Underwater camera- what do you have – likes and dislikes?

The last few years I’ve thought about getting me an underwater camera. I mostly plan to use it just as a tool to locate and mark various structure ( mostly rocks ) I know rock can be located with better electronics as well. Currently my electronics are old and outdated and I don’t want to upgrade till I get my next boat. I simply don’t want the hassle of mounting, unmounting, and remounting them. For both bass and walleye fishing I know rock on lots of lakes can really be key. One lake I like to bobber fish for walleye is know to have a fair amount of rock in it. I feel like if I could find me a few more spots with rocks I could have even more success. With so many available on places like marketplace and Craigslist I’d like to hear some of the models others here use. Like to hear the likes and dislikes of them. I’m mainly looking for something on the smaller size. Like said I’ve got no plans to use it actually fishing just mostly scouting. Don’t want anything with miles of cord and a massive screen. Something that easily stows away and is easy to pull out and get set up and running. Thanks in advance for your thoughts and ideas.

i have a marcum, not sure what model at the moment. I like it but has its pros and cons. when i bought mine the only better camera they had was one that was color. its fun watching the fishes behavior down there!

i use it to locate fish mainly and structure at times. i’m a big sunfish person.

depending on how deep you fish your not getting away from the long cord. and using it fishing a hooked fish has the possibility to tangle on the cord. the only other down side is its hard to see when its bright outside. best if its cloudy. i do have a sun shield but it only works ok.

I’d say the same…most are garbage in the sun. If you are going to invest, make sure to look into that.

They stink in dirty water…the backlight just illuminates all the crap in the water.

I have a Marcum 5 and I don’t really use it. Maybe better ones are worth it but I find mine kinda useless unless it’s gin clear water.

Aqua vue makes some portable systems that are pretty handy, about the size of a kids gaming system like a Nintendo Switch. Mine fits in the pocket on the side of my flasher. I also have 2 that were the old tube tvs that you had to lug around…of those, Marcum made the better product.

Like Glenn said, if you’re outside with any kind of sunshine they are a pain to see, similar to looking at your phone’s screen in bright light. On the contrary, the camera doesn’t work well in low light conditions or on stained lakes. Something like Mille Lacs or Winnie that are gin clear, they work well, but during the day, and while inside a shack. I’m sure you can get some that you can play with the display and make them a little easier to see in the sunshine.

Excellent tools to keep kids occupied as well.

Very tough in the sun. I had the Aqua View Micro Revolution 5 Pro (something like that) and the battery was poor. Got a Marcum 5 on sale and it lasted two years. Not sure if there has been improvements in this size unit, both of mine were models that came out about 5-7 yrs ago now.

Ya the cord length and lack of clarity in dirty water are the issues I remember from when I last played around with them MANY years ago. I had hoped those issues had improved in the more current models. Most the water I fish and want to scout in is less than 30 feet so don’t need hundreds of feet of cord. Just want something I could drop down once in awhile to confirm what I think may be rocks, or something I can drop down and troll along slowly to find rocks.

fishthumper wrote:

Ya the cord length and lack of clarity in dirty water are the issues I remember from when I last played around with them MANY years ago. I had hoped those issues had improved in the more current models. Most the water I fish and want to scout in is less than 30 feet so don’t need hundreds of feet of cord. Just want something I could drop down once in awhile to confirm what I think may be rocks, or something I can drop down and troll along slowly to find rocks.

They don’t work well trolling. Even with the heavy camera the camera will wobble and the line will twist. It’s really a tool to drop vertically.

I’m sure you can spend big bucks on some units that address some issues but not sure it’s worth it.

Not sure where you are located but you can borrow my Recon 5 and give it a try.

I have a 23 year old Aqua VU.. It still works great. I use it to find gear people lose overboard and to examine certain rock piles.

But…. I got more use out of it 20 years ago when daughter, husband and infant son moved in with us while they were in the process of moving to town. We used it as a baby monitor! Yep put that thing on a dresser and watch the little guy sleep…

I’ve always been a Marcum camera guy (I’ve owned them all) and have had the Quest HD for several years now. I’m finding myself using it less and less, but when I do need it, it works great!

JoeMX1825 wrote:

I’ve always been a Marcum camera guy (I’ve owned them all) and have had the Quest HD for several years now. I’m finding myself using it less and less, but when I do need it, it works great!

same here……..i dont use it everytime out, but when i do use it glad i have it!!!!!!

so iffin you see a guy in a boat on a bright sunny day with a coat or shirt over my head…….i’m probably watching the screen on my camera!!!!

I have an aqua view. Love it ice fishing. Color, like watching my aquarium.
Tough in low light and as already said the light just highlights all the crap in the water.
Bring it up to Rainy and it’s quite interesting to see what’s below you.
Awfully cool, you CAN troll it too. Pretty small and easy to use. Battery life is 6-8 hours straight for me.
Welcome to borrow it anytime if you like.

This thread gave me an idea. I’ve have a 5′ Aqua-Vu, which has a thin cord and small camera. I’m going to find a big enough bobber to float it and observe both sides of the Grumpy Old Man Hole. If it works well, I’ll have to break it out when the bridge is busy and give the Grumpy Old Men play-by-play when I see something. Wearing a towel over my head should solve the glare problem.

I had a northern eat mine twice this winter. All I saw on the screen was his gullet insides
Pretty cool to watch

Umy wrote:

I had a northern eat mine twice this winter. All I saw on the screen was his gullet insides
Pretty cool to watch

yea pretty comicial when those fish come at the camera and you get a close up mug shot!!!!!

Like the reel on my Aqua View, battery is not too great.
Use mine in the winter, not so much in the summer. As many have said it works best on clear lakes, low light. If I am on a clear lake in low light I mostly want to fish & not mess with a camera, but it would help with finding and marking structure.

The experiment of running the camera off of the bridge under a bobber worked ok. There was enough visibility this afternoon for me to see an acceptable distance, provided I have a head covering. I’m going to have to put some more thought into what would work best.

I’ve got one for sale on the classified section of this site if you are interested.

walleyevision wrote:

I’ve got one for sale on the classified section of this site if you are interested.

Seem like a real nice unit and a fair price. I think it’s more of a serious hard core model that I was thinking of. I’ll keep it in mind as I keep looking. I may get back to you on it at a later time depending on what I’m finding. Thanks for the heads up

I bought the Micro Revolution 5 years ago. Like everything about it except the battery blows. Ive replaced it three times in 5 yrs. The last one they gave to me for free