Underwater Cameras

[Magic Marker]

I know this subject has come up several times this past year, but I wasn't paying close attention in class :-) I'm planning on buying a camera this weekend at Indianapolis Sport Show, What brand or features should I look for? Will be used at Erie and of course my own private pond here on the farm. Thanks, Dan

[W'EYES GUY]

i DON'T KNOW WHAT FEATURES YOU ARE LOOKING FOR IN A CAMERA, BUT I'D LIKE TO SUGGEST ONE FOR YOU. ON OF OUR SPONSORS JUST GOT THESE IN, AND WE WERE SELLING THEM RATHER READILY AT A LOCAL BOAT SHOW THIS PAST WEEKEND(GREEN BAY, WI). IT IS CALLED "SEAVIEW". THIS IS NOT A REAL SMALL COMPACT UNIT LIKE YOUR NEW "AQUAVU" OR "OVS"; IF YOU ORDER THE PACKAGE DEAL(CAMERA,T.V.,150' OF CABLE, SUN SHIELD,& HARDWARE) IT COMES IN A MEDIUM SIZED TOOL BOX.ALL THIS WAS SELLING FOR $475 HOWEVER, YOU CAN GET THE CAMERA ALONE FOR ONLY $199, WHICH WILL PLUG INTO ALMOST ANY 12V OR BATTERY POWERED T.V.. ONE THING WE FOUND MOST INTERESTING ABOUT THIS CAMERA IS THE INFRARED CAPABILITY. nOW YOUR OTHER SYSTEMS USE A "RED INFRARED" SYSTEM WHICH STILL REQUIRES A SMALL DEGREE OF LIGHT.(I'VE HEARD THESE UNITS LOSE ALOT THROUGH THE ICE WHEN THERE'S SNOW COVER). THE "SEAVIEW", ON THE OTHER HAND, USES A PATENTED "WHITE INFRARED" SYSTEM; WHICH NEEDS NO LIGHT AT ALL! I WOULDN'T HAVE BELIEVED IT, BUT WE TRIED IT BY PUTTING THE CAMERA IN IT'S BLACK TOOL BOX WITH IT POINTING AT A BROCHURE, AND THE PICTURE REMAINED UNCHANGED WHEN WE OPENED OR CLOSED THE LID! iF YOU WISH TO READ MORE ON THIS SYSTEM, YOU CAN GO TO WWW.SEAVIEW.COM; OR IF YOU ARE CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE GREEN BAY AREA, WE WILL HAVE THEM AT THE SPORT FISHING SHOW MARCH 8-11.

[XC]

W'eyes Guy, Email me, I'm interested in the camera.

[Grampa_Joe]

I like the OVS-300. By far the clearest picture available.

Joe Carlson

[BigPointer53]

I second that grandpa joe,luv mine too!

[Fuzzy]

What brand is that?

[Grampa_Joe]

Outdoor Viewing Systems
From what I here, it's a guy who used to work for Aqua-View and started his own company and made the camera better.
If you ever looked at both screens side by side, there's no comparison.

-Joe Carlson

[mort]

is there a e-mail address for OVS.. Thanks

[Rip Lips]

I was wondering if I just bought the camera could I use my Sony video camera to view and tape?I bought the top of the line it has video in-out on it and can record incoming info.Thanks for any advise.

[woodie]

look under thorne brothers online catalog, they have both aquaview and ovs. The other poster is correct, OVS is a better system then aquaview.

[Jig'em]

I was wondering if anyone has used Atlantis (not sure on the spelling) viewing systems. They looked to be of extremely high quality in the store, I was wondering how well they actually work. Thanks.

[Frank from TBay]

I tested this camera about a month ago in a stained water lake. I was not impressed. Visibility at less than a foot. I tested the aquaview with Multicolor lights at the same spot and had reasonable visibility of three feet plus. The only problem we had was the screen on the aquaview is very small. I took a vcr and taped some action. It weas not bad played back on the home tv. However for my needs neither camera system in my eyes is usefull.

[Frank from TBay]

We tested both the seaview and the aquaview.....

