Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) catalyzed hydrogen production from water containing various electron donors under visible light (${lambda}$ > 420 nm). As-received SWNTs were effective for hydrogen production, yet the effect vanished when they underwent surface chemical treatments. Upon coupling with CdSe particles, however, the surface treated SWNTs were far superior to non-treated SWNTs by a factor of ~30 for hydrogen production.