Aqua-Vu Owners?

[Gillles]

I just used a aqua vu-z for the first time yesterday and after dropping it down to 60 feet of water the screen got really snowy, I could barely see my jig 5 feet away.  I pulled it up and and after having it out of the water the picture was perfect, then I dropped it down again and the same thing happend, snowy picture.  Is your aqua-vu as clear in the water as it is out of the water?  And how far can you see in 60 feet of water with average visibility?

[lakehopper]

most of the time no it is not as clear in the water
i dropped mine down to 45' the other day and it did the same thing
the picture got snowy so i turned on the infra red and it helped but not like i expected
most of the lakes i fish i can see up to 10' tops
and most of that depends on light penetration in to the water the more sun light the better
at night is worse unless your shining a light down the hole these things are worthless
the infra red almost make the plankton glow it seems
making it real hard to see any thing unless its right in front of the camera

[JerryofWNY]

I never have as clear a picture underwater as I do in air. I probably have an average of 10' field of view. I was disappointed the first time I put mine in the water but after I got to see the fish and how they react, I love it. (I use mine exclusively in a hut.) I also find that the infrared lights often tend to make the water look cloudier because they reflect back off the particles in the water.

[Gillles]

Well I don't know what to do with mine yet, I thought I got a lemon but I guess its normal.  Has anyone noticed if it scares lake trout?  When I had mine 5 feet from my jig I didn't see a single fish in 5 hours.  Its not worth missing fish for a picture like that.

[shark]

I used mine for the first time last week, I was in about 12 feet of water in the weeds and the picture was perfect, watched bass and bluegill for two hours. I have the Z 60.

  Shark

[icefishnfool]

it gets snowy because of the darkness ....the thicker the ice and the darker it gets ...the snowyer it gets ....I have a multicolor camera , it helps , but the best picture is in clear water and thin ice (under 10 inches ) ....down to about 30 feet ......the more algie and plankton the less clear the picture will be also , espically with inrared lighting .....don't get frusterated experiment with it and the more you use it the more you will like it ....Mark Sirko

[JerryofWNY]

Gilles, I can't speak about Lake Trout as I don't target them, but I can tell you I have had perch, gills, bass, northerns, walleye, crappie, and an occasional whitefish hang out around my camera and not be spooked by it. I know what you mean about the disappointment of not seeing fish. The first time I used mine I saw nothing and there was nothing on the bottom but silt to view and confirm that I was getting a good picture. Wait till you get on a bunch of fish. I'm sure you'll love it.

[big walleye]

   Yup my aqua view does the same thing. It works great in water down to 20ft but after it is quite snowy.

[GEEMAN]

It could be just what shark said. Plankton etc. I just call em Sea Monkeys though. LOL 
There are some deeper clear water lakes near me that when you drop your camera down near bottom it looks like a blizzard. If you watch them for a while you can see them swimming around. Somtimes they form in layers. One time I remember hitting a band of them about a foot thick 10 feet down in 20 foot of water.
Other than that or silt I can see quite a ways with my Aqua View.