Underwater cameras

[ice_sled]

I thinking of buying an underwater camera for this years icefishing. Any pros and cons?
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[maniac]

They only seem to work good when the water is clear.
I couldn't see anything at Pinview with the aquaview camera.
Maybe the newer camera's are better.
James
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[Tarponjim]

Lotsa lights! No camera can "see" well in muddy or stained water. The more "floaties" in the water, the more the light is deflected/absorbed, and the poorer the viewing distance. Best conditions are clear water and sunshine, even with the lights.

For a thousand or two dollars, you can get one that will see the world in more adverse conditions. (not me-yet!) For a few hundred, you can get one with some lights that work fine in shallowish water (up to 30 feet), and in deeper depths under good light and clarity condidions.

I've also found viewing easier if the camera is connected to a portable, 12-volt, 13-inch television rather than the little monitors that come with some cameras. Also try to find a camera that can be pointed downward rather than to the side. That way, you can fish your bait or lure below the camera, see it all the time, and the fish are less spooked and distracted by the camera being above them instead of at their depth.

I use a camera on the Gorge that has a ring of LED infared lights around the lens, and it can see fish and my lures clearly 10-15 feet below the camera at depths to 60 feet. Below that, light really fades. At 100 feet, I can see a white jig 5 feet from the camera, tops. I'm using an older model Seaview. [url "http://www.seaview.com"]www.seaview.com[/url].

Cameras are supposedly getting better and brighter every year, but I've had the same one for 9 years. My next one is going to be a high-dollar one, with a bright lens, quality cable that doesn't receive electrical interference from boat electronics, and enough light to blind the fish. Maybe then they'll hit!
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[Tarponjim]

My "wish list" next camera, someday. Last quote was over $1,000. [url "http://www.splashcam.com/Deep_Blue/db.htm"]http://www.splashcam.com/Deep_Blue/db.htm[/url]
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[BearLakeFishGuy]

Jim,
I used the deep blue camera with Doug Miller and I was very impressed with it. Our old camera (a custom build job from 1991) died last year and we replaced it with the deep blue. It is an awesome camera for the money. Best out there in my opinion. The prices have leveled off and are below a grand, but it really depends on what you want for add-ons that gets the price up there again. I like recording to either a DVR or DVD and that adds about $800. Anyway, if you decide to go with the splash cam they are really built to take some punishment and keep working.
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[Tarponjim]

Thanks for the input. Its on my list for next year if I don't have to fix or replace anything else major! Do you have the one with the white lights rather than infared? A salesman with the company told me the white lights were much brighter than infared.
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[utwalleye]

I have an old aqua-vu infered light, in deer creek, jordanelle, berry, yuba, well most of the clear lake you can see pretty far. but in stained lakes you only have a few inches you can see. like jim said get one that you can point downward, then you will have somthing to focus on (the bottom) instead of looking out into water. also having a direction indicater is useful. later chuck
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[BearLakeFishGuy]

Ours has the xenon lamps, but unless you are in very deep water (100+') then the lights have not made a huge difference. Maybe it is because of the all the flocculate (suspended calcium carbonate) in the water at Bear Lake. The lights actually make it look like when you a driving in a car in a snow storm with your bright lights on. Very difficult to see. If the lights are off you can actually see better in most cases. This might not be the case at other waters around the state. I have not experimented much with the IR lights so I don't have any comments there.
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[fencekid]

harbor freight sells one for 100 bucks. this is obviously a low end model, but for a starter set up i think it rocks. i used it many times last winter and had a blast with it. we even used it while night fishing the frozen berry, pitch dark 40 ft deep and could clearly see the sandy bottom, crawdads, little minnow nuggets that made it to the floor and of course any fish in front of it. it's like a whole new ballgame watching fish on the monitor curiousley sizeing up your jig and knowing just when to set the hook, not by feeling it, but seeing it. they will suck in and spit it out without moving an inch. i'm sure that allot of anglers that say they "didn't even get a bite", actually got bit many times, but so suttle they never new it. i'm looking forward to hitting the hard deck again this winter. that camera made me feel truely like a little kid with a new toy on x-mas. and for 100 bucks, ya can't beat it. they also have an awsome refund policy, so if you don't like it you can take it back and get your money back without any hassle. which ever one you buy, yer gonna love it. laters
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[Kent]

[size 1]"I thinking of buying an underwater camera for this years icefishing. Any pros and cons?"[/size]
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[size 1]I have owned an Aqua-Vu for at least five years now. I used it far more when I first purchased it than I do these days. They work best while ice fishing, because the ice doesn't move around like a boat does. They can be a lot of fun, but on the other hand one can spend lots of valuable fishing time trying to get one just at the right depth and pointed the right direction. Because of the "nuisance factor" I find that I rarely use mine anymore. [/size]
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[Widastick]

[mad] I have used an aqua-view a few times. It was fun to see the fish under water but, I dont think there worth it. I think a fish finder (real time) or a Marcum is a lot better way to go. With them, I can see fish all around my bait, how deep they are, and they can't sneek up from behind the camera and suprise you. I don't mean to talk trash on anyones Big Christmas ideas but, for me they were not that great.[unsure] Go with the Marcum!
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[Lightfoot]

Here's a big con. When you've got the camera on, the fish won't bite. When it's off though, you're okay.
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