I'm picking up this thread from "Gear Forum", as it's more related to fishing...

Old thread: Sunglasses lens color

I bought a pair of Costas Broadbill - amber base, green mirror glass lenses. They're most excellent on a bright sunny day. I bought mine on sale at Steep and Cheap.

But it's been overcast a LOT down here, in SE Wisconsin, so I wanted a pair of glasses with brighter lenses for variable/overcast days. ...plus, I've been itching to try Bajio Sunglasses - just...because.

So I bought a pair of Boneville glasses with Purple lenses. I read this little quote:

"Hays is an accomplished tournament angler and when asked for the best lenses for sight fishing, she chose the pink and purple lenses that are rose-based.

"It has to do with light transmission and being able to see color differences better underwater," she said. "This allows you to pick out bass much easier, and it also helps you see cover better at the same time. Not just for sight fishing, but it makes you a better shallow water angler where you can target isolated stumps grass and make the right cast because you can see them better."

...and felt compelled to give the purples lens a try. I took them out on a clear water lake for the first time yesterday, and the clarity of seeing in the water was stellar. Even when it was sunny, the Costa green lenses felt so much darker compared to the purple lenses. Those purples just...illuminated everything below the surface, and gave it a good contrast pop. And honestly, there's very little clarity difference between the poly lenses of the Bajio vs. the glass lenses of the Costas. It is noted, the poly lenses will scratch more easily than glass - but the purple lenses aren't offered in glass yet.

Bajio was started by a group of former Costa workers, after Luxottica bought the Costa brand.

Definitely worth checking out. Bajio Sunglasses

Darn it! I thought I'd made up my mind with the green mirrored amber tint. Leaning towards the Costas. Now I'm not sure. At least I got another month to decide to get them in time for my August trip.

Well, I just splurged at Wal-Mart for $4.97. These will probably get stepped on this week at Knife Lake. I needed a new pair because my $6 previous pair fell out of my pocket last week on the North Country Trail.

BonzSF: "Darn it! I thought I'd made up my mind with the green mirrored amber tint. Leaning towards the Costas. Now I'm not sure. At least I got another month to decide to get them in time for my August trip.
"

Find a deal online for them Steep&Cheap, Woot.com... You can get a discounted pair and I'm sure you will be happy with them.

BonzSF: "Darn it! I thought I'd made up my mind with the green mirrored amber tint. Leaning towards the Costas. Now I'm not sure. At least I got another month to decide to get them in time for my August trip.
"

If I was going to choose one pair, I'd get the Bajio with purple lenses. Without hesitation.

Most of what I'm writing here applies to moderately clear to very clear water. The more clear the water, the more this all applies. If you are fishing dark murky stained water, this applies much less - as the glasses simply don't remove the sediment in the water. ...however, that would be an outstanding feature. X-ray polarized sunglasses... LOL

The Glasses head-to-head (my perspective)....

The Costas green mirror amber lenses make 'REDS' pop, and greens deepen quite a bit - shadows certainly get deeper. And you can certainly see into the water because they're polarized. But they're decidedly darker by a step or two over the Bajio purple mirror. ...and I don't really know how to define a 'step', other than to say, the light transmission difference through the lenses is noticeable. Costa green mirror is....darker.

Here's the thing. If you don't have polarized sunglasses - these will definitely help see into the water. You will see fish if they are in the flats - especially when they move. But if the bottom of the lake (shallows or flats) is wheedy (because of wheeds), or the bottom is a dark muck, the view will be dark, and less contrasty. This will make it more difficult to spot fish who want to sit at the mucky bottom or in the wheeds. This is especially true when it's an overcast day, and the sun isn't illuminating the bottom.

The Purple mirror red(rose) base lens from Bajio makes greens greenier. There's a bit of a yellow cast. Overall, the view is brighter, though the shadows get a bit deeper, which pops the contrast. This is great when you're looking into the water. The thing I noticed was, it was easier to see the structure in the water, with these glasses. Wheeds popped, while the shadows deepened a bit - but not to the point they turned into dark splotches. I could really see more detail in the weeds and the fish with these weeds, compared to the Costa Green Mirror. From the canoe on a very clear water lake - the Bajio Purple Mirror were just freaking fantastic, whether the sun was out, or it hid behind a big cloud.

Here's a little test I just captured as an overall example (note the windshield in the car, and pretend it's water). There's a little camera lens reflection happening in both photos, (weird color streak). It's not there when you're wearing the glasses.

without sunglasses on an overcast day:


Costas Green Mirror Glass (amber base) lenses

...in reality, the amber color isn't quite this intense.

Bajio Purple Mirror Polycarbonate (rose base) lenses

...in reality, the yellow color isn't quite this intense.

Another little note: Even though the Bajios are brighter, I didn't find myself squinting during the sunny Monday on the water. I didn't feel eyestrain or eye fatigue at all - and I was out there from 11ish to 3:30ish - the height of the afternoon sun. And honestly, I was ready to stay out there until 8 PM. But I had a two hour drive home with rush hour around Madison and Milwaukee, and the kids were home from school — had to rescue mom. :)

One last note: Both of these sunglasses will make a partly cloudy sky look absolutely beautiful. The white puffy clouds will pop, while the blue deepens. There were a few times on Monday where I just sat in the canoe and looked up at the sky, over the tree line. ...and wish I had a camera with a purple mirror rose color polarized camera lens. It would have been a really cool capture.

Oh geez! More tidbits...

Sizewise. My wife says my melon is pretty big....
The Boneville frames are noted as a "large fit", and they fit my melon perfectly.

If you have a smaller melon, and need a medium-sized frame, then the Nipper and Scuch frames would be a better fit.

If you have a larger melon than a large, then the Nato and and the Roca would be a better fit.

If you're in-between a large and an xl, I think the Boneville and Bales Beach would be a solid choice.

You can certainly get whichever pair you wish. I have both Costa Green Mirror Glass and Bajio Purple Mirror Polycarbonate; and when I drive up to Loon Lake in June to spend a week paddling around the Gunflint Trail, I'm only bringing the Bajio Purple Mirror.

s

Well, I have the Green mirrored Costas and love them! My eyes actually relax when I put them on. I shallow water fish the Texas coast out of a kayak, and while wading, and these lens are awesome. However, I'm thinking about finding a cheap polarized pair for my BW trip this summer...I keep thinking of my Costa's RIP in 150' of water...I'd be sick.

For sure. Everyone has preference for what works best for them — not everyone's eyes are the same. There's an insanely long list of polarized fishing glass makers. I love that we have options, and you can certainly find a pair that works best for you. But....you really have to try them out to see the differences. That's why I bought a second pair. Both are most certainly going to get used. The Bajios (for me) will be used more often....

And...I have a cheap pair of polarized glasses I bought of my kids to protect their eyes when they're on the water.

When I let my kiddos try on my glasses last weekend, and I took their pair - their response was "NO FAIR". LOL

Big BIG difference between their $25 glasses, and the Bajios and Costas. But...they're better than NOT having glasses at all. It still prevents some glare - but not as bright and clear.