How to Tell the Difference Between Colored Contact Lenses

While colored contact lenses have gained a reputation for transforming the eye color of both men and women alike, there are many other functions for this type of contact lens you probably never knew existed. I remember when girls in high school bought colored contacts to match a new outfit or simply wanted to display a different shade of eyes to complement their skin tone or hair color. This trend hasn’t changed, but over the years, manufacturers have begun to market colored lens for much more than fashion accessories.

When it comes to colored contact lenses, there are four different kinds on the market: enhancement tints, visibility tints, opaque color tints, and light-filtering tints.

Visibility Tint: Sometimes, the color of a contact lens does not affect the color of the eyes. This is the case with visibility tints, which often possesses a light blur or green tint that has been added to the lens. The purpose of this coloring is to simply assist a wearer in better inserting and removing their contacts. This also comes in handy if you are constantly dropping your contacts on the floor or ground. Since the tint of the lens is very light and does not alter eye color.

Enhancement Tint: When you don’t want to completely change the color of your eyes, but want to create a bit of intensity, an enhancement tint provides a solid (yet translucent) tint that is slightly darker than a visibility tint. Often times, people with lighter eye colors choose this selection.

Color Tints: The deeper, opaque tints of a contact lens are called color tints, which aim to noticeably alter eye color. Typically, patterns of solid colors are used to change eye color that have the ability to transform piercing dark brown eyes into shimmering shades of hazel and light green. The color ranges of this kind of contact are extraordinary, as you may consider green, blue, violet, hazel, gray, and even amethyst. Under this category, you will also find opaque color tints (better known as costume or theatrical lenses).

Light Filtering Tints: In more recent years, light-filtering tints have been constructed for the sporty consumer, who recognizes the advantages of using color to enhance play. Some lenses are designed to enhance sporting equipments, such as the optic yellow used in tennis balls. These contact lenses work by muting other colors, allowing balls to stand out against their background and creating an easier target. Not only do players make use of light filtering contacts, but also spectators who wish to stay on top of the game. Other options include lenses for golfers, trap-shooters, skiers, and amber-tinted contacts for baseball players that filter out blue light to make a baseball appear clearer.

Under this umbrella of selections, there are various choices to make when ordering a pair of colored contacts. Do you need a prescription? If not, then you order a set referred to as plano, which means you do not require visual correction. Do you have astigmatism? Then, bifocal correction is the way to go. How long do you plan on using these lenses? Some people purchase disposable selections, while others opt for frequent replacements.

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