• home
• eye information library
• meet our doctors
• about our practice
• optical shop
• faq
• contact us

The following provides additional detail about the lens technology offered at Fishkind & Bakewell optical shops.

Lens Materials

• Plastic hard resin lenses (CR-39)
  • Available in more styles and sizes than any other material. Known for being reasonably priced, good optics, tints well.
• Polycarbonate
  • The most impact resistant material. Best choice for safety lenses, children's lenses. Always comes with scratch guard and U.V. filter. Does not tint well. Prone to peripheral distortion, especially in larger frames. Also known to produce chromatic aberration (distortion of colors). Should not be used without anti-reflective coating (see below)
• Resolution
  • A 21st century polycarbonate with all the advantages of the original product but without the problems of tinting, peripheral distortion, and chromatic aberration. One of the better new materials. Somewhat limited in types of lenses available.
• Mid-index plastics (Phoenix, Trivex, Trilogy)
  • Newer generation of lenses which combine many of the features of plastic hard resins and polycarbonate. Designed to be thin and light, without the negatives of polycarbonate. Considered similar to Resolution but with greater availability of styles and sizes. Generally manufactured as a "non-aspheric" product which is beneficial in that it tends to be flatter, with less distortion problems.
• Hi-index plastics (1.6, 1.67, 1.74)
  • Specifically designed for the patient with very strong prescriptions. These lenses are quite flat, making the addition of an anti-reflective coating (see below) imperative. The most advanced of all lenses.

Lens Inventory and technology

• Single vision and progressive add are readily available in virtually all material types.
• Progressive lenses ("no line" or "invisible line" lenses) are available in all major manufacturers. First tier, premium lenses are our specialty. Brands such as Shamir, Zeiss, Hoya, and Varilux are our lenses of choice.
• Progressive lenses designed for today's smaller frames are available with "short corridors."
• Progressive lenses designed specifically for computer use are available from several manufacturers.
• Photochromic lenses (lenses that change from clear to dark) are available. Be sure to ask our opticians about the features and benefits of these popular lenses so that you understand what these lenses will and will not do.
• Sun glass lenses designed as single vision or multifocal with polarized technology. Colors available to satisfy the driver, the hiker, and even the golfer. Ask about the performance of lenses in different colors.
• Anti-reflective coatings are designed to improve the optics of any lens material. By allowing more light to pass through the lens rather than being reflected off the surface, both the quality of vision and the appearance of the lens are improved. Excellent aid for night driving or computer use. Latest improvements provide all the features of quality anti-reflective effect without the problems of older technology which was very prone to "smudging" and difficult cleaning.