We caught up with HWS angler Cullen DiMattina after the Hobie Australian Championships to get his thoughts on the Hobie Polarized Sunglasses and why he selects the right lens for the conditions.
Cullen DiMattina –
Over the years that I have been targeting Bream I have always been focused on ensuring that I am using the right gear at the right time for the right application. Most anglers will concentrate on their rods, reels, line and lures when thinking about the application of gear and of course this make a lot of sense. We wouldn’t use a Rod, Reel and line setup for flats fishing in an oyster rack situation. Needless to say, catching fish would become increasingly difficult if you took this strategy into a social or tournament fishing situation. Now we all know that a quality pair of polarised sunglasses can make a significant difference not only protecting our eyes but it also allows you to see through the water clearly and take note of structure, depth, and even fish activity. What we don’t always take into account is that light level has a significant impact on the performance of the type of lens you have in your glasses. With that in mind I would like to take you through the three different pairs I use and the reasons why I feel they are so important to have on the kayak at all times.
Over the years that I have been targeting Bream I have always been focused on ensuring that I am using the right gear at the right time for the right application. Most anglers will concentrate on their rods, reels, line and lures when thinking about the application of gear and of course this make a lot of sense. We wouldn’t use a Rod, Reel and line setup for flats fishing in an oyster rack situation. Needless to say, catching fish would become increasingly difficult if you took this strategy into a social or tournament fishing situation. Now we all know that a quality pair of polarised sunglasses can make a significant difference not only protecting our eyes but it also allows you to see through the water clearly and take note of structure, depth, and even fish activity. What we don’t always take into account is that light level has a significant impact on the performance of the type of lens you have in your glasses. With that in mind I would like to take you through the three different pairs I use and the reasons why I feel they are so important to have on the kayak at all times.
Sunglasses are often used to block out light and make it easier to see in those high light situations. However, when the light is low you still want a pair of glasses that are going to perform well in low light situations and this is why I use the Hobie SightMaster Lenses. The sightmasters allow me to see contrast in overcast and lowlight situations. These situations typically make sight fishing very hard and it’s easy to see where the sightmasters get their name due to the ability to allow you to sight fish in the lowest of light conditions. Perfect for the first few hours on the water looking for weed beds and snags or for prolonged periods of cloud cover.
In extreme high light situations, a mirrored lens comes into its own. The reason for a mirrored lens is to minimize the amount of light going into your eyes. This prevents glare and allows you to see further on high light days. I use the Hobie Blue mirrored lens for these occasions. It is often used as a deep-sea lens however I use it for the extreme high light scenarios. They don’t allow as much light to enter through the lens due to the one-way mirror allowing your eyes to function normally and see the optimal contrast. This lens is perfect for the middle of the day flats fishing when the sun is high and glare is restricting vision.
Both the prior mentioned lenses have applications which are very specialist but what do you do if the light conditions are constantly changing? This is a situation I use the Hobie Copper lens. This lens enhances resolution and allows the optimal contrast in both bright and overcast conditions. This is the perfect lens on days where there is patchy cloud cover and the light your eyes are receiving is going to be constantly fluctuating over a short period of time.
I think this takes us back to my point of suiting the right gear to the right situation. For a very long time I had been using a high-end pair of glasses that were suited to one light situation and having changed to multiple pairs of glasses I would never go back. As tournament anglers we get very immersed in having the right tackle and having our kayak set up perfectly for every situation. I think its time more of us took this same attitude into our selection of glasses. You would be surprised what difference it can make to your time on the water.
Cullen DiMattina