pendennis

I'm almost six years into my cataract surgery, and it's made a huge difference in my vision. Not only did I have cataracts, but I also had near-radical astigmatism (+4.5). I had to pay for the toric lens differential @ $2400, but I'm thankful every day that I did. And, in the six subsequent years, there are more improvements in lenses.

My eyes were done two weeks apart (because of the toric lens); and the surgeon wanted to insure there were no complications. However, my eyes were instantly improved. There were some containers on shelves which I couldn't read the lettering pre-surgery. When the surgeon was finished I could see the writing clearly, down to what turned out to be 20/16. I use reading glasses only @ 1.5 diopters.

My color perception is vastly improved. The combination of cataracts and astigmatism both created problems, which the surgery instantly corrected. When I walked out of the surgery center, the colors were so vivid, I thought I had a problem. Now, the colors I see are as vivid on screen as in real life.

One of the things which my surgeon insisted, was that I fully rehab my eyes. Rehab came in the nature of word puzzles, which gradually lessened in type size, and increased in complication and numbers of letters. It made a huge difference.

willaim Loc: Sunny Southern California

I had cataract surgery 17 years ago and I couldn't believe what the colors looked like. Whites were white and all the other colors were brighter. The doctor will only do one eye and then the other about a month or so later. As for your soft and fuzziness looking through your viewfinder, it might be that the dioptric adjustment knob of the viewfinder needs to be adjusted. Don't sweat the operation. Really a piece of cake.

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

Do Not Worry! Your visual acuity will improve (although it may not be perfect and you may still need to wear corrective lenses) and your color discernment will jump. Just don't get talked into the one eye for distance vision and one eye for near vision trap. I am a retired physician and my Ophthalmologist says she has had to correct many people who had this performed elsewhere and could never adjust to this situation, mainly due to old age.

My distance vision is 20/20-1, nearly normal, yet I still wear corrective lenses for distance (and near vision) because after 60 years of wearing glasses I feel naked without them. Besides I don't have to keep looking for my reading glasses when I want to read something.

You will be estatic!

Rsalmon

When I had my first cataract removed, I felt like Dorothy when she stepped into Oz, the morning after my surgery. I was stunned when I saw what I had been not seeing prior to having the cataract removed in regards to both color and clarity.

Khick Loc: Binghamton, NY

My 90 year old mother had one eye then the other time this summer. After the 1st, in the way home she had this awesome grin in her face, and finally remarked "i can see! ". No longer wears her glasses. I hope yours goes as well.

Picture Taker Loc: Michigan Thumb

I had one eye done and don't worry about having the other done now. It was great. I could not see the chart not just the letters on it. I went in to Henery Ford Hospital at 6:00 AM was third in line. I was out at a restaurant at 11:00 AM having breakfast could see (thru the class patch) and no pain. Next morning had patch removed and painlessly went on with my life. I do notice I see color differently with the eye not done yet. White is whiter.

allenetheridge

I have to tell you that this surgery (one eye one week, one eye the next week) was the easiest and most dramatic operation I have undergone. I did not realize the yellow haze that the cataracts were causing until they were removed. The surgery also eliminated the halos that I was seeing around light sources at night. Plus, the replacement lens gave me 20/20 vision that I had not experienced in 53 years (still need readers since I opted for lenses to correct myopia in both eyes). I had this surgery three years ago and my vision is still perfect. I know that won't last forever, but what a treat.

I hope that your experience is similar and that you are able to see well and feel comfortable with your photographic endeavors.

lev29 Loc: Born and living in MA.

I am not an Ophthalmologist. I am not going to provide you with yet another anecdotal experience, but perhaps the following references will be useful to you, Rusty Lens.
https://www.nvisioncenters.com/cataract-surgery/after-surgery/
https://www.docshop.com/education/vision/eye-diseases/cataracts/recovery https://www.webmd.com/eye-health/cataracts/complications-cataract-surgery#1

In particular, the following may be useful for photographers -
Vision Changes Related To Cataracts
https://www.visionaware.org/info/your-eye-condition/cataracts/vision-changes-related-to-cataracts/125
https://cataractsurgerycentre.wordpress.com/2015/09/17/lot-more-blue-after-cataract-surgery/
Long-term renormalization of chromatic mechanisms following cataract surgery
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2633455/

John_F Loc: Minneapolis, MN

I had cataract surgery a number of years ago in which implant lenses were installed. They did one eye at a time so I was able to compare the two eyes. What looked white by the cataract eye was definitely a brownish yellow to the repaired eye. If you have astigmatism, you can expect a considerable reduction in degree. The thickness and weight of eyeglasses lenses can be expected to become lightweights.

wmurnahan Loc: Bloomington IN

I could not be happier with mine. I did have to go back a couple years later and have the membrane zapped. But my eye site is as good as when I was a teenager. I got one eye done then the other and what a side by side comparison. The old lens, white was yellow, the new lens white was bright white.

REJ Loc: Ontario Canada

I just had mine done 2 months ago and in my case the answer to all your questions is yes. 30 minutes after my right eye was done I walked out of the hospital and my first words were " Holy Crap even the parking lot is beautiful." When my left eye was done a month later and it was even better. good luck with your operation. REJ.

amyinsparta Loc: White county, TN

Piece of cake. You will love the results!

htbrown Loc: San Francisco Bay Area

I have had both eyes done, and can see far more clearly now than before. There is a more limited range of focus with my new lenses, which took some getting used to, but the trade-off for sharper vision made it worth it.

On the matter of color: In the year between when I had my first eye done and the second, I noticed that one eye perceived color slightly differently than the other. It was most noticeable in open shade (which has a blue cast). If I looked at the palm of my hand through one eye, it looked pinker than when I used the other eye. I never noticed it before the surgery, but I probably never looked for it. After the second surgery, the difference remains, so I suspect it has nothing to do with the lenses.

I think we all know color is subjective. My father was red/green colorblind, my first wife blue/green colorblind. The difference between my two eyes suggests that colorblindness is an extreme form of the variations that all our eyes have. When presented with, say, yellow, we all agree it's yellow because we've learned the label. There's no guarantee we experience yellow in the same way as anyone else.

I'm not quite sure what my point is except, perhaps, that there may not be some absolute standard for color judgment. Calibrating my monitor insures I perceive the color in my photos similarly across different media, but says nothing about how others perceive my photos.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

My Dad has cataract surgery on both eyes (first one, then the other) in his 80s. After the surgery, he no longer needed eyeglasses to drive or for most purposes! Before the surgery, he'd worn eyeglasses for as long as I can remember.... for decades! After the surgery, he only needed reading glasses for close-up work.

The surgery also solved problems tolerating bright lights at night, such as when driving. I don't recall us every talking about color rendition, so can't really say if or how that might have been effected by the surgery.

Based on his experiences, I think you will probably be very happy after having the surgery. I hope it's as successful as my Dad's was!

The surgery didn't solve some of his driving "quirks" that made the rest of us half crazy.... such as starting to slow for a red light about a block in advance. Might even have made it worse, since his distance vision was so much improved after the surgery. BTW, he was even worse as a passenger. He took "backseat driving" to whole new levels... He was a military pilot and flight instructor for 25 or 30 years and even "backseat drove" when we were on commercial airline flights! I can't tell you how many times, when flying with him, that I heard him say, "The first 2 minutes and the last two minutes of every flight are the most dangerous!", while white-knuckle gripping the arm rests because he wasn't at the airplane's controls himself!

Bazbo Loc: Lisboa, Portugal

Yes. Not only that, but the colors you see will be brighter and more saturated. You will be seeing things not through old lenses but through lenses that teenagers have.