[Magic Marker]

What's the web address for Thorne Brothers? Thanks

[Deeptroller]

If you've got your own video camera recorder and you like trolling on Erie you should look at strike vision camera system at www.strikevision.com
It's not made for ice fishing, but is different than all other brands.It attaches and detaches to the end of a downrigger cable.
All the power and video signals go through the downrigger cable.
No coaxial cable to the surface, so probably only one tenth the drag of all others. Check out any Great Lakes charter boat fishermen's web pages. If they have underwater video camera systems at all, they all seem to use this system.

[GRUMBLER]

HAS ANYONE PURCHASED THE STRIKEVISION UNIT AND HOW FAR CAN YOU SEE WITH IT. I AM TALKING TROLLING ON LAKE MICHIGAN AND WOULD LIKE TO SEE BACK TO THE SPOONS ABOUT 30' DO YOU THINK THATS POSSIBLE?

[Brad/nd]

Joe.... I just bought the ovs-300 today on e-bay, after hearing good things about them. I haven't tried one out yet, other than the one at the bait shop. Just wondering if you added any gadgets or have any tips on using this model? I have rented the aqua-views, but was looking for something more mobil for ice fishing. Glad to hear you like yours!
Is there a site where you can order any accessories?
The price was right & the wife did the bidding, so couldn't turn it down!!

Take care,

Brad

[GregB]

I was on a charterboat that was using strike-vision, on Lake Ontario.
Lake Ontario is not as clear as Lake Michigan, but it's getting better.
I don't know for sure if we could se back 30 feet or not, but probably.
The charter captain always adjusted the lures to be only 5 to 10 feet back though. We could see the trout and salmon chasing from farther back but he explained that it's nicer to get a clearer view of the fish closer to the lure, and that seemed to be true.
Also with lures closer he explained that it's easier to see why the baits sometimes didn't hook the fish good, and we got knockoffs.
The fish paid no attention to the camera or even the flashers that were used. They really concentrated on the trailing lures.
You could see good detail of the lure action and you could tell chinooks from brown trout real easy with those leads.
One thing that seemed goofy was that the pictures seem to be
crisper or better contrast or something when the camera depths were deeper. 100 feet down looked better than 20 feet down? I was impressed.

[Grampa_Joe]

Actually, it comes with all the stuff for both ice and open water.

-Joe

[Grampa_Joe]

http://www.thornebros.com

[Fuzzy]

Is the OSV display better than the AquaVu 'basic' or 'infrared' camera? Is the OSV an infrared cam? Makes I big difference I hear.

[Grampa_Joe]

It has three settings. Basic, Infrared, and those crazy red/green lights.

-Joe Carlson

[Fuzzy]

Thanks and Good news on the camera settings - so you are saying OSV is the system that works best - the way to go? What is the Mammoth Carriage (from Thorne's page) what other assecories do I need?

[Fuzzy]

Thanks and Good news on the camera settings - so you are saying OSV is the system that works best - the way to go? What is the Mammoth Carriage (from Thorne's page) what other assecories do I need?

[Bear]

Can the camera view downstream or does it only face upstream. I guess what I am trying to say is can you put a fin on to make it face either way depending on the situation?

Thanks,
Bear

[I - FEVER]

HEY, DAN. HURRY AND GET THAT CAMERA AND TRY IT OUT.
ILL TRY IT IN MY POND AND SEE WHERE ALL MY BIG BASS ARE ESCAPING.
BILL ALSO TALKED ABOUT TRYING ONE THIS SPRING.

[Grampa_Joe]

I'm not sure about that. I don't think it will go backwards.

[Magic Marker]

No problem. You promise not to tell my wife till after I get it?:-) Dan

[Magic Marker]

OK, Looks like the OVS 300 is the one I want. What's the going price at the sport shows ? Thanks Dan

[rngrfshm]

I believe the ovs 300 is the ice fishing model and the 315 is both open and hard water series. Not sure though but learned that from previous posts. The OVS 300 that I had for a while was only for ice fishing.

[subfish]

Joe,....is there a separate switch for the IF and the red/green lights,...do you really think the red/greens make a difference?

[Grampa_Joe]

Fuzzy and Sub,
I like it better because the picture is sooo much clearer of a picture.
There is a switch to go between the different light settings.
I honestly have no idea if the red/green lights work better or not. Both the units have them, so it's a non-issue to me.

