How can I tell what diopter my eye is?

[68degrees]

I want to get a diopter eye piece for my Nikon 35mm SLRs but I dont know what diopter I need. Do I need to get an eye exam for 100 bucks or can they check that at the eyeglass shop for free?

 

[E. von Hoegh]

I want to get a diopter eye piece for my Nikon 35mm SLRs but I dont know what diopter I need. Do I need to get an eye exam for 100 bucks or can they check that at the eyeglass shop for free?

Just try various diopters, choose the one between "too strong" and "too weak".

 

[ic-racer]

Why do you think you need one? If you just want to protect the eyepiece, get a 'zero.'

 

[jimjm]

Do you use reading glasses now? If not, go to the pharmacy or grocery store where they have a selection of cheap reading glasses, and determine what magnification you need.

Most Nikon bodies / viewfinders without an adjustable diopter have a default magnification of -1. The plain glass eyepiece than comes on most Nikon bodies has no magnification factor. If you use reading glasses with a magnification of +1 to +1.5, you'll probably find that a Nikon diopter "0" works for you.

I use reading glasses with a magnification of +2, so I'm most comfortable with a diopter marked +0.5. This allows the sharpest view of the display/needle and helps a lot to focus quickly.

 

[mark]

What jimjm said, is what I did. Tried on glasses until I found what worked. So I bought them for 5 dollars. I just use those instead of a diopter.

 

[macfred]

Why do you think you need one? If you just want to protect the eyepiece, get a 'zero.'

No, in this case you'll have to go for a -1 Nikon eyepiece.

 

[AgX]

Why do you think you need one? If you just want to protect the eyepiece, get a 'zero.'

Why to protect the eyepiece? It is framed, that should be enough. Or do I miss something? Really dirty circumstances?

I do not think there are zero-diopter attachments lenses. One would have to make them oneself.
If there was such it would be designated "-1". The designation of eypiece attachments means the new effective diopter of the camera plus attachment lens.

 

[voceumana]

My medium format camera seem to have an apparent focus distance of about 1 meter (40 inches). Your diopter will probably be one that makes focusing at that distance comfortable. A few camera manufacturers actually specify the eye focus distance.

In any case, if you wear eyeglasses, your optometrist/opthomologist should be able to tell you what works for your prescription at that distance. If you don't wear glasses and don't regularly get an eye exam, you should get one. Glaucoma has no symptoms you can discern but untreated it will make you go blind. An eye exam will detect it and is a good idea.

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

When I required a dioptric lens for my Pentax 67, the instruction was to have the camera focused sharply on an object at infinity (by a person with normal vision) and the normal (0) lens in place on the prism viewfinder. Then, with 2 dioptric correction lenses to hand, I changed from the installed 0 to 1, then to -1, settling on the last when the image in the viewfinder was clear and sharp. Alternatively, an optometrist can test your eyes and make a recommendation for a dioptric correction figure. It's not uncommon for photographers to have specific correction lenses made by their optometrist (at cost) for a specific camera application — most (but not all) electronic cameras today have a built-in dioptric correction facility.

 

[GaryFlorida]

Why do you think you need one? If you just want to protect the eyepiece, get a 'zero.'

because I wear glasses for distance and i dont want to wear glasses when looking through the camera. When I wear glasses everything is clear and sharp in the viewfinder but without its blurry and even with the split prism its hard to focus well. So if eye piece had a corrective lens in it I wouldnt have to wear glasses when looking through the camera viewfinder. I see nikon has different diopters available. I need to know which one to pick. Did someone say a custom one could be ground and put into the nikon screw in eyepiece? I wonder what that would cost?

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

I see nikon has different diopters available. I need to know which one to pick. Did someone say a custom one could be ground and put into the nikon screw in eyepiece? I wonder what that would cost?

Take you camera into a store that actually sells the Nikon dioptric correction pieces, and have them fit each lens in turn until you are comfortable. Don't guess with just any correction power!

Your optometrist can mill a correction lens to your prescription glasses; it is a small job, but a precision one, so some cost is involved. The baseline magnification of the camera viewfinder must also be known and taken into consideration.

 

[Svenedin]

If you wear glasses for distance you are myopic. The lens you need is a minus lens (of whatever strength). This is a divergent lens (because the myopic eye focuses distant images in front of the retina). If you know your prescription for your spectacles this will help. If you are also astigmatic (I am) then a negative finder correction may be insufficient.

 

[Svenedin]

By the way, some cameras have viewfinder correction built in. The Olympus OM4-Ti for example. This is handy as there are no extra parts to lose.

 

[jimjm]

because I wear glasses for distance and i dont want to wear glasses when looking through the camera. When I wear glasses everything is clear and sharp in the viewfinder but without its blurry and even with the split prism its hard to focus well. So if eye piece had a corrective lens in it I wouldnt have to wear glasses when looking through the camera viewfinder. I see nikon has different diopters available. I need to know which one to pick. Did someone say a custom one could be ground and put into the nikon screw in eyepiece? I wonder what that would cost?

