[Review] Optivisor

[Semper Fortis]

For Knight of Lupus and Captain Smashy Pants, as promised. ;)

Optivisor is a head mounted binocular magnifier. It is hands free and, unlike other types of magnification, it stays a constant distance from the eyes and follows every turn of the head.

Description:

- The Optivisor can be worn over regular prescription or safety glasses.

- The bulk of the magnifier is a sturdy grade of plastic. I find it light and comfortable.

- The forehead portion of the headband is covered in leather and cleans easily with a damp cloth if needed.

- The headband adjusts with a ratchet mechanism that covers a very wide variety of head sizes.

- The visor portion swings up and down on friction locks which are adjustable for the amount of resistance desired.

- The visor is infinitely adjustable from the back of the head forward to the nose, allowing optimal adjustment for any task. It's very easy to move up out of the way for distance viewing and back down to the task at hand.

- The binocular optics are prescription eyeglasses quality glass.

- The optics come in a choice of six different magnifications and are interchangeable.

Options:

- Extra optics can be purchased separately if desired. I use two different magnifications, easily changed with two screws.

- A visor mounted LED can be purchased.

- A swing mounted loupe to increase magnification to one eye can be purchased

Magnifications:

- Six different from 1.5x to 3.5x

- Each magnification strength has a specific focal length, or the distance at which the magnified image comes into focus.

- Keep in mind that except for the greatest magnification, that length will actually be a range of distances.

》1.5 times magnification for a 20" focal length

》1.75 times magnification for a 14" focal length

》2 times magnification for a 10" focal length

》2.5 times magnification for an 8" focal length

》2.75 times magnification for a 6" focal length

》3.5 times magnification for a 4" focal length

- If you aren't sure which magnification will suit you best, try on some "cheater" magnifying reading glasses of different strengths. Hold your hands out to the distance where you usually work on models and see which ones come into focus best for you.

My opinion:

The Optivisor is the only reason I'm still able to paint minis at my age. I believe it's the best magnifying system available for modeling. I also use it for reading, and am wearing it right now as I type on my tablet. I find it light, comfortable, and easy to clean. I use the 2.5x with the 8" focal length for painting. And, because I use it so frequently, I have a separate Optivisor in 1.75x for reading.

Having used a number of different magnification methods, I believe the reason the Optivisor is superior is that it always remains the same distance from, and at the same angle to, my eyes. Think of using a magnifying glass to see a splinter in your finger. You have to move the glass a specific distance from your eyes and from your hand to get the proper focus. Moving the glass toward or away from your eyes changes the focus, as does angling it at the same distances. This is very much like the effect you get when using a magnifier on an adjustable arm. Since it doesn't move as you move it can't keep the object in focus all the time. And as you angle your head in reference to the lens, it changes the angle between you and the lens.

td;lr ... Optivisor rocks!

[Stoic Raptor]

Thjanks for the review, Fortis.

When you say the optics are interchangeable, does one have to order with a particular choice, or are all included?  Trying on readers may be tricky because I normally can't see anything clearly without my glasses - but I need to remove them to paint close.

Also, can you give an idea of the price and where one could purchase this?  Even better if it's somewhere that I can examine it hands-on.

[Semper Fortis]

Normally ordered with one choice of lens, but others can be ordered at the same time or later. As far as trying on readers, I would think you could take your glasses of and put your hands at the distance where you hold the mini you're painting.

 

I'm not sue which land of ice and snow you come from. In the US you can buy from Walmart for around $35. Get better deals from Amazon or ebay. Just make sure it's Optivisor. The knock offs... uh... are unacceptable. :) In this case Google is your friend.

[Stoic Raptor]

That's helpful.  I live in the States, wondering if they might have this in nearby stores.  I think that 14-inch distance is probably closest to the normal comfortable way I'd like to paint (that is, if I could see well enough).  That would give me the ideal posture to reduce fatigue and get the best lighting from the LED desk light I use above my painting station.

 

Currently for fine work I have to take my glasses off, lean forward, and work around 6-8 inches from my face.  I can't do it for long and between my poor vision and that posture I get eyestrain and muscle tension.  As a result I can't paint for very long.  If I could see clearly enough to paint fine detail at a comfortable distance I'm sure I could get a lot more painting done.

