"Eyesight & Age" Topic

Do, or don't do. There is no "should".

Well said.

Rick

While my eyesight is getting worse, it has no effect on my painting. Since I'm short sighted, I just take my glasses off. Same as for the last 45 years.

I just pop on my jewellers visor.

Well, there's failing eyesight, and then there's cataracts, which plays hob with color vision, and so with regimental facings in 15mm.

If instead of "use larger figures" it said "make it easier to see important distinctions" I'd have checked it was advisable. But a big base of horse & musket 6mm with flag and drummer can be easier to sort out than a 28mm in cammo or with a dirty paint jub.

I still paint 15mm and 6mm figures and vehicles, just paint less of the details.

Jim

Paint 15mm & 28mm but not 6mm anymore.

My eyesight is worsening because of a condition that isn't age related (Keratoconus), and I've actually found myself switching to smaller scales, due to increasing difficulty painting larger figures well. 6mm figures are simply easier for me to paint to a standard that I find acceptable, than 15mm or 28mm figures are.

Interesting points from everyone. Can we have an "I'll think you'll find it's more complicated than that" option for many polls?

Depends on if your prescription needs are changing. sometimes,even w/my bifocals,I'll take them off to see close-up stuff on my figs.

Larger scale figures means more small detail parts to paint. No point in changing to a larger scale which would require additional expenses in figures and terrain.

I moved to 6mm

I shifted from 15 to 28mm due to eyesight. Painting was not the primary driver for me. I found that I experienced less eye strain at the gaming table with 28's. Less back pain too, as I don't have to lean-in to identify uniforms as often. Now I just need to convince publishers that unit cards and quick reference sheets do not need to be printed in less than 12 point font :-)

I paint 10s and 15s in more detail today than I did 25s when I was a youngster. I do need better light to paint by, however.

Most of the last year has been spent on a largish 28mm project. They are not easier to paint than smaller figures. They take longer, sure (they have much more surface area) but the point-of-contact focus issues are the same (if anything, it is easier to make a mess of a larger figure if you can't 'zone in').

At least that's my experience (short-sighted since the age of 14, always painted with my glasses off. Now need to sit by the window to paint ).

Phil
SoA Shows North

I have found at conventions that 28mm games were immediately clear, 15mm games needed to be looked at, and 5/6mm games weren't always clear even on examination if you weren't playing. But a lot can be done to make things more visible in any given scale.

I'm a little jealous of near-sighted types who can take off their glasses to paint: I'm also near-sighted, but any benefit from removing the glasses is more than made up for by the fact that my astigmatism is then uncorrected.

Switch to painting or playing? At 75 I like to play with 75mm pre-painted figures but can do 15mm close up, like with DBA. I do not paint anything.

I don't know about "Should" but this has certainly been the case for me. In my youth I did 1/285th scale quite a lot along with 15s. These days, 6mm are just indistinct lumps on the table (to say nothing of 3mm or 2mm!). I still play with 15s, but more and more I'm doing 28mm.