-Joe

[Fuzzy]

Thanks Grampa Joe - is the 300 just for ice fishing?

[Grampa_Joe]

Nope, comes with a keel and weight as well as all the winter stuff.
I think I'll call them and ask for a free camera!
Jeez. I sound like I'm a rep for these guys!

-Joe Carlson

[Fuzzy]

I was sure you were ;-) thanks for the help and honest responses!!!

[rngrfshm]

Hi Grandpa,

Isn't that the 315 model that has the stabilizer and weights? My 300 OVS only has IR on it. I think this years model has the 3 color with IR but is called the 315. The OVS 300 that I have last year only is just for ice fishing. No stabilizer and weights. According to thornebrothers website, they want another 19.99 for the weights and fin but they dont mention anything about the color leds on this model. only the IR. I heard that the 315 was the color spectrum. Here is there insert. My OVS 300 that I had only was IR.

Here is the insert from Thorne Brothers:

The most compact underwater viewing system available. Comes complete with 50’ cable, 6 high intensity LED’s, infrared camera with waterproof metal camera housing, 4” flat monitor, soft pack portable electronics shuttle, 7 amp, 12 volt battery with 500 MA charger.
VS-305 w/50’ cable VS-305 $349.95
Fin & Weight for VS-300 (for open water) 10502 $19.99

[GRUMBLER]

THANKS FOR THE REPLY GREG I JUST MAY BUY ONE AND TRY WITH THE LURES CLOSER TO THE BALLS.

[W'eyes Guy]

I used my Sony handy cam w/ the Seaview ,works well. I used my Prestone Jump it! car jump starter w/ the cig. lighter port to power the camera.

[Jeff Zernov]

As inventor of the Aqua-Vu I wish to provide some biases input to this thread. We have well over 50,000 underwater cameras in the field and have the greatest experience in this product catagory. I wish to provide the following points for consideration.
Many people like to record off of the camera, this is not possible with the OVS or CatchCam.
Only Aqua-Vu Z-Series has a fully encapsulated camera-guaranteed against leakage even if the cable is cut.
Aqua-Vu has the most and brightest IR LED's.
Aqua-Vu has a patent pending on our MC technology. We have three years of research into the technology, our MC lights are 8-times brighter than the copy-cat out there.
Never buy a camera based on the image you see in a store unless that is where you are going to fish. Take the unit out into the sun, set it on the ground and see if you can still see the image, Aqua-Vu wins!
Aqua-Vu has the smallest footprint, an important point in a fish house.
Aqua-Vu has a gimbal mounted display so it can be adjusted to any viewing angle.
Aqua-Vu has a full compliment of accessories from down-rigging, to back viewing to remote power.
Aqua-Vu has a effective snap-on sun shield for daylight viewing which can be removed for multi-person viewing.
Aqua-Vu has a real factory in Brainerd Mn where we build and service all of our products.
Aqua-Vu cameras can be plugged directly into a TV or VCR for recording or viewing on a big screen in the fish house, not possible with OVS or Catch.
The Aqua-Vu monitor can be hung on the wall of a fish house.
The Aqua-Vu has a very convienient cable wrap system.
The Aqua-Vu camera has a .05 lux rating-making it 5times more low light sensitive than OVS.
In Fisherman rates Aqua-Vu as the best in the field product.
Don't be misled by other manufacturers posting on this thread under an alias, talk to the people in the field.

[subfish]

Thank you for your fine products,..I have one of your units and have been very happy with the quality and the though that has gone into it. Question: with your Z series,..you mention that the cam head is fully waterproofed,..does that mean one can add more cable for increased depth?

[jeff zernov]

No, we are not doing any factory cable extensions, but now that you bring it up we'll look into it. The encapsulated camera module means that if you get a hook in the outer jacket the water will not migrate to the camera head. Aqua-Vu is the only camera with this feature-no more leaky cameras! Over the years we have seen lot's of cut cables from both hooks and line. These things happen. Even though a cut cable would void a warrantee we still wanted to fix the potential problem so we went to the hermetic seal.

[Grampa_Joe]

Jeff,
Thanks for the input.
The main reason I like the OVS is the picture is very noticably sharper than the two Aqua-Views when I see them side by side at sportshows.

-Joe Carlson