Great Lakes Bass Fishing Forum

Hey guys 8m buying a new pair of costas, but not sure what color of lens to get. I was thinking of getting copper 580 but not sure if there is a better option like amber green or blue? Thanks for the help, kb

I wear prescription glasses.   Amber has proven to be an all round favorite with me under the majority of lighting situations.  But, under blue bird skies the ole blue/grey does a better job.

I bought the Costa 580 Glass in copper and gave been very pleased. It's a shade darker than the amber for brighter days, but still allow enough light in for cloudy days or early mornings. The Costa website has a great breakdown of the different shades. I also bought a floating strap so they don't sink to the bottom like my last pair.

I've used their vermillion shade for years for sightfishing a love it. The copper is similar in letting in more light but not too much and sharpening some colors for contrast. I've heard the blue and the green do this very well too but I do not have personal experience with them. It seems like the green may get the overall nod from the people I've talked to for contrast.

I haven't used their amber. Not sure if it lets in as much light much as the vermillion or more. Vermillion sharpens greens real well. The amber would be similar but again I don't know the light allowance comparison for sure. I'm guessing my old vermillion lens are in between amber and copper, closer to amber probably but I would have to ask someone at Costa to be sure.

My pale blue eyes (curse of the redhead) can't take too much light for very long. I would get a headache. Even the vermillion puts more eye strain on me on real bright days by the end of a long day but I can take it and if I don't have to rely heavily on sightfishing I can go to dark grey glasses later in a real sunny day to block out a lot more light. I lose some contrast so I can't tell what I'm looking at underwater as well.

I would like to try the blue and the green some day but I sure love the vermillion. Wish they still made them but I believe copper and amber sold better so that's what they have, and when added to the green and blue mirrors they probably don't need to vermillion. I hope when I get my next pair I can try out amber, copper, blue and green before having to buy.

I know a few guys swear by yellow for sightfishing but I could only wear yellow early in the morning and on really dark, gray days for any length of time. If I wear yellow on a bright day I get a headache from eye strain within a very short time.

Your eye color probably would have some effect on the best lens for you. If you have dark eyes and you want really high contrast go with the amber. If you want all around day long sightfishing and bright light blockage maybe go with the green which has amber and copper in it?

I just purchased the grey lens. I felt that i was going to get the most all around use. I would like another pair of a lighter lens for low light conditions though.

Grey is good for all around but you lose lots of color, definition and contrast compared to the lighter lens.