Northwest Fishing Reports

I'm thinking about buying an underwater camera (i.e. "Aqua-view" or the Cabelas version "Advanced Anglers") and am wondering if anyone has any words of wisdom for me about which one to get. Trying to stay between 250 and 300 dollars. How are they in stained water? Has anyone ever trolled with one?

i have no clues on it. but im thinkin about gettin on myself. let me kno if it works out for you.

Although I have never used an Underwater Cam - I would suppose that there are Pro's & Con's to it.
You question how they are in stained water - my assumption is that the clarity of the image on cam is subject to the clarity of the water.
However, if you have a quality fish finder you should be able to locate the fish relatively easy, and seeing their depth should give you an understanding of location as well as it should be on the display. It has very little problems with water clarity - no image to be concerned with.

In addition - I would have a tendancy to be concerned about spooking any fish in the area with a foreign object floating nearby with a long cord attached to it - as well as being another piece of large equipment that could just get in the way...

Seeing the fish though does not mean that you can catch them...just as with a finder, you can locate them but you can't force them to bite.
While seeing the bottom could give an advantage, you should be able to tell by dragging your line a bit on bottom which would give you an understanding of whether it is a rocky, weed filled, or even muddy... again - a quality fish finder should give you an impression of the bottom as well.

Myself - I would save the money and put it towards tackle, bait and other needs - perhaps get a quality fish finder if you don't have one already.

If you learn to "read" your environment, (the weather, the shorelines, the surface temps & conditions, bugs in the air, etc.) and learn fish behaviors according to the environments, and accessorize that knowledge with a finder to reinforce your knowledge you will always do well.

Seeing the fish in their environment is a cool thing - but I would not put my money towards one...

Don't waste the money....Buy fishing gear...

I have seen one in action, but really it was mostly to entertain the kids seeing fish down there, although often you don't see much of anything. Can't say it's good for much more than entertainment value.

i wouldn't say that underwater cameras are necessarily for seeing fish underwater. i personally would use it to get a better understanding of underwater structure. you could see if that weed edge is defined or slowly tapered, or find clumps of rocks that are very difficult to locate on a large flat with just a fish finder. obviously you can see those things on a fish finder, but certainly not with the confidence that you would have after physically seeing what it looked like under the water. that said i would definitely get a fish finder before an underwater camera if i had neither.

Im saving my change for one right now. Ive been doing reserch as well and there dosnt seem to be a whole lot of difrence between the 2 brands. I heard the cabelas is better and a lot easier to get on sale. I know for sure Im getting one with night vision. I also saw one hooked up to a 13" tv/vcr combo so you can record the structure to study it later. Ive never heard of one being trolled behind a boat. I am going to use mine for crappie. The deepest water you fish in is 20' and it all verticle fishing

GJorgy wrote:I'm thinking about buying an underwater camera (i.e. "Aqua-view" or the Cabelas version "Advanced Anglers") and am wondering if anyone has any words of wisdom for me about which one to get. Trying to stay between 250 and 300 dollars. How are they in stained water? Has anyone ever trolled with one?

The best use of these cameras is for ice fishing. If you do a little research in that direction I bet you will find some pretty good equipment.

Thanks for the feedback...I think I should save the money for gas and make a trip to Banks or Chelan. Gotta love them smallies!

I have a color and a black & white and I love them. My wife comandeered the black & white to use as a house monitor for our front door Anyway, I have fished with both and you can see fish if they swim within a few feet in the direction the camera is pointing. Go figure those odds... Needless to say, I have seen few fish. However, the most fun was when we spent the night on the sound in our 19' and put the camera down, then fed the sharks. THAT was cool! The pro's: 1. You can entertain yourself when the fish aren't biting, 2. You can rig them up to see your bait while trolling.(This takes some ingenuity, especially if the camera is set up to face the wrong way) 3. You can take them around docks and find lost gear, see stuck tackle, etc. Con's: 1. For the money you are willing to pay, you will see only a few feet in any water. If you get a camera with lights, you need to be in clear water or you'll see every floating thing known to man; plankton, dirt, sand(If you hit bottom), etc. 2. The monitors are usually way under rated. I ended up buying a 13" TV off Craigslist for a few bucks and puting it up under my bow to shade it enough to see it.
All in all, I love playing in the water as much as fishing, and if you have any kids, they will be enthralled! =d>
I hope the best for you and good luck!

I have a aqua view zt and it really can be a useful tool. In clear water you can see 6 feet or so. I used it this year ice fishing here in MN, one lake I fish is very clear, it was very fun and educational watching the pike come in and literally stare at my jig and minnow, then I would use differnt jigging movements to see how they would react.

I'v seen them setup on downriggers and you can actually see more fish than you think that will follow your lure and not touch it.You can see how they react to different techniques and what triggers them to strike.