shawngibson Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Thursday Last, Morning: got accepted for a loan. I can buy a great camera and lens. Woo hoo! Thursday Last, Late Afternoon: optomotrist appointment, out of sheer vanity to see if my eyes have stablized enough finally to get the laser surgery (or at least talk about the options). Result of test: yes, I can finally get this, if I choose. And oh yeah, you are at potential risk for a retina detachment. We'll book an appointment with a specialist for you. Friday first thing in the morning, call from my Dr.: go to the hospital immediately, we have you booked. My response: I can't I have important meetings today. They say, we will book you then for next available appointment. 20 minutes later they call: be at Sunnybrook 8:30 am Monday. Period. A little sweat on my part. But I try not to think about it. Sunday: put my deposit down: 5D and 85/1.2L II are mine as of Friday...woohoo! Monday morning: 5-6 patients ahead of me, they take me first. Within 2 hours I've had every uncomfortable feeling you'd never want to have (ever had an enima? get an enima with a baseball bat, in your eye)... Results: I had a huge hole in my eye, and if not detected within a year, I'd be blind. Fortunately I was vain and made the original appointment for queries regarding the laser surgery, or I'd have never known. Every year I have to worry about this happening now (they blasted me with a lser to fix the hole immediately, so it's over...for now). Lessons learned: photographers should get good eye exams annually. Also God works in mysterious way by giving me the chance to finally get some good gear, and on the same day, make it known to me that my vision is in jeapordy of being completely lost IN MY PHOTOGRAPHY EYE, and might have been were it not for my sheer vanity (I don't know WHAT the lesson is there). Just food for thought: there were NO signals of this. Get your eyes checked regularly. That's all. Hope someone reads this and takes it to heart. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennyboy Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Very sobering, I hope the recovery isn't painful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 19, 2006 Author Share Posted June 19, 2006 I hit ctrl+ on my screen 3 times so I can see what I'm typing right now, I can barely see, but it will apparently be fine by tomorrow. Pain? None, bit of a migraine in my eyes, a little nausious, but nothing major. I take that back, the surgery was painless (Dr. talked photog to me during it) but the before and after stuff was uncomfortable...very much. The light (not the laser) was the most painful part. God makes light an analogue for wisdom, and today, for sure, I was blinded with it. I need to take care of myself, that was what the light, the pain of the bright bright light, told me. No harm, no foul, and in a very unsuspecting move, thank God I was so completely vain. Sorry for God, I know that's just me, but hey, there's a meaning for everything, if you choose to live your life as richly as possible...when you are afforded the opportunity. I'm not religious (I won't mention my views there, I am quite unfortunately against anything 'religious'), but as a philosophy student my whole life, the God I personally believe in, gave me one more reason to keep asking questions about this occasionally horrible place...and made me realize how lucky we are in Canada. Either that or it's one very wild coincidence...call it whatever makes you comfortable. I studied Phil and Phil of Science. I can see both sides, I just choose the one that strikes my heart more in a case like this. I never put down God, though I can certainly dismiss much of life's oddities and call it science/probability, but this kind of thing could have ended a lot, lot worse... Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete w Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Hey Shawn Good story and wish you all the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjmeade Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 As you say, God works in misterious ways . It's well worth getting an anual check up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iori Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Wow! Thanks for the reminder. Get well soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gx_680iii Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Shawn, hope all goes well. I have had four surgeries for a detached and torn right retina and HIGHLY suggest that you seek additional medical advice (perhaps in the USA) regarding this condition and procedure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry h. Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Shawn, I can offer only one bit of help besides moral support: Next time, SCREW THE IMPORTANT MEETINGS! Get yourself to the hospital quick. That is not offered as criticism, merely as some helpful advice to you and potentially others with future eye problems from someone who has already been through the experience. (If you do a search on my history, you'll see that I had a thread on switching my shooting eye not too long ago.) I do not know your age, or the specific reason your retina detached. But I am 46 years old with a problem called Central Sirrous Retinopathy. Essentially, that means I have a blister behind my retina. Imagine seeing barrel distortion (or worse, wavy lines) without a fisheye lens along with a central darkening effect. That's what was happening to me. I had two laser surgeries, the second of which aggravated the problem (my opthamologist--he's very old school, does not believe in actually talking to his patients--did not warn me that that was a known possible problem with laser surgeries). Tomorrow, I am scheduled to get my third shot (yeah, into the eyeball) of Avastin, which is a colon (?) cancer drug being used off-label. The shot is not the bad part; the iodine they prep the eyeball with is the bad part. I am a physics teacher (I love the optics unit) who also occasionally needs to use a microscope for other classes I teach. My hobbies are photography, astronomy, and birdwatching (see the common theme?). My optomatrist (i.e., eyeglass prescriber) is always amazed by my optics knowledge (which does not hold a candle to real experts like Bob Atkins and others on this forum). I make it clear I understand what transmissive coatings on my eyeglasses do and why I do not want them (because they smear too easily--I insist on them for filters, though), don't want high index plastic lenses (because they cause a lot of chromatic aberration at the edges of my view--remember eyeglass lenses are single-element), insist on polarized coatings on my sunglasses instead of a mere darkening coating, etc. I even gave him the idea for a trick from which he is making money--instead of simple bifocals or separate reading glasses, I get him to take the flat lenses out of high quality clip-on sunglasses and insert a pair of convex lenses. Considering I have limited mobility in my neck (another story), these reading aids work much better for me. So why this long diatribe? To Shawn and all other photogs out there, I reinforce what Shawn says about taking care of your eyes! Everything you enjoy relies on your eyes. Make sure you take care of them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike dixon Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 Shawn, yikes! Sorry about the bad news; glad you're getting it treated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 19, 2006 Author Share Posted June 19, 2006 Slept for a few hours. Thanks Guys. I can already see fine again (no critical tests, but I can read my keyboard, and it's only 6:21pm). I'm 36 years old. I think LARRY'S story and the aftermath is a lot more important than mine here - it just goes to show you how blessed we are and as photographers, I think Larry and I will both agree and stress with PASSION how important your eyes are. DON'T IGNORE spots, flashes and other weirdness. It's probably not just a hangover...I never had any of that, but I got really lucky nonetheless... I just bought what I expect to be a pretty lethargic autofocus setup...the 85/1.2L II is supposed to be a slow focuser, as you know. But at least it WORKS (not sure the AF of the 5D will be up to it, but we'll see...might be using FTM fairly frequently...and...thank God I still can!). I could have had no AF, no EV, no NUTTIN in my left eye if I had not gone to the doctor. Read also what Larry wrote, if you just scrolled past it: I got very lucky!...!...! Thanks for your kind word,s everyone. I await only now the chance to give you all some beautiful images...as I still can...over the coming months. I will schedule my optomotrist appointment for a follow-up and ROUTINELY be seeing her from now on. Which ain't a bad thing, she is highly intelligent, and very caring, and the best looking doctor I've ever had (can't deny that part). Maybe I can coax her into doing an Ellis Vener type shoot with me...with a twist based on our recent experience. With the 85/1.2L and my Manfrotto 303SPH, I can probably get a great available light right in her office if she's up to it...or throw an EX550 into the mix, with an umbrella, in a corner...or something. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 19, 2006 Author Share Posted June 19, 2006 ps, regarding the important meeting, if my boss knew I refused the treatment because of the meeting (it was his, a government meeting) he would have dragged me to the hospital himself, basically. I'm an assistant for a VP in finance regulation, best boss I ever had, and it was out of my loyalty to him that I held off, which would have made him quite upset, so I never even told him. He'd be quite unpleased if he know I didn't do this Friday. He is a very worthy man. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 19, 2006 Author Share Posted June 19, 2006 Basically nothing more than a plug, but I just took a look through my portfolio, and the thought of not being able to do this again: http://www.photo.net/photo/3788627 ...is just...wow. Next task: a physical LOL. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smdeep Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 HI Shawn I had much the same problem. Due to an accident in my childhood (I was seven) I cannot see with my left eye. I have only one working eye, the right one. I few years ago I went for a retina check. The doc said get a laser done ASAP otherwise you may get a retina detachment. I put it off for a couple of years, luckily for me the condition did not worsen. I finally got the laser done, was a bit painful, the laser part. Lesson learned, never put off any thing, especially regarding health. More so in my case as I have only one working eye. I go for an annual check up without fail. Next check up due next month. Wish you all the best Sudeep Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjb Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 Hi Shawn, Glad to see you are getting better, wish you the best of recovery and hope you enjoy the 5d & lens to the fullest. I`ll try to keep short, you advice is good and I hope all notice, I have been taking photos since my dad gave me a camera when 10yo, I`ve been doing photography now over 40 years, the last 3 decades on & off for a living. about 10 years ago I started to get cataracts, but as some have found out the docs don`t operate till they are well developed, I rode motercycles most of my life and always had specs for myopia. The specs never had UV protection so did damage over a period of time. The lesson was, always wear good sunglasses in bright sunlight. The ops were successful and the implants had adjustments for the myopia so now I just need reading specs, especially with that damn 20d lcd, That was the easy bit. The hardest thing to swallow was that it wasn`t just the cateracts causing vision to dim and the glare going outside, but was RP,(retinitis Pigmentosa) passed on hereditery by past generations. While the cats were fixed some cells were being starved of nutrients by a blocking gene, this causes the cells to die off, so far irreversable. usually night vision and side vision fades. I have lost a great deal of sight and not allowes to ride my beloved 1970 bonney anymore, but ocassionally sneek round the block, usually sprung cause she ain`t quiet. I still make a living from pix, the last 12 years the main of our b&b from restuarants & nightclubs, events and weddings is mainly covered by my partner, shes always loved photography which is one reason we clicked together. I do commercial daylight sports and studio setups, and the bulk of PS. You do adapt as you move on, don`t dwell on loses but use all you have and enjoy. One important lesson you have reminded me. the last time I saw my opthamologist he said , see you in 2 years time, I checked, its been 4. DO NOT write these sort of appointments in a diary or on a calendar. put it somewhere prominant as diaries and others only last 12mths too easy to not update the new diary.RP is found to be getting more common possibly because of better technology to detect these problems, it pays to check for all these things if any dought, don`t wait. Hope all stays well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jarrah_fitzgerald Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 Just a quick warning. EOS 5d with canon 85mm 1.2L = sharp combo. Might damage your eyes :) Jarrah FitzGerald. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yakim_peled1 Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 >> God works in mysterious way Indeed. The bible is full of such examples. Actually, he never stopped working this way..... Happy shooting, Yakim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 20, 2006 Author Share Posted June 20, 2006 Yakim, I know - it's always been my goal. Here's one: http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00H0Ni I mean one idea... Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawngibson Posted June 20, 2006 Author Share Posted June 20, 2006 I will respond more after work...sorry guys. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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