a pool of water at the bottom of the mask. So I rarely shoot straight down because I can't see through the viewfinder. They also fog easily, so we wash them after EVERY dive with baby shampoo on the dive boats and re-gel. And then they still fog if they flood (which sometimes happens if I'm taking a bunch of shots at a weird angle and get excited.)

If your prescription is in the ballpark, try one in a pool sometime.