JD750 Loc: SoCal

Except he is asking about camera accessories.

JD750 Loc: SoCal

Thank you for sharing that.

MJPerini

Many folks deal with decreasing acuity , and there are many potential causes, some of which are fixable and others only manageable . My Wife is going through cataract surgery right now. Sometimes it is a combination of issues.
Her early results are encouraging (but not perfect) she does love the brighter clearer colors she sees, but may need a 1 day laser 'clean up' for some debris.
But you really have to start with a complete diagnosis and an understanding of exactly what that means for your eyesight.
If one or more of your conditions are not fixable with techniques like laser surgery or cataract surgery, then there are enhanced viewing systems beyond simple diopter lenses. Many modern cameras can have a plug in high res 4" to 6" display complete with focusing aids. But before you buy anything, know and understand your exact diagnosis, and prognosis of how it may progress in the future.
If your doctor did not explain it to your satisfaction, go back or find a more helpful doctor. YOU have to be in charge of the process. It can be a hassle but do not give up.
Sincere best wishes, and good luck

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

My eyes must be getting worse and worse for each time I look in the mirror I see what appears to be an old ugly wrinkled face. It can't be me so it has to be my eyesight. 😁

Ralphoto Loc: Washington state; now in Pittsburgh

You should get cataracts fixed! It's an easy surgery, and failure to do that will eventually lead to blindness in that eye.

JimGray Loc: Albuquerque, New Mexico

I have not seen a reply with my problem. I have Parkinson's. One of my symptoms is sometimes double vision. Unfortunately it is not consistent. My vision can change on different days, sometimes different hours. At this point I depend on the excellent auto-focus on my Sony A7R4. I was recently on a boat ride in a fjord in Norway where I was expected to wear goggles. That made it difficult to use my camera. Ultimately all I did was compose. I let the camera do the focus and exposure. I think all of my shots were keepers.

Ralphoto Loc: Washington state; now in Pittsburgh

I had some fuzziness in my right eye (my shooting eye), and by the time it was bad enough for me to get worried, I was sent to emergency surgery. My retina was detached, and the surgery was not effective. Neither were the four following surgeries. My eye has now shrunk into the socket, and I can only see fuzziness, which irritates me. I shoot with my left eye now. Take your eyes seriously! Several posts here make me think that folks think this is just a side result of age. It can be.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

An ophthalmologist from long ago told me that everyone gets cataracts but there's no need to do anything about it until they get to a certain level of being a problem. I reached that level during Covid and had to wait for a year before anyone was doing cataract surgery but eventually I had it done in my '80s. I used to be nearsighted but my eyes were fixed to 20/20 for distance so now I have to use reading glasses for closeup work. That inverted my glasses habits but after about a year I got used to that change. It also fixed my astigmatism so now I can use cheap glasses instead of prescription glasses. They're cheap enough that I can spread them all around the house and (usually) find one nearby.

But we don't know what your specific problem is so you should check with an expert. In your '70s you should have Medicare available. My treatment wasn't free (partly because of my astigmatism) but it was significantly reduced in cost.

cahale Loc: San Angelo, TX

Cataracts? I had mine removed and can now see much better and at 20/20.

flyingcrown1 Loc: Moravian Falls

Thank you.

flyingcrown1 Loc: Moravian Falls

Thanks!

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

You need to click "Quote Reply" under the post you are responding to as I did here so we can tell who it is.

As for a larger screen, check here for monitors you can mount on your hot shoe:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=%20camera%20screen&sts=ma

charles brown Loc: Tennesse

What kind of camera are you using? DSLRs usually have a diopter adjustment feature. Use it. Learn to trust the auto focus of the camera. Most have a green or orange dot in the viewfinder that tells you when the lens is in focus. I've found that most often works for me. If you have multiple auto focus settings on the camera, learn to know which one to use for the type of photograph being taken. A linkage between a camera and laptop is also an option. Another option is the use of live view. All of these options are dependent upon the camera being used and the features available on the camera.

