Quote Originally Posted by miketsp View Post
Except that most very low volume masks, of the type for spearfishing, use very small glass areas and black skirts anyway. So you still only see what is in front of you.
Field of view is the third most important thing (after comfort and no leaking).

I generally use low volume black masks and I find I still have very good vision. There are a few freedive (rather than spearfishing masks (e.g., Cressi sub Minima model) that have poor visibility, but the other masks I use are all good.

In general, there is no reason not to use a low volume mask for scuba diving other than personal preference.