Light needed for low visibility dive???

[gene1948]

Hi, I'm newly certifed and plan a dive in Sarasota / Venice area in a few weeks while on vacation. Since this would be a fairly low visiblity artificial reef or wreck dive and shallow (20 - 50') do you recommend that I buy a dive light to be able to see / photograpth the fish,etc.?? If so, would a small BC type light maybe UK SL4 / SL6 help? Thanks very much, Gene

 

[jonnythan]

http://www.scubatoys.com/store/Scuba_Light_Paks.asp

The "UK Pro Light Pack" should do you fine. You get a nice primary light with a flood beam, and a backup light that's nice and bright.

 

[gene1948]

Thanks for much and have read the other threads that are very helpful!! For a spotting / crevice day light, I am considering either a SL4 or Tec40 for BC pocket. Would appreciate any comments on your experiences with these and whether large enough to be effective for occasional day diving. Would a bigger light be more advisable? Thanks. Gene

 

[jonnythan]

The SL4 is brighter and will probably make a better day/pocket light. They're not very good for night time lights since they both have narrow spot beams and aren't overly bright.

I've owned both of them and used both of them at night. I highly recommend the C8 for a night light. The C8 ELED or Princeton Tec Shockwave LED are also very good if you want to invest a little more money.

 

[tangfish]

The SL4 is brighter and will probably make a better day/pocket light. They're not very good for night time lights since they both have narrow spot beams and aren't overly bright.

I've owned both of them and used both of them at night. I highly recommend the C8 for a night light. The C8 ELED or Princeton Tec Shockwave LED are also very good if you want to invest a little more money.

I'll second the opinion on the C8 eLED!

 

[tangfish]

I just picked up a Princeton Tec shockwave LED (it has 3 leds), its great. Not quite as bright in the center as the eLED, but has a more even and wider beam. Also, the battery life is better.

 

[Rev. Blade]

I took my Shockwave LED on a week of (good vis) diving, and don't think I've seen a light I like better. 15 dives on one set of C batteries, and the light is still as bright as when they were fresh. (Only one night dive, but I use my light frequently to peek under overhangs.) The three 3-watt LEDs really put out some light, and the beam is wide enough to see a large area. At the lower power setting, I'd expect it to be decent at minimizing back scatter from the particulate in the water. I expect it will be my primary dive light for my low vis dives in California, as well as in the tropics... but haven't tried it anywhere with less than 40' vis.

 

[TSandM]

The C8 LED is darned near as bright underwater as my 10W HID light. It's a PITA to carry, but it's a good light.