With myopia, a person can see at very close range but distant objects or even something closer, will be out of focus. With cataracts there can be an initial swelling of the lens of the eye, which makes close vision possible but as the disease progresses and the lens clouds more, the lens will shrink with eventual blindness ensuing varying by degree to being able to make out shadows to the inability to even see light and shadows.

This woman could see at a very close range but anything of distance was hard to distinguish. Upon examining her eyes, I could see the signs of cataracts in the early stages.