Gear Review: Smith ChromaPop Sunglasses

It's hard to admit, but I used to be someone who never really wore sunglasses when fly fishing. I know, crazy right? Well, this all changed in June of 2014 on the green river. My awesome wife organized a fishing trip for my 25th birthday. I brought along my dad, and brother-in-law Mike. I remember getting on the boat floating over the greenest water I had ever seen when my cousin Scott (owner of Spinner Fall Guide Service) said, "hey Sam, did you bring sunglasses." I told him no, and he reached in his pocket and pulled out his spare sunglasses. From that day on, I never set foot on a body of water without polarized shades. Wow had I missed a lot. Both the sun protection and the polarization helped me tremendously out on the water.. With the sunglasses I wore that day on the Green, I could see fifteen feet down at the big browns lurking below.

Fast forward one year later to IF4 in Provo Utah when something very lucky happened. The twenty dollar raffle tickets I bought scored me some new Smith ChromaPop sunglasses. I remember when Nate with Outsmarting Fish read the winning number out loud. I was listening eagerly and yelled out loud when he read the last number. "Better be louder than that with a prize like these" Nate says. I yelled out again, this time even louder while smiling uncontrollably. This was the best twenty dollars I had ever spent. I now had some top of the line shades to fill my sunglasses void.

The Smith ChormaPop lenses are awesome. They really do make colors "pop" as intended. Colors all seem to have a higher saturation. This makes spotting fish that much easier. I fish a lot of alpine lakes and spend a good amount of time scouting for fish and structure. With the ChromaPop's, it makes it really easy. The colors of fish really come through and often I can see deep into a lake and it's structure.

I have now had my Smith shades for a couple years, and had no issues with them. They continue to provide everything I need in a good pair of sunglasses. Comfort, durability, and excellent polarization. I am somewhat biased toward my Smiths, as they are the only pair I use when fishing. However, I do believe they compete with the other top brands. If you have been searching for a good pair of sunglasses, look to Smith ChromaPops. They will enhance your fishing experience, and provide the important protection to your eyes in the relentless sun.

Below, I took a photo with my camera shooting through my Smith's.