re: What brand sunglasses are y’all wearing on the water?

I've got a sunglass problem so I've got multiple pairs of Smith, Costa, Maui, and Bajio

Will give my rundown on the favorites- these will all be glass. I prefer an amber/rose based lens for fishing compared to the neutral gray. It's just science, you are getting more contrast with the amber, and the difference in light transmission between the blue mirror and green mirror is minimal. So when you see the blue mirror recommended for offshore and the green for inshore, that's mostly marketing.

My favorite low light lens: Bajio Rose mirror. I'll use these mainly if I'm fishing on the river or I know it's going to be overcast all day. You still get the contrast but they let in a lot of light so you aren't straining to see. They are not suitable for full sun fishing. Other I've tried is the Maui Jim HLT, I prefer the bajio. 18% light transmission on these

My favorite full sun off shore lens: Bajio blue mirror. Unlike the costas, the Bajio blue mirror is based on a slightly amber tinted base. Their website says neutral gray base, but at least in the glass they are noticeably different than the Costa blue mirror and provide more contrast. If you're familiar with costa blue and green mirror, the bajio blue mirror is like a mix of the two, and it's a very dark lens. Great for full sun, probably a little dark for overcast. 10% light transmission on these

Favorite overcast lens: Costa gold mirror. This one is newer to my collection but I really like the lens. It's a rose base with 13-14% light transmission- so its really suitable for all conditions but stands out on those days where there is some cloud cover- and the rose provides great contrast. I've also got a frame with side shields on these which helps with indirect light getting in behind the lens.

Favorite all around lens: Smith Polarchromic green mirror.
This is new tech in the fishing glasses market and it aims to cover all of the above scenarios. Like the name suggests it has variable light transmission based on the amount of light hitting the lens. It ranges between 11% (very similar to the bajio and costa blue mirror) up to 23%, similar to the bajio violet mirror. These are glasses that you can wear on your face leaving the dock at 6am and getting back at 4pm, and you will not notice a difference in light transmission because they are adjusting with the sunlight. I have not fished with these yet, but wore them out on a boat and around the water in USVI a few weeks ago- the contrast was great and spotting fish was easy.

*Note, Smith offers a Photochromic (been out a while, non polarized) and a Polarchromic (new, suitable for fishing)


The smith's will probably be my go to for everything except full offshore fishing- and that's only because depending on where you end up positioned on the boat, if the sun is directly behind me it is a bit noticeable and I can see a faint reflection of my eye in the lenses if i'm paying attention. For that reason I will probably end up wearing one of my pairs of costas with side shields when snapper season starts, either the neutral gray for full sun days or the gold mirror for cloudy days. The smith lenses are fantastic for everyday wera/driving as well since they are changing with the conditions. You aren't having to take your sunglasses on and off when you're behind the wheel based on the time of day/clouds. I keep the Bajio blue lens in my boat bag- they are the best lenses I've tried for full sun, but the frames I've got them on start to bother me after 8 hours


From a visual standpoint, my favorite glasses I've owned were probably the Maui Jim green mirror ultra thin glass. Love the way the world looks through them, but very different than smith/costa green mirror. It was almost a slightly purple hue looking through these- but they just let in a little too much light for me to be used as fishing glasses out on the open water.

I'll also note that I've got light blue eyes, so what's comfortable to me from a light transmission standpoint may be different than others, and I do a lot of fishing offshore in Florida, so full sun out on the open water is brutal