Fishing Tips and Techniques
This section of the Florida Guides Association website is devoted to increasing our readers knowledge base for fishing. Whether you target snook, redfish, trout, tarpon or any other species - freshwater or salt - you will be able to pick up some useful techniques from our Florida Guides Association member guides who contribute to the knowledge base.
| 17 October 2009
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words
Today’s world of catch and release fishing has coined yet another acronym, CPR. No not the one where you beat on someone’s chest, hold their nose and blow air in their mouth, although it is sort of related. This CPR stands for Catch-Photo-Release. For this whole scenario to work you obviously have to catch a fish first. Before it is released, most anglers like to have a memory of their trophy in the form of a photograph. Finally the angler gently resuscitates the fish and lets it swim on to freedom and maybe a hook-up with another lucky angler down the way.
To be sure you get a good photo before the release, read on and get some tips from a professional writer and photographer.
In the early and mid-1990s, I always looked forward to the one day each month when the editors of Florida Sportsman magazine joined together with founder Karl Wickstrom and then-Art Director Ted Baker to go over the photo support for all the features and departments in the upcoming issue.
While I learned a lot about what makes for pictures that work and those that consistently fail to make the grade for magazine quality, those sessions also simply helped me capture better images for my own memories of fishing trips. The following suggestions might help you do the same:
* Think of yourself behind the camera as simply taking an instant slice of history and the action occurring. In other words, candid shots of anglers fighting a fish, landing and releasing it during a fish-fight are far more interesting than cheesy smiles and posed hold-ups.
* Particularly in the middle of the day when the sun is directly overhead, ask people to remove their hats or use the camera's fill-flash to avoid a shadowing effect that makes faces too dark.
* Before pressing the shutter to take a picture, let your eyes wander in the viewfinder to see if unnecessary and distracting objects (such as a soda can) should be removed or the angle changed to eliminate them.
* Speaking of angles, change them often to give a more interesting perspective. Instead of shooting from your eye level all the time, stoop down or stand on something to give a unique look to a typical scene. In the same vein, shoot vertically at times and not always horizontally.
* Instead of white tee shirts, ask your fishing buddies to wear something more colorful. This makes the anglers and fish stand out better against the typical whiteness of a deck, gunnels, and the bodies of most fish too.
* Tell the skipper and whoever's mating or helping to land fish that you'd like to snap a couple of pictures just as fish are released. In this way, he'll pause a moment to give you that chance.
* Send your fishing buddies select shots of the trip -- they'll be much more inclined in the future to return the favor when you're behind the rod.
I hope these ideas will improve your memories of great times on the water, whether for publication or your own enjoyment.
Doug Kelly