MrPhotog

I've had vision problems for many years, and dealt with them one at a time.

For focus with a TLR, SLR, or DSLR, there are usually diopter correction lenses made by the camera companies, or custom made by your optometrist, assuming you want to take off your glasses while you focus. interchangeable viewscreens, with split image or microprism focusing spots can help, too. Unfortunately these were only made for some cameras, and they are mostly outdated (or use film).

Mirrorless cameras do not have the rangefinder spot, since the viewfinder is an electronic image. They do offer a feature that outlines those areas which are in focus. I find this only useful on a few occasions, and annoying to use most of the time. My Sony has a 'dial-in" diopter feature, though, which helps get the view screen image sharp, if I don't bump it and screw up the setting. Unfortunately, it seems I bump it a lot. If it is slightly off, then everything is bad, and focusing accurately is impossible until I reset it.

Wearing glasses meant my eyeball was further away from the viewfinder window on SLRs than most camera designers allowed for. So I rarely could see the entire image in one glance. Accurate full-frame composition calls for a lot of twisting. A tripod really helps when I need accuracy. Otherwise, I shoot more and more with wide angle lenses, and crop the images. Often the added 'features' in the edges of the picture, which I couldn't see at the time of the exposure, remain.

Years ago I gravitated Leicas, and found that the frame lines in those viewfinders were easy to see while wearing glasses. Also the rangefinders were super easy to use for critical focus, and fast enough for sports photos. So I made my living for years using these cameras mostly. Waistlevel finders on Rolleiflex and Hasselblad cameras, with magnifiers, were convenient, too. But almost no one makes a waist level finder for a digital camera. A flip up rear screen could be adapted, but you would need to make a sunshield and add a magnifying lens on your own.

I fought with focusing the Sony. The small eyepiece worked OK when I wear contact lenses, but not so well with glasses. Auto focus was pretty good, most of the time. All too often it was just a little off--enough to annoy me. I suspect it is because the lens was f/3.5, and at that maximum aperture the depth of field made the autofocusing happy, even if I wanted something more critically in focus.

I bit the bullet and went back to Leica. It was not cheap, but at least I had plenty of lenses from my film camera that fit, and they focus great. Plus the bright line viewfinder lets me see an entire frame with 35mm, 50 and 90 mm lenses., with glasses or contacts. those are my most used lenses, so all is happy.

Even happier, I bought the electronic visoflex for the Leica M11. It has a huge viewfinder, similar to the high viewpoint Nikon finder from the mid 70s, and enough eye relief that I can see corner to corner with eyeglasses on. And, joy of joys, it flips up to serve as a nice waist level finder ! And it has the built in diopter correction. I was considering carrying a pocket full of viewfinders for my wide-angle lenses, but this was actually cheaper.

Honestly, there are very few photographers who own this system and do not use it strictly professionally, where their business pays for it. I'm now an amateur, and the only 'business' photography I do is for a monthly amateur woodworking newsletter I edit. I hesitate to recommend this for anyone else, but Leicas kept me in business as a photographer, and they still make it easy for me to take sharp photos. You'll get a thousand opinions saying there are cheaper alternatives, and I am sure they are all correct--for those people.

Good luck finding the gear that best suits your personal challenges. There are plenty of good brands, and each line has models with different features. Try as many as you can.

lmTrying Loc: WV Northern Panhandle

To no one person in particular:

You guys have no idea how happy I am to have found this thread. Almost all the other threads have delt singularity with cataracts and how well everyone has been able to see afterwards.

Like DirtFarmer, my cataracts ripened with COVID, which slowed everything down. After a year n a half, both eyes were replaced with new corrective lenses. Then another 5 months to get new glasses. So why won't my left eye focus? A year later a laser film clean up and new glasses, with a refractive lens, brings on another adjustment period. Today I can see decently. Yesterday was wonky. That can change day to day or hour to hour. Like an old lady told me as she looked me straight in the eyes 18 years ago, "Gettin' old ain't for sissies!"

I'm just happy that I'm not alone in this trek.