 

I might see about ordering the next closer size too, unless you think the Loupe would be satisfactory for that.  It might even be ideal since I really only have good vision out of my left eye.  Due to an eye injury as a teen, I lost much of the sight until a cataract could be removed and years later I got a lens implant.  But I don't have binocular vision or depth perception - if I close my left eye I can see kind of okay out of my right eye but not as well for things like reading or the normal distance we do most daily tasks.  Enough to get around - but with my glasses off I'm nearly legally blind.  Consequently my eyeglasses cost a lot to get something that's lightweight and not Coke-bottle thick with my prescription.  So working with one eye is my default state.

 

Because of all that, my vision has worsened faster than most people - so 35 years of practice at painting and learning technique is offset by eyesight that's nowhere near what it was at 16.  In my early 20's I could do amazing freehand but I didn't have all the advanced technique I do now.  Only now, I don't see well enough to make the best of it.

 

I see that there's an LED option that fits around the lens frame but I imagine that would not be compatible with the loupe.  I'd have to think about the one that goes on top of the headband, as log as  I can find the one with the longer cord so I don't have the battery pack on my head.  I think there might be times when additional light would be helpful, especially since it will always be right where you are looking - no need to move a lamp around to shine on one spot.

 

This has given me something to think about - I want to make sure I make the right choices and I wish I could try it out first before committing to the purchase.  But at least I know where to start.  People have recommended similar products before but they didn't sound like something that would work with eyeglasses (even stuff like ski goggles or safety glasses worn over my regular glasses make things appear very distorted).

 

Thanks for the review and the information - if this helps me see as well as I used to when painting I imagine my results will improve dramatically - both in terms of appearance as well as total models done per week or whatever.  For that I will be extremely grateful for your advice.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I picked one up last year to help when sculpting very small details (or giving it my best attempt at any rate) and it's a great tool to have for detail work or if you have vision problems. 

[Ovidius Incertus]

That's helpful.  I live in the States, wondering if they might have this in nearby stores.  

 

I've seen them on the shelves at Hobby Lobby and Michaels, FYI.  It seems Hobby Lobby always has them, Michaels is hit or miss if the location stocks it.

[FormelyKnownAsSmashyPants]

Thankyou for the review, when I can afford to pick one up I'll probably order one with the eight in focal range. Also as Knight of Lupus mention, do you know if the LED and loupe are compatible? Once again thankyou for the time and effort you put into this review

[Stoic Raptor]

Speaking specifically in that case about the LED that goes around the lens frame.  It looks like the LEDs are at the spots where the pins would hold in the lens (one of which is where the loupe seems to go.

[Semper Fortis]

Sorry guys, but I can't address the loupe or LED as I have not used either. I don't think I'd like anything as heavy as a battery pack attached to my head gear. That sounds to much like an invitation to a pain in the neck. And I haven't had any desire for the loupe.

 

Personally, I prefer to use excellent lighting to improve my vision. I have several strategically placed Ott lights directed on my painting station, plus good area lighting. That's what works for me.

 

Appreciate the thanks and you're welcome. It was my pleasure. There's not much I can give to this site creatively. My painting is on the low end of mediocre, my photography stinks, I don't game so no battle reports, and I can't sing or dance. :lol: But I can write technical stuff.

[FormelyKnownAsSmashyPants]

Good point about the he LEDs actually, forgot about the weight of the battery pack.

[Stoic Raptor]

So I went in for a long-overdue eye exam today and I'm getting a stronger prescription as my eyes have gotten worse with four years of age.  I mentioned to the ophthalmologist that we had been discussing the Optivisor and she said they're great, she uses one for fine tasks at home.  She agrees that a 2x-2.5x would be ideal for the distance at which I'll be working.

 

Now it merely remains to obtain one.  Hopefully between that and new glasses I'll be able to resume painting for longer durations and get the results that my experience and technique could produce if my vision were only up to it.  

[Semper Fortis]

So glad you got your eyes checked, Knight of Lupus. New glasses should be a great start in improving your vision. :lol: I'm not surprised your ophthalmologist endorsed the Optivisor as it truly is a professional grade tool.

[Arkhanist]

I picked up a chinese version of the optivisor this week, completely independently deciding I needed to revisit magnification (hadn't heard of the optivisor) - my mini review of this at the bottom!

