Fraser Optical - Beauly, Inverness-shire

11/08/2026

⚠️☀️ PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE: PLEASE DON’T RISK YOUR EYES 🌑👁️

We have had enquiries from people asking how they can watch the partial solar eclipse, so we feel it is really important to share this safety message.

YOU CANNOT “FEEL” DAMAGE TO YOUR RETINA.

Looking directly at the sun, even during an eclipse, can cause permanent retinal damage and loss of vision. The retina has no pain receptors, so your eyes may feel completely fine while serious damage is occurring.

🚫 PLEASE DO NOT:

❌ Look directly at the Sun
❌ Use ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones
❌ Look through a camera, binoculars or telescope without a proper solar filter
❌ Use homemade filters or anything that hasn't been specifically designed and tested for solar viewing
❌ Assume that because the Sun looks dimmer during an eclipse, it is safe to look at

⚠️ And please don't be tempted to “just have a quick look”.

It only takes a moment of unsafe viewing to potentially cause irreversible damage.

Your eyesight is not worth the risk. 👁️❤️

If you're unsure whether your eclipse glasses or solar viewing equipment are safe, do not take the risk!

Please read guidance offered by the College of Optometrists below 👇

Planning to watch this week's partial solar eclipse? ☀️🌙

If you're planning to watch it, it's important to do so safely.

Looking directly at the sun can cause serious damage to your eyes. Ordinary sunglasses don't provide enough protection, and viewing the eclipse through binoculars, a camera, or a telescope still puts you at risk.

Instead, use a safe viewing method, such as a pinhole projector or certified eclipse glasses with solar filters.

Take a moment to read our simple guide on how to view the eclipse safely ➡️ https://coptom.uk/4wUGzfk

09/01/2026

𝗔 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗘𝘆𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲! ⭐️
Back in September, we invested in the Optomap ultra-widefield retinal scanner.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗽?
A standard fundus camera (the type found in most opticians) captures around 10–15% of the back of the eye.
Optomap captures over 80% of the retina in a single scan, giving us a far more detailed view and helping us spot issues earlier, often before symptoms appear. As you can see in the video, a standard fundus photo only shows a small part of the retina, while the Optomap captures almost the whole back of the eye in one scan. Being able to see so much more gives us real reassurance that we are not missing anything important.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁?
Optomap is not an NHS scan, but can be added privately to complement your usual sight test. It’s also extremely useful if any concerns arise between eye exams, as it allows us to compare images over time and assess changes accurately.
On the very first day we trialled Optomap, it picked up issues that wouldn’t have been detected with routine equipment. That’s why we encourage anyone who can, to consider having the scan.

𝗪𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗢𝗖𝗧 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴
Optical Coherence Tomography scanning shows cross-sectional images of the layers at the back of the eye, helping us assess the retina and optic nerve in even more detail. It has been likened to an MRI for your eyes! Whilst we have had the OCT technology for a few years now, having the Optomap to compliment the OCT gives us what we feel is a gold standard service. OCT scans are free for anyone over 80 years as part of your routine eye examination.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝘆?
“𝘞𝘦’𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘱𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘱 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘊𝘛. 𝘜𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘶𝘴 𝘢 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘳, 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯-𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘩 𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘺𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺.” - Calum & Natalie

𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀
• Optomap (stand-alone): £25
• OCT (stand-alone): £25
• Optomap + OCT: £40
We offer 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗢𝗖𝗧 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟴𝟬

By investing in the best technology, alongside our highly experienced team, we are proud to offer what we believe is a gold standard in eye care.

If you would like to know more, speak to a member of the team - we are always happy to chat 🤓

24/12/2025

🌲Festive Opening Hours & Christmas Cheers! 👓🎅

What a year it’s been! Our amazing team have worked incredibly hard all year and we are so grateful and thankful to have them! We are closing early today at 1pm to kick off the festive break. We would also like to say a huge thank you to all our wonderful patients and customers for your continued support throughout the year, it truly means the world to us. As a small business, we wouldn't be who we are without everyone who walks through our door - thank you!

🕒 Our festive opening hours:
Today: Closing at 1pm
Closed: 25th & 26th December
New Year’s Eve: Closing at 1pm
Closed: 1st & 2nd January
Usual opening hours in between

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 🎉🥂
We look forward to seeing you soon!

18/11/2025

🎉 Huge Congratulations to Calum! 🎉

Earlier this year, Calum successfully completed his Diploma in Therapeutics - Independent Prescribing, a qualification he began many years ago. After completing all academic modules, progress stalled due to other commitments and logistics. But Calum wasn’t prepared to leave it unfinished.

With renewed determination, and thanks to the support of the NTC team at Raigmore, Calum returned to the course and completed his clinical placement. A special thank you goes to Stanley Keys and Barney Smith for facilitating this, and to Calum’s colleagues, family, friends, and the entire Fraser Optical team for their encouragement along the way.

We are delighted to share that Calum achieved over 90% in his final exam. As many of you already know, he is an exceptionally skilled and respected optometrist, and this accomplishment is truly well deserved. He would never announce this himself… so we’re delighted to do it for him! 👏

What this qualification means:
Calum is now an Independent Prescribing Optometrist, which allows him to diagnose, manage, and prescribe medication for a wide range of eye conditions directly within the community. This enhances the level of care we can provide and allows patients to receive timely treatment without needing to see a GP or attend the hospital for many ocular concerns.

This was far from a walk in the park and Calum put in an incredible amount of effort to get here.

🎉 Congratulations, Calum! We are all extremely proud of you.

23/07/2025

👀 At the front desk this evening we discovered a very official new sign… handwritten by our junior (and self-appointed) "Head of Chocolate Acquisitions" — aka our nearly 13 year old daughter, who was dragged into practice to help with the window display during her summer holidays...

(We promise this was not approved by management... 🤣)

Please note:
🍫 This is not a bribe.
🍫 This is not a demand.
🍫 This is merely the passionate plea of a small human who really loves truffles.

Your kind words are always reward enough 🥰

31/12/2024

We would like to wish you all a
⭐️🌟⭐️ Happy New Year ⭐️🌟⭐️
from our team at Fraser Optical!
We want to take a moment to thank you for your continued trust and support throughout the past year. We’re excited to continue serving you in 2025 with the same care and dedication to your eye health.
With your support, we have a small business and team that we are very proud of - we appreciate every single person who comes through our door. Thank you 🥰
Wishing you a bright, healthy, and joyful New Year ahead.
We look forward to seeing you soon! 😊

20/12/2024

We would like to remind you that during the festive season, our opening hours are reduced.
We will close earlier than usual on the 24th December and the 31st of December at 2pm.
We are closed on the 25th and 26th December and the 1st and 2nd of January.
If you have an optical concern or emergency whilst we are closed, please visit NHS Inform or phone NHS24 on 111.
We have had an exceptionally busy year and are looking forward to some down time. We are now booking into February for sight tests - so please bear this in mind when calling to book an appointment.
Thank you all for your ongoing support and loyalty. It means the world.
From all at Fraser Optical, we wish you a merry Christmas and all the very best for 2025

12/12/2024

29/03/2024

Well done to lucky number 104!!
Jane Campbell!
You are the lucky winner or the Easter hamper 😀
Thank you from Oliver to everyone who bought tickets 🤩

27/03/2024

We are expecting delivery of this gorgeous frame soon - it won the Women's Frame of the Year at the 2024 Love Eyewear Awards! This range is new to us and you are loving the models that we have in stock already!