Prescription sunglasses in New Albany.
Polarized prescription sunglasses cut reflected glare and sharpen contrast, with full UV protection built in, on anything from a drive to a lake day. We fit the lens to your prescription and your frame, in whichever tint and finish actually suits how you'll use them.
Ready to pick frames? Schedule an exam or call us at (614) 933-0575 and our optical team will help you choose.
Why polarized, and what it actually does.
A plain tinted lens just dims everything. A polarized lens does something more specific: it blocks the harsh horizontal glare that bounces off flat surfaces. When sunlight reflects off water, a wet road, snow, a car hood, or bright pavement, it gets concentrated into intense horizontal light. That is the glare that makes you squint, wince, and lose detail. A polarized filter is built to screen exactly that reflected light out while letting the rest of the image through.
The result is not just darker, it is clearer. Colors look richer, edges look sharper, and your eyes stop working overtime to fight the brightness. Over a long day outside that means noticeably less eye fatigue and a lot less squinting.
Polarized lenses help most where reflected glare is worst: driving into low sun or off a wet highway, boating and fishing where light bounces off the water, skiing or being out on snow, and any bright day that leaves you light-sensitive. If you spend meaningful time in those conditions, polarization is a real upgrade over ordinary sunwear, not a cosmetic one.
There is one honest tradeoff worth knowing. Because polarized lenses filter light by its orientation, they can dim or mottle some LCD screens, like certain dashboards, phones, and gas-pump displays, depending on the angle you view them at. For most people that is a minor quirk. If a screen is critical to your work or hobby, tell us and we will talk through the options.
Glare, with and without a polarized filter.
Reflected light off a flat surface travels mostly sideways. A polarized filter is oriented to block that sideways light while passing the useful vertical light your eyes need to see the scene. The difference is easiest to see side by side: the same view, with the horizontal glare screened out on one side and left in on the other.
The part that matters even on cloudy days.
A dark lens is about comfort. UV protection is about long-term eye health, and the two are not the same thing. A cheap dark lens with no real UV filter can actually be worse than no sunglasses at all, because the darkness makes your pupils open wider and let more ultraviolet light in.
Ultraviolet exposure builds up over a lifetime and has been linked to cataracts, macular degeneration, growths on the surface of the eye, and short-term sunburn of the cornea after very bright days on snow or water. Because it adds up over years, protecting your eyes early matters, and UV comes through on overcast days too.
Every pair of prescription sunglasses we make blocks 100 percent of UVA and UVB light, tint or no tint. That protection is built into the lens, so it does not scratch or wear off.
Darker does not mean more protected. UV blocking and tint darkness are separate. A light tint with full UV protection guards your eyes better than a very dark lens without it.
Tint color, and what each one suits.
Color changes how a tint handles light and contrast. Darkness, how much light the lens lets through, is a separate choice we set to match how bright your typical conditions are.
Grey
Cuts brightness with the least color shift, so colors look true. A go-to for driving and everyday outdoor use on bright, sunny days.
Brown & amber
Higher contrast and warmer tones, often preferred in shade, overcast light, and variable conditions. Depending on the tint, brown can let a bit more light through than grey.
Green
A balance of the two: good contrast while keeping colors close to natural. A comfortable all-around choice for general outdoor wear.
Built to take a hit, and to stay light.
Sunglasses live a rougher life than everyday glasses. They ride on dashboards, get tossed in bags, and come along for sports and yard work. For most sunwear we recommend an impact-resistant lens material rather than standard plastic.
Polycarbonate is lightweight, highly impact-resistant, and blocks UV on its own, which makes it a strong default for sunglasses, sports, wrap frames, and anything a child will wear. Trivex is a similar impact-resistant material that some patients prefer for its slightly crisper optics and light weight.
Which one is right depends on your prescription, your frame, and how you will use the glasses. Our optical team will point you to the material that fits best.
Beyond polarization: mirrors, gradients, and light-adaptive lenses.
Mirror coatings
A reflective finish on the front of the lens that can cut some additional light and adds a distinctive look. Available in a range of colors to suit your style.
