Grip-N-Grins: How to make your fly fishing pictures worthy of the wall

You waited all year for your fly fishing trip, picked up some new gear and had one of your best trips ever.  You caught some awesome fish and were amazed by their beauty.  Your fishing partner or guide snapped some pics of the better fish and now you can't wait to get home to show friends and family.  You checked the photos on that ridiculously tiny LCD screen on the back of the camera and they looked just fine.  But when you get home and pull them up on the computer the best fish of the trip ends up looking like this.

Yep, that 20+" bow that you were going to brag about is hardly worth showing.  Your buddies may really believe you about the fish's size, but you're never going to get the reaction you want with a photo like this and it's definitely not going up in your office.  This photo is an extreme example with several major flaws, but even small miscues or one bad element can ruin an otherwise great photo.  Catching a trophy trout is hard to do, but getting that bruiser to the net is only half the battle.  There's a lot going on when a big fish is landed and you're getting ready for the photo-op.

All too often I see folks just grab the fish anyway they can, one maybe two shots are taken and that's it.  When I land a photo worthy fish the first thing I do is get the hook out and then get them back in the water. The biggest priority is the welfare of the trout so make sure the fish remains in the water as much as possible.  That way if things go sideways trying to get the pic the the fish can be quickly and easily released.  Once the hook is out I start thinking about composition, can I get the sun at my back?, sunglasses off, hat tilted slightly up.  Then it's time to get your hands wet and get ready for the shot.  While this is going on the photographer should be framing the shot.  Don't wait till your buddy is holding the trout to raise the camera up.  Get the camera where you want it so when the angler holds the fish they come into the frame.  Don't be shy to give orders at this point.  You don't want the fish out of water long so make the shots count.  As the photographer you want to fill the frame with the angler and the trout, after all they are the stars of this production.  Don't be afraid to use the zoom, or better yet, get the camera closer to the subjects since the zoom tends to compress the image.  What you want to avoid is a pic like the last image above, a bunch of scenery and what looks to be a guy holding a small trout (it's a 22" bullie by the way even though it looks 16").  Get in as close as possible so you have the fish and the anglers head and shoulders.  The other thing to keep in mind as the photographer is to shoot as many pics as you can.  Point and shoot cameras have a delay between when you press the shutter and when the pic is actually taken so you're likely to get a different image than the one you saw when you pressed the button.  Usually the pic snaps when the fish is moving or the angler has a weird expression on their face so shoot as many as possible, you can always delete later.

As the angler it's your job to make the fish look good and keep from looking stupid remember to smile.  It's important to take a second and think about things.  First of all, relax, the fish seem to be much more cooperative with someone who is relaxed than a tense angler trying to put the death grip on them.  Keep the net below the fish so it's no big deal if it slips out of your hands.  Rule #1 is keep your fingers off the front of the fish.  People want to see the pretty trout not your big sausage fingers like the second photo above.  Cradle the fish with your fingers under the fins and your thumbs up near its back for balance.  Make sure to show the entire side of the fish to the camera.  Rule #2 is hold the fish up and out.  The first photo above shows an angler holding the trout down and off to the side.  That's a big disservice to an otherwise big, colorful rainbow.  Try to get the fish up at least shoulder high and extend your arms toward the camera without locking them straight out.  Your photos will look unnatural and gimmicky if you hold your arms all the way out, a slight bend in the elbows works great.  Straight on photos are just fine, but a little angle on the fish with the head toward the camera looks even better.

Fish photos are like anything else in life, put a little thought into it and things are likely to turn out for the better.  Don't hesitate to practice on fish that may not be "trophies".  While those photos won't end up on your wall, you will be able to see the things that work well and those that don't so when that once in a lifetime fish does make it to the net you'll end up with a picture worthy of the moment.

Road Trip: Fly fishing the Missouri in February

Hooked up at Eagle Rock

Well, it finally happened. Cabin fever got the best of me and I had to get out of the house for some fishing. Usually it's a steelhead trip to Idaho this time of year, but the conditions have been miserable over there so I joined up with friends Jason and John for a road trip to the Missouri. I pulled my boat and Jason towed his killer trailer over to Craig. If you've ever been over to the Mo' then you know there's not a lot in the way of services and there's even less in the winter. Unless you're content to sleep on the floor of Joe's Bar or Headhunters Flyshop then you had better bring your own accommodations. 

