Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Advice on eyeglasses and hunting

I wear both contacts and glasses. If you are familiar with both then you know the advantages and drawbacks of both while hunting.

Can you advise on what's the best type of glasses or goggles particularly for bowhunting where ranges are close?

I always have anti reflective coating on my regular specs but I don't think this does much for shine or glare a game animal can detect. Maybe makes it worse.

I thought about polarized transitions but I might be thinking too much. Any advice on frames or type of lenses and coatings would be a big help... Thanks, Tree

Might ask a doc that hunts or fishes...

I've been leaning towards lazik, especially since loosing a few fingers, it sucks putting contacts in. The only downside is most people need reading glasses within a few years of the surgery. But everyone I have talked to loves their long distance vision. There is nothing worse than glasses fogging over on a cold morning when you are trying to hunt

I had Lasik done about 20 years ago. The best outfit I could find in my area. After all, you don't look for bargains when it comes to your eyes.

There might be better tech nowadays but it wasn't worth it. I had 20-20 immediately after but In a few years I was back to square one. But I could only have it done for distance since I am far sighted.

Glasses are a pain while hunting but when wearing contacs my vision starts to get blurry and my eyes water after straining to see in the woods. So I'm looking for the best alternative in eye glasses.

BTW, the best bowhunter I ever knew wore a camo spandex face mask, cut openings in the mask for his eyes, etc., and wore his glasses OVER, on the outside of the mask, since the stems would penetrate the mask through to his ears...that wouldn't remedy the fogging though.

I just wear contacts.

I got eval'd for lens correction surgery but wasn't a candidate for a variety of reasons.

I can't imagine hunting in my daily glasses. Fogged up, smudges, rain, etc. makes that a no-go.

I wore contacts for 40+ years and switched back to bifocals a few years ago. I've had no issues shooting bow or rifle with glasses. Transition lenses get too dark for low light conditions so I use plain lenses for hunting. I also wear black bridal veil as a face mask as I do think glare from the lenses can be an issue.

I wear Bifocals I wear them for wingshooting and do fine. Scoped rifle I hunt without them.

I wear glasses. Can't say I've ever had an issue in 37 years of bow hunting with them.

Buddy of mine shoots archery competitively, his sister is an optometrist. For his "shooting/bowhunting" glasses they used a good progressive and cut the add power in half. He get's a good feel for where his pin in in the progressive section then a slight nod to get into the distance portion of the lens and get the pin in the right place on the target.

Essentially what they made him were "long-distance readers". They don't work well up close @ reading distance but sharpen up his pins, then, as I said, a slight head nod to get into the distance portion of the lens and place the pin appropriately on target.

I wore contacts for many years, but about 15 years ago I had eye surgery for a torn retina, which was very successful but resulted in me not being able to wear contacts any more. As a result I've worn spectacles since then. I have non-reflective plain lenses for hunting, don't need bifocals, and FWIW I like matte Ti frames. For bowhunting I have a sort of mesh hood with an opening maybe 5" x 1.5" for my eyes. I put the veil on first, tie it at the back of my head to pull it against my face, and then put the glasses on, poking the arms of the glasses into the sides of the opening so they are under the hood, but the lenses are outside.

It seems to work. I have got within very close range of various goats, deer and other stuff often enough to convince me.

I have polarised lenses for daytime driving. I don't use them hunting because I'm mainly doing this in low light, and the polarised lenses cut back on light. I'm not a fan of "transitions" lenses - I was once told by a professor of ophthalmology that you weaken your eyes' ability to cope with changes in light level with these, and in any case you are doing yourself no favours for hunting with them for the same reason I don't use the polarised lenses.

Several doctors have told me if you have Lasik, in the future, cataract surgery is harder to do and may not turn out as well.

Not arhery, but muzzle loader, I use bifocals with the bifocal set a little lower than usual. No anti glare or scratch resistant, but I'm cheap. Sometimes I use a pair of cheap Walmart 1:50's

Here is a thought for you.

I use Decot shooting glasses and I pick the color of lenses I want to wear.

There is Ranger shooting glasses that I have also.

Both the above plus others will give you options for different color lenses.

for dark conditions I put in Gold / yellow color. For Bright conditions I will put in vermillion or bronze #2.

if you find a place that sells them you will be able to try out the different lenses to see what would work for you.