If you're looking for a correction eyepiece that compensates for your vision, then it's a bit more complicated. Nikon's diopters will only compensate for close-up needs, like reading glasses do. I normally wear contacts for my near-sightedness, but use diopters to allow me to see the VF accurately.

You'll need to see an Optometrist to have a custom lens made for the eyepiece, but I've no idea how much this will cost.

Won't it be awkward having to take your glasses on and off when you're not looking thru the camera? Have you thought about using a camera that has good eye relief so you can see the entire frame easily with your glasses on, like a Nikon F3hp?

 

[AgX]

By the way, some cameras have viewfinder correction built in. The Olympus OM4-Ti for example. This is handy as there are no extra parts to lose.

Even its predessor the Om-4 had such. I will never understand why a later T-90 did not get such.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

If you're looking for a correction eyepiece that compensates for your vision, then it's a bit more complicated. Nikon's diopters will only compensate for close-up needs, like reading glasses do. I normally wear contacts for my near-sightedness, but use diopters to allow me to see the VF accurately.

You'll need to see an Optometrist to have a custom lens made for the eyepiece, but I've no idea how much this will cost.

Won't it be awkward having to take your glasses on and off when you're not looking thru the camera? Have you thought about using a camera that has good eye relief so you can see the entire frame easily with your glasses on, like a Nikon F3hp?

Funny, I have -3 Nikon diopters for my nearsightedness.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

because I wear glasses for distance and i dont want to wear glasses when looking through the camera. When I wear glasses everything is clear and sharp in the viewfinder but without its blurry and even with the split prism its hard to focus well. So if eye piece had a corrective lens in it I wouldnt have to wear glasses when looking through the camera viewfinder. I see nikon has different diopters available. I need to know which one to pick. Did someone say a custom one could be ground and put into the nikon screw in eyepiece? I wonder what that would cost?

If you wear glasses, ask your eyeball doctor what your prescription is.

 

[jimjm]

Funny, I have -3 Nikon diopters for my nearsightedness.

Wow - so I suppose if the diopter is strong enough then it can work. I've tried that with bodies with adjustable diopter, but it never gave enough correction. So you just take your glasses on and off when shooting? Flip-frames might work pretty good for this purpose.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Wow - so I suppose if the diopter is strong enough then it can work. I've tried that with bodies with adjustable diopter, but it never gave enough correction. So you just take your glasses on and off when shooting? Flip-frames might work pretty good for this purpose.

Glasses off, folded in pocket. If I'm walking around I leave the glasses on and deal with it, with the diopter removed of course. I have seen Nikon diopters as strong as -5.

 

[AgX]

So you just take your glasses on and off when shooting? Flip-frames might work pretty good for this purpose.

Flip-frames would be a good idea, as far sighted photographers still would need glasses fore reading dials. BUT the frame would hamper presseing the camera to the face for stability.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Flip-frames would be a good idea, as far sighted photographers still would need glasses fore reading dials. BUT the frame would hamper presseing the camera to the face for stability.

Flip frames are useless. They do everything badly.

 

[AgX]

You mean, not good when flipped down nor when up? I never had such glasses in hand, I only know those flip-up shading glasses (0 diopter).

Flip-up correcting glasses
https://www.canford.co.uk/Images/ItemImages/large/88-1711_01.jpg

 

[E. von Hoegh]

1. You mean, not good when flipped down nor when up? I never had such glasses in hand, I only know those flip-up shading glasses (0 diopter).
   
   Flip-up correcting glasses
   https://www.canford.co.uk/Images/ItemImages/large/88-1711_01.jpg

   Flip ups leave the bare frames in the way of the camera being stabilised against your head. They do not present the corrective lenses consistently to the eyes. They cost more.
   
   I have been using correctives since 1967, I have had the same opthalmologist since 1976.
   

 

[AgX]

It would be easy to get some cheap generic correction glasses, best a half-clasp version with a string, take out one lens, cut off that string and experiment if such frame would work for oneself.
If so one might try a flip-up model.

 

[Bill Burk]

because I wear glasses for distance and i dont want to wear glasses when looking through the camera. When I wear glasses everything is clear and sharp in the viewfinder but without its blurry and even with the split prism its hard to focus well. So if eye piece had a corrective lens in it I wouldnt have to wear glasses when looking through the camera viewfinder. I see nikon has different diopters available. I need to know which one to pick. Did someone say a custom one could be ground and put into the nikon screw in eyepiece? I wonder what that would cost?

Have you ever tried taking off glasses to photograph?

I can set the diopter on my OM-4 and though it’s possible to adjust to my eye... I never do it because it’s too much trouble to take off my glasses and put them back on. So I adjust to look good with glasses on.