The Art of Photography and Flyfishing

[dave lackey]

Late last evening marks our return from the Blue Ridge Mountains after a day trip to get away from the stesses of everyday life in the suburbs of Atlanta. These trips are not as frequent as in the past when we drove various cars (MG's, Jaguars, Toyotas, etc.) in the days before this Great Recession. Nowadays, we save our pennies to purchase fuel to accomplish these therapeutic travels.

Finishing off the day with a nice meal in Highlands, NC, my bride and I are happy to enjoy an elegant dining experience with apricot honey chicken and almondine trout. Ah, trout? Yes, as part of the trip was to check out the nearest trout streams for future fishing expeditions, and what better way to enjoy the fruits of researching a future fishing trip than with a delicious trout prepared by none other than Chef Wolfgang?🙂

The truth is, I have just taken up flyfishing with a friend of mine who is an Orvis-certified flyfishing instructor. Not only does he share his knowledge about the sport but also lends me the equipment!

Flyfishing is something I have wanted to do since I was in college in the early days of my career. It is an art forum, not a science, although science does play a huge part in all parts of flyfishing.

Just as photography, IMHO, is an art form, I find many things about flyfishing to coincide with my passion for photography, especially rangefinder photography. In fact, I cannot seem to separate the two in mind just yet.

So, as I begin my long journey into learning more about flyfishing, I thought it would be nice to begin a thread on the art forms of both photography and flyfishing and see how many others enjoy them both.

At the moment, I have no photographs worthy to post, but there will be many in the future. So, if any of you have any you would like to share, it would be greatly appreciated!:angel:

 

[Chris101]

Ah. But do you have any fish worthy to post? 😀

I plan on fishing for relaxation once I hit retirement. But I don't think I'll use a hook. All that stuff after the catch seems counterproductive to relaxation. Maybe I'll hold the worm on with an alligator clip. That way we can tug back and forth for a bit, but the fish'll always win.

 

[Ken Smith]

Just as photography, IMHO, is an art form, I find many things about flyfishing to coincide with my passion for photography, especially rangefinder photography. In fact, I cannot seem to separate the two in mind just yet.

There's pretty much a distinction in how you go about both endeavors - fly fishing and photography. Bamboo fly rods are to flyfishing what rangefinders are to photography where as graphite is to fly fishing what digital cameras are to photography.

Saranac River, NY - 1991. My fishing partner took this with my Yashica GSN.

 

[atlcruiser]

Hmmmmmm....🙂

we are crazy fly fishers here. We should hook up some time!

 

[dave lackey]

Hi, David...

Hooking up (no pun intended with fly fishing) would be ideal! Send me a pm and we can go from there.🙂

BTW, for those who didn't know, but I found out there are over 2100 miles of trout streams in the State of Georgia! Yowzah!😀

 

[dave lackey]

There's pretty much a distinction in how you go about both endeavors - fly fishing and photography. Bamboo fly rods are to flyfishing what rangefinders are to photography where as graphite is to fly fishing what digital cameras are to photography.

Saranac River, NY - 1991. My fishing partner took this with my Yashica GSN.

Nice pic, Ken!

Also, as you mention, a bamboo rod would be the coolest thing I can think of...although expensive if bought through Orvis! But, the analogy is superb!🙂

 

[jan normandale]

Dave, you're on a slippery slope...

Here's a link to some stuff I used to write for Global Flyfisher. It's about the literature and there's also reviews of important books on the "hard side" of the sport and equipment as well as the "soft side" covering fiction, biographies etc.

http://globalflyfisher.com/staff/normandale/

 

[tbarker13]

Ahh. Fly fishing is so much fun. I don't get to do it nearly as much as I would like. But I find few things as peaceful as wading in a quiet stream, alone. Just you and the fish. The best thing in the world is to be there as the sun rises in the morning.
And the casting itself is almost a zen-like experience.

And sometimes, you can even combine it with your photography.

Here is a self portrait of me (taken in the NC Highlands a couple years ago) along with a couple shots I took during quick breaks.

 

[FrankS]

Tim, very nice self-portrait, and that second picture is simply beautiful!

 

[Bingley]

Dave, as you will soon discover, flyfishing has a GAS component that exceeds rf photography. I speak from experience. That said, it is a wonderful, relaxing excuse for getting out in the woods, or the mountains. You will learn, of necessity, the dining habits of the trout, which will give you a deeper understanding of the riverine environment. And there is something exhiliarating about placing a fly in front of a rising trout, and seeing the fish grab it. (see Robert Hughes' book on flyfishing with the wonderful title: "A Jerk on One End.")

I've been flyfishing for roughly 15 years. Two weeks ago, I enjoyed a day on the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River, south of Yosemite, and caught and released brookies, rainbows, and one golden/rainbow hybrid, none of which had ever seen an Elk Hare Caddis before. Next week, I'm off to the Golden Trout Wilderness Area. I'm taking my 4-wt and my Leica IIIc. The fish aren't large, but they're jewels. Here's an example from last summer's trek in Evolution Valley in Kings Canyon NP:

Good luck!

 

[Leigh Youdale]

I found out there are over 2100 miles of trout streams in the State of Georgia! Yowzah!😀

Sounds good - at first. But what's the trout population per mile of stream?

 

[Ken Smith]

Nice pic, Ken!

Also, as you mention, a bamboo rod would be the coolest thing I can think of...although expensive if bought through Orvis! But, the analogy is superb!🙂

Yes - current Orvis canes are quite pricey and they've scaled back to very few to offer - just so they can say they still make them. However, in the 40's - 80's, Orvis made thousands of bamboo fly rods in all the classic length/line weight catagories. Wes Jordan's Bakelite impregnation process made them as sturdy as a Mack truck - so there's tons of them still being fished. A nice used 7 1/2' 3 5/8 oz, 2/2 (2 piece/2 tips) 5/6wt Battenkill runs for @ $700. Sometimes you can find them cheaper. And yes - just like cameras, there are dealers in classic used tackle. My favorite Orvis' to fish are the 6 1/2' 2oz 4wt Flea, 7' 5wt Battenkill, and the 7 1/2' 5/6wt Battenkill. I also have an Orvis 8 1/2 Light Salmon 7/8wt that's a great streamer rod for large trout, steelhead, bass, etc. I bought most of my Orvis canes, used, back in the late 80's/early 90's when they were cheaper than a new Orvis graphite.

Ken

 

[charjohncarter]

Ah. But do you have any fish worthy to post? 😀

I plan on fishing for relaxation once I hit retirement. But I don't think I'll use a hook. All that stuff after the catch seems counterproductive to relaxation. Maybe I'll hold the worm on with an alligator clip. That way we can tug back and forth for a bit, but the fish'll always win.

My kind of fishing.

 

[dave lackey]

Sounds good - at first. But what's the trout population per mile of stream?

Hmmm...just checked a 2005 EPD document that states there are over 5300 miles within the 25-county area comprising the north and northwest part of the state...

Population per mile of stream would vary quite a bit but so far have not found that information but will keep looking. There are some wildlife management areas (WMA's) that seem to have the best opportunity to fish with a $17 permit available.

Still, though, the NC area and the Smoky Mtns. are a must-go-to place for me!

This is getting to be so cool....😉

 

[jan normandale]

[/QUOTE]



uplocking burl reel seat with a half Wells grip and a modern CFO.. nice.

 

[Ken Smith]

The CFO was probably Orvis' best reel of all times. Designed in the 70's by Stan Bogdan of Bogdan reel fame and produced in England. It had the definite sound and look of a Hardy. Then Orvis had the audacity after 25 years to screw up design perfection by altering porting