Flash, i have an older model Aqua-vu. I used it at Shenango lake a couple weekends ago and it was great. The picture was very clear and bright. I haven't tried it in lowlight yet, but i'll post how it does when i do. That day i was checking brushpiles and drops and found the crappies suspended about 7 ft deep in 13 ft water. Man was that beautiful. A whole school of them just sitting there above the brushpile. I had a great time c&r them. Just remember to throw your bouy away from the school so you dont spook them.

 

for those of you whom get excited about ice fishing, I was browsing around when I found this website. Seems a few of you found it before me....umm..Big D. and Fishn fool. But regardless, the underwater videos that are available here are great, and the ice auger videos are very interesting

http://icefishing.outdoorsfirst.com/icefishingvideos.asp#

some of the videos are a bit large, so it would be most enjoyable to watch them with a broadband connection.

flash--------------------------------------out

 

as the sun sets they dont work as well and in the dark not at all mark has one and it is cool to watch but you got to set it up and that takes away from fishing time the camera will spin on you but for a fun day it is cool i have a vex and when used together the combo is deadly vexlar will tell you that fish are their and the camera tells you what they are ....................man now that you are MR. MONEY BAGS you will have every toy ...........jim

 

THE BAD:

They are cool but the coolness wears off after a few trips.

If you want to run and gun, then its a drag. One more thing to lug around (and set up and wrap up, etc.)

If the water isnt clear, then its useless.

Not saying theyre no good, they are! Just trying to point out why some guys have them but leave them at home sometimes.

THE GOOD:

The camera is definitely something every fisherman should see....its very enlightening. You can really learn a lot that no other tool can show you. And the pictures you see can be stunning, like the time I saw schools of shad in edgewater marina....it was like watching the discovery channel! You can see the species of the fish, not just a blip, and how fish react to your presentations, and watch them swim around, etc.

And as expressed in previous threads on the old site, a minority of ice fishermen prefer cameras to vexes.

I think they work well in low light (depending on what you mean exactly....you can pretty much see as well under the ice as you can above the ice (to a point....underwater is always very shaded) minus about a half hour of light or so), its surprising at first to see how much light penetrates the ice. And this is all without using any lights. Lights dont seem to work too well because they illuminate all the microorganisms and dust if you hit the bottom with the camera......i think someone said its like driving in a blizzard with your high beams on.

Id say, since I know how much you like to ice fish from all your posts, then Id get one if I were you if you have the money to blow.

Hope my opinions helped you some....but then again, theyre just that.

Good luck.

 

hardwaterfan good points i forgot some of them...... clear water is the bigest thing on mogadore it is real clear so you can see a ways other lakes it is usless and with the aquaview the sun sheild is a must or be inside a shanty with it ziped up so 2 people can use it you cant see the screen very well with out a sheild you also want to drill another hole to put it in fish become tangled in the line like i said the vexlar is my choice it is just so much quicker to use and after seeing the camera used i have an idea how fish react to baits i can still run and gun and see from top to bottom with the vex the camera misses suspended fish.....jim

 

The use of a vex and the use of an underwater camera are for diffrent reasons. The camera will show me what type of fish, what kind of weeds, grass, wood, rock, gravel, bottom type,mud or sand, and stop me from guessing what i see on my vex. When i use my vex, i use it to catch fish that show up on my screen. If i'm scouting a new lake and want to know what i see on my sonar, i'll take my aqua-vu with me. If i had to choose just one, it would be the sonar.

 

I've been using a vex for the last 8-10 years and a camera for the last 3 years. If I could only have one it would be the vex.

That being said the vex can not even come close as a learning and catching tool in clear water during the daylight hours. The ONLY way to really appreciate the camera for ice fishing is to be in a shanty. You do not need the shield and it's just like watching tv while you fish. You even know when to take a break when there are no fish around. It is extremely easy to see what mood the fish are in versus any given lure or presentation. Fish swimming by 15' away that pay no attention to one lure may immediatly turn and come and smash another. You get to see the entire game. You can not do any of that with a vex.

Forget the lights, there is way too much sediment and little living creatures that are attracted to the lights. It was kind of neat to have smelt coming to the lights before daylight at Edgewater while ice fishing two winters ago.

I can not stress the importance of clear water enough. Cloudy water will just frustrate you. In Ohio, your opportunities are limited. I used it at Mogadore through the ice as it is clear enough for about 6'-8' visibility, the day I was there.

My ,so far, favorite places to use the camera have been the ultra clear water lakes in MI while ice fishing, Lake Erie while ice fishing and soft water perch and smallmouth, and Presque Ilse was an ABSOLUTE blast. At Presque it allowed me to selective harvest, You could move your lure away from the smaller perch and gills and just try for the larger ones. I was even able to watch my lure and watch Steelhaulers in in his shanty 15' away. I watched bass, bluegill, perch, steelhead, pike, walleye, crappie, shad. It is a great catching tool with the right conditions.

Kim

 

I bought zfish,s camera. Best learning tool for the money. It has the infra red option so viewing at nite is awsome. Gotta agree with the other guys , winding up the cable is a hassle. The lake we fish is clear year round so its been a good deal for us. If anybody would like to see one in operation I can take them out and let them try it before spending the coins. Raider<><>

 

I loved it while at the right place to use it.. My biggest problem is that most lakes and places I fish were not clear enough to bother bringing it. The lake Raider fishis is absolutly awesome to use it which is why it was was a great deal for him.. It did work well at CJ Brown and Kaiser Lake. Never had a chance to use it on lake Erie which Im sure would be totally awesome. But my normal places I ice fish with the biggest being Buckeye lake its not worth the time or hassle to even bother. So It just depends where you are going to use it.. I also really cant use it at night time. the lights were useless as there was too much sediment except for one lake I've been to and it is tough to use but you can manage. Just my take on it.