 

I've been heavily shortsighted most of my life, which means I must wear glasses all the time. It does have the side effect that at very close range I do have somewhat magnified vision without correction compared to normal people, so that's been my pattern for years when painting fine detail - take my glasses off and paint about 2 fingers width from my nose. The downside is then everything else is blurry, including the palette, and lighting the model without pointing it in my eyes is a problem.

 

I've previously tried desk mounted light surrounding magnifier and found that interfered with the brush and was just generally awkward trying to get different bits of the model in focus. I also previously tried a different type of head magnifier and as a glasses wearer this type was awful - the nose bridge was uncomfortable, it pinched at the temples which interfered with my glasses even more than the nose bridge even with the elastic headband option, and the LED batteries added a lot of uncomfortable weight at the front without adding any more useful light given I already use a 35W daylight CFL in an anglepoise lamp. Plus plastic lenses = 'soft' magnification.

 

 

So onto the optivisor knockoff. The biggest advantage is price; it's less than half the price of the optivisor in the UK (import duty and VAT + weak pound) and comes with 4 different glass lenses included - 1.5x, 2.0x, 2.5x and 3.5x. (I could have got a different 'brand' cheaper still if I'd been willing to wait)

 

Retroactively looking at the optivisor, the one I have seems very similar in build quality with regards the plastic frame, it's got a little bit of flex if you push hard on it, but seems robust enough. The glass lenses are glued into the plastic surround so it's a little messy on the back side of the lens surround but doesn't interfere with the function at all and you can't see it in normal use. The front headband bit is pleather - not sure if the same on the optivisor, but it does cause my forehead to sweat a bit. I'm going to attach a strip of sweatband over the top when I get round to it. It is surprisingly comfortable once you find a good position and tightness for the head band, it's very light and streets ahead of the nose&temple style visor in terms of comfort, I can wear my optivisor knockoff for hours with no problem other than the band getting sweaty, and pop it on and off easily.

 

I totally agree that this is a great form factor. When painting I leave the visor down so straight ahead I get magnification - I too am using 2.5x with my glasses for detail, and 2.0x for basecoating which is about what I get with no glasses on - the lens clips are plastic pushpins, so may have to give up swapping them eventually.

 

So - paint with model in rathcore mini grip, elbows braced on the desk and wet palette* + water pot between my elbows, light above the mini. I can look down at the palette* 'under' the lenses for brush rinse/refill/repoint and the top bit of the visor co-incidentally blocks the light from shining in my eyes which is very handy when painting at night and needing the lightbulb close above! I'm also painting quite a bit further from my face than I'm used to, which means I don't keep knocking the brush out of my hand with my own face (genuine problem when painting an inch from your nose). I can easily swing the visor up if I need to talk to my family or otherwise look round the room. The big advantage of this pose is that I'm not hunched over the table, and combined with the mini grip 'bar', my paintbrush is braced very close to where I'm holding it all the way to the desk, much reducing hand shake - which means edge highlighting is once again possible!

 

In retrospect, I don't have any issue with not buying the branded optivisor, given I'm not american and didn't know it existed, as I don't think I've gotten a significantly worse build quality for a much cheaper price. The lenses work well and seem similar quality to that of basic glass glasses, and came scratch free with no distortion or chromatic aberration - a big step up from cheap plastic lenses. I suspect it'd be the same dimensions if I wanted to use optivisor lenses for a different magnification not included. Given the US version is much cheaper in the US, it probably makes more sense to get the optivisor there.

 

Works really well, can recommend. Though be warned my wife laughed at me the first time she saw me wearing it, I do look a bit of a nerdy wazzock, or more than usual anyway. I can also just about wear it with my respirator should I need to, though I don't airbrush well enough to need magnification for that yet!

 

Ah, the joys of getting old with dodgy eyes, shaky hands and a bad back.

 

 

* I also bought the everlasting 'painter' wet palette recently. At 20cm x 15cm it's half the size of my old artist one so it fits neatly in my A4 paint station** which fits comfortably between my elbows when braced with model holder as described above. Nice wet palette, lid seal works much better than the friction fit version on my old bigger one, sponge holds water better than blotting paper in my big one. Can also recommend.

 

** paint station means I can quickly get current project & paint & palette & brushes & water cup out from shelf, and put away again quickly out of the way of my keyboard spot, as my desk does double duty with my PC.