Jason with a Big Streamer Bow

We arrived in Craig around 3 p.m. on Fri. afternoon and after catching up with the guys at the fly shop and setting up the trailer in the campground we headed up to put the boat in below Holter dam. It was fairly nice weather, partly cloudy, no wind and 40. The nymph fishing was nothing short of spectacular. After an hour or so of non-stop action on nymphs we decided to slide downstream and look for some rising fish. Dry flies in Feb????? When the conditions are right there can be some great, but technical dry fly fishing for big pods of sippers on midges. As soon as the sun slipped behind the ridge we had an inside bend that was covered in rising trout for over 100 yards. It was a great scene, but it was by no means easy pickings. The fish were very selective but Jason and John were both able to connect with nice rainbows on dry flies.

On the Hunt for Meat Eaters

Day two was cooler and breezier. Since Sat. is typically the busiest day on the Mo' we decided to float below Craig to avoid other anglers. It was also an opportunity to check out the winter streamer fishing. It's hard for me to believe that these fish will move for a streamer in 34 degree water, but they will. Slow water was key and a slow swing/strip was the retrieve that they wanted. We didnt' see the numbers of fish that we hooked up by the dam on nymphs but I thought we did really well considering the conditions. We landed over 20 fish on the big bugs, most were rainbows from 15-20" but once we got below the mouth of the Dearborn we boated 4 or 5 browns up to 19".  Of course, Sat. night is big in Craig, MT so after dinner we headed over to Joe's Bar for some pool, some lies, and a few drinks with the boys from Headhunters.

Bugger Brown Trout

 

Sun. started warm and calm, but the wind kicked up in the late morning and cold hands were part of the day. We headed back up to float the dam to Craig knowing that we would have good nymphing and hoping to find some dry fly fishing. We parked the boat in one spot up by the dam and the fishing was insane. The kind of stuff you really don't want to describe because most people won't believe you. It's the first time I've ever seen a quadruple! John and I doubled up on nice rainbows. We netted both of them, got the hooks out and before Jason could release them, John and I were doubled up again. It was quite a sight to see 4 big Mo' rainbows in the net at the same time. We probably could've stayed in that spot and caught fish all day long but we decided to move downstream. The wind never really let up and the temp never got to 40 so our dry fly prospects didn't happen, but the nymphing remained good until the cold wind had us rowing for the take out around 5.

Nice Double with Mr. Double Up Himself

It's so nice to have a river like the Missouri only 2 hours away. Any time of year that a trout fix is in order we can just roll over Rodgers Pass and a bent rod is only a cast and a good mend away. I shot a lot of video over there as well and hope to have something up later this week.

 

Most of the 2012 season is already booked. If you haven't made your fishing plans yet this year you should consider doing so as soon as possible. Skwalas are only a few short weeks away and I can't wait to start throwing big dries on the Bitterroot this March.

Oops! Montana Fly Fishing Pics Gone Awry



As a fly fishing guide I take lots of fish photos each year.  The majority are classic grip n' grin poses due to sheer necessity.  When you have a cold, wet, slimy, uncooperative model you often take the quickest and most reliable photo possible.

Creative and artistic shots are great, but trout are a challenge to deal with even for experienced anglers and despite my personal desire to get the best photos, I have to keep in mind that trout much prefer being in the water and I try to get them back there quickly.  As a result I have hundreds of the same photo; tightly cropped angler holding trout a.k.a the "grip n' grin".

It's the easiest pose for both angler and fish and it usually goes something like this:  Net the fish and remove the hook, put the trout back in the water in the net while the camera comes out, position the angler and frame the shot, bring the net to the angler and have them get their hands wet, get both hands behind and under the trout lifting it up, snap several frames while keeping the net under the fish just in case, put the trout back in the net for the release.  If all goes well the whole process takes less than a minute and the trout is only out of the water for 15 seconds or so.

As you can see by the photos, all doesn't always go well.  Trout have the uncanny knack of springing into action as soon as the shutter is pressed.  These are some of my favorite shots.  I love the expressions on the anglers' faces and seeing the trout in motion.  It's also why I bring a big net, makes the slimy buggers easier to catch when they're jumping around. 

Next week we'll take a look at the do's and don'ts for good fish pictures and some alternatives to the classic grip n' grin.