SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A colorful moment for four San Diegans today. They've been color blind their whole lives, but thanks to a new pair of special glasses...that's about to change.
"Eventually when I got to high school, and realizing I was color blind was one of those things, like, oh, that's why I couldn't see that or I couldn't see that," said Ricardo Solano.
Solano is one of about 300 million people around the world who are color blind.
But as a research associate for a biotech company, there are days when he needs a little help from his colleagues.
"One of the main dyes they use is like red and green to differentiate things," he said, laughing. "It's a big contrast apparently, but I can't see the contrast."
Solano has a good sense of humor about it, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't wish he could see the full elegance of a San Diego sunset.
"Just enjoying the beauty of life," he said. "I like to go backpacking and outdoors and stuff."
For people who are color blind, pink looks gray, red looks brown and the colors red and green can look almost white-ish.
"Color vision deficiency is passed down through the father's genes," said Corey Ulz, an optician at Scripps Poway Eyecare.
He said things can look dull and colors, washed out.
"It basically makes the colors that you and I would normally see normally not as vibrant," he said. "A little more muddled."
On Monday, Solano and three other San Diegans got to see vibrant color, thanks to a special pair of enchroma glasses.
Their reactions and expressions were heartwarming.
"Red. I feel like a little kid right now haha," Solano said, smiling.
The pair of glasses do more than make the world a little brighter. Solano hopes they'll make work easier, too.