Gradient tints
Darker at the top and lighter toward the bottom. Shades your eyes from overhead sun while keeping a clearer view down at a dashboard or a book.
Light-adaptive lenses
Photochromic lenses darken outdoors and clear up indoors, so one pair works in and out. Worth knowing: most do not darken fully behind a car windshield, so they are not a full substitute for dedicated sunglasses when you drive.
Prescription sport and wrap frames, done right.
The curved, wrap-around frames built for running, cycling, and the ball field look great and stay put, but that curve is genuinely hard to put a prescription into. The steep wrap changes the angle light passes through the lens, which can bend and distort vision if the lens is not designed for it.
We handle that with compensated, digitally designed lenses that account for the frame's curve, so your prescription stays sharp edge to edge. Many prescriptions work beautifully in a wrap frame. Very strong prescriptions have real limits, and we will tell you honestly what will and will not work in the frame you love before you order. For sport and sun we carry frames from names like Oakley, Ray-Ban, and Diff, most of which we can build to your prescription.
Already have a favorite sport frame? Bring it in. In many cases we can fit prescription lenses to a frame you already own; our optical team will check the frame is in good enough shape first.
Prescription sunglasses for kids.
Kids spend more time outdoors than most adults, and their eyes take in more UV over a lifetime, so sun protection early is worth it. A child who needs glasses to see clearly should not have to choose between seeing well and shielding their eyes on a bright day.
We make kids' prescription sunglasses in impact-resistant materials, in kids' frames built to survive real childhood, and it is all part of the same family and pediatric eyecare we do every day. Ask us at your child's exam and we will help you sort it out.
Measured, cut, and finished in our own optical.
Once you've picked a frame from the brands we carry, our licensed opticians use Optikam digital measurement to lay out your lenses. Instead of the single marker-and-ruler measurement most practices take, Optikam captures your left and right pupil positions separately, plus the vertical measurement, so the optical center of each lens lines up with where you actually look through the frame.
From there, our in-house edger cuts and bevels each lens to fit your specific frame, with a polished edge and no visible lens edge showing. We assemble every pair by hand and inspect it before it goes out the door.
Prescription sunglasses, answered.
Can I get my prescription in sunglasses?
Yes. We can put nearly any prescription into sunglasses, in single-vision, bifocal, or progressive form. Pick a frame from our optical or bring one you already own, and we will build sun lenses to your prescription.
Are polarized lenses worth the upgrade?
If you drive, spend time on the water, or are out in bright glare, yes. Polarized lenses cut the harsh reflected glare off water, roads, and snow in a way a plain tint cannot, which means sharper contrast and less squinting. The one tradeoff is that they can dim some LCD screens depending on the viewing angle.
Do all sunglasses block UV?
No. Darkness and UV protection are not the same thing, and a dark lens without a real UV filter can be worse than none. Every prescription sunglass we make blocks 100 percent of UVA and UVB light, tint or no tint, and that protection is built into the lens so it will not wear off.
Can I get progressive or bifocal sunglasses?
Yes. Progressive and bifocal designs are both available as sunglasses, so you can read a menu or a boat gauge without switching glasses. Gradient tints, darker at the top and lighter at the bottom, pair nicely with these for driving.
Can kids get prescription sunglasses?
Absolutely. We make kids' prescription sunglasses in impact-resistant materials and durable frames, as part of our family and pediatric eyecare. Because children get more lifetime sun exposure than adults, protecting their eyes early is worth it.
Does insurance help pay for a prescription pair?
Sometimes. Some vision plans include an allowance toward a second pair or toward lens materials that can go to prescription sunglasses, and the details vary a lot from plan to plan. We verify your specific benefits before you order and walk you through what is covered, so there are no surprises.
A pair of prescription sunglasses that fit the way you'll actually use them, not just the display case.
Measured, cut, and finished by our own optical team, in New Albany.
Schedule an exam and pick your sunglasses.
Schedule online or call (614) 933-0575. New patients are always welcome at our New Albany office.
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