When it comes to sunglasses, the combination of lens color and mirror coatings can significantly impact both the aesthetics and functionality of your eyewear. The most popular combination is a blue mirror on a grey lens. This pairing not only looks stylish but also offers several benefits in terms of visual performance and color enhancement. In this blog post, we'll explore the effects of a blue mirror on a grey lens and why this combination might be the perfect choice for your next pair of sunglasses.
In This Article
Sunglass Lens Principles
Let's start with sunglass lens principles:
1) The color of the base lens tint will let more of the same color light through relative to other colors. A green lens lets more green light in, and a rose lens lets in more red and blue (what combine to make rose).
2) The color opposite the lens color on the color wheel (the complementary color) will
generally be the least transmitted and most muted. A green lens will most block purple (a mix of blue and red), a brown lens (which is shades of orange or red) will block blue, etc.
3) The color of any mirror, with some exceptions, will block the same color as the mirror and create an opposite effect. A blue mirror will block blue light and make a grey lens more orange or amber. Another color lens with a blue mirror will make the tint lean towards amber from wherever it is on the wheel (a green lens with a blue mirror would become more yellow).
To bring home the point here, a blue lens lets in more blue light and a blue mirror blocks blue light. They have opposite effects, though people often confuse them.
4) Letting relatively more light of a color through the lens brightens that color relative to other colors. Letting less of that light in relative to other colors will make other colors brighter relative to that color.
5) Generally speaking, if you want more contrast (difference in colors) you will use a lens that blocks the most prevalent color and boosts the other colors. If you want less contrast you will use the lens that is the same as the dominant color in your environment.
Blue Mirror on a Grey Lens
A grey lens is generally the simplest lens in many ways. All colors are reduced more or less equally, and there is no change in color perception.
A blue mirror will (almost) always block blue light by reflecting it away (that's why it appears blue to us), meaning less blue light is making it through the lens relative to other colors.
The effect of the blue light reduction is to cause the rest of the tint to shift to the opposite color on the color wheel - a shade of red/yellow/brown.
(We are not talking here about blue light blocking in the sense of High Energy Blue light which is only a small section of blue light. We are referring to blue light being reduced across the blue spectrum of light).
Therefore, blue mirrored grey lenses will have a amberish hue, and depending on the color of the mirror it can be subtle or very strong. The darker the blue mirror the more subtle amber it will be, the lighter the blue mirror the browner it will be.
Think of base tint and mirrors like a seasoned chicken dish. The seasonings can radically change how it tastes and looks, but the dish will still be chicken at the end of the day. The mirror can affect the tint but the lens color will still be in the same color category. A grey lens with any mirror will always have some variation of a grey tint.
Here is the Costa Del Mar Rinconcito with 580 glass lenses. On the left is the silver mirror lens, and on the right is the blue mirror lens. The blue mirror changes the tint to a more amber hue. It is still not a brown lens, but it is definitely not a straight gray lens.
Revo makes two blue lenses, the "Blue Water" and "Heritage H2O", that have much lighter blue mirrors, making the lenses so blue blocking that the tint is essentially a brown lens.
There are some exceptions to this. For a reason I have not figured out yet, Maui Jim Blue Hawaii lenses in their MauiBrilliant material have a slightly green, cooling effect on the view, with no warming effect at all.
Randolph blue mirrors do not seem to have any effect at all. I have their Atlantic Blue, and Steel Blue (out of production) lenses in the grey base/blue mirror, and the Steel Blue has a negligible effect on the tint.
What are Blue Mirrors on Gray Lenses Best for?
Generally, it is better to add some warmth to a lens to make the world more colorful, energetic, and vibrant. This is because blue light, which is blocked by a blue mirror, is cooler and has higher energy, so it is very prevalent and hurts our ability to see other colors clearly. In addition, we like to add warmth and color to the view because it makes us more alert, energetic, and happy.
A great way to accomplish this would be to use a brown or rose lens, which are very warm and add a lot of color and contrast. But brown or rose can be too much, especially in bright conditions where there is already a lot of contrast and color and the extra pop can feel unnatural. It will not actually be too sunny to look at, but it will feel too "hot".
Gray with a small touch of warmth makes us feel like the world is natural but everything is slightly boosted, which to some degree makes it feel more boosted than others. With a rose or brown lens it can be hard to forget you are wearing sunglasses because the view, though beautiful, is far from what you would normally see. A gray lens will feel "natural", and a small touch of warmth will not be noticeable to our brains but it will still enhance the same colors a brown lens would, green and red. Unlike a brown lens, the grey lens with a blue mirror is only slightly blocking blue, so blues are still considerably more vivid than with brown lenses.
With the usual disclaimer that what is displayed on the screen is not an accurate representation of what the lens looks like with our eyes, here is an example of what a premium blue mirror lens can do:
Best Uses
Blue mirrors on grey lenses are best for bright, sunny days surrounded by lots of color. Beach and water, hiking and exploring. Excellent for offshore fishing and boating. Great for sunny driving.
They won't be best for winter but not any worse than a regular grey lens.
The lenses will feel too dark in cloudy conditions but may have enough color pop that if the clouds are bright enough it will not be an issue.
Top Picks
Here are some of my top picks for grey lenses with blue mirrors:
Maui Jim Blue Hawaii in SuperThin Glass
This lens is arguably the best bright conditions lens available. The color pop and clarity are off the charts and the comfort in full sun is wonderful.
Costa Del Mar 580G Blue Mirror
Sort of the inverse of the Maui Jim lens qualities, this lens still has great color enhancement and clarity but is exceptionally comfortable in the brightest conditions. It was designed to be the best offshore lens in the harshest conditions and it fills that role to perfection.
Revo Blue Water Sirilium Lens
I prefer this version of Revo's blue mirror lens over their H2O Heritage glass lens. Very similar to the Costa Blue Mirror with a bit more boost to greens and reds.
Conclusion
In conclusion, selecting sunglasses with a blue mirror on a grey lens can be an excellent choice for those seeking both style and functionality. The combination provides a subtle warmth and color enhancement while maintaining the natural look and feel of grey lenses. This makes them particularly suitable for bright, sunny days and environments rich in color, such as beaches, hiking trails, and outdoor adventures. I highly recommend these lenses, as some of the available options are among the best lenses you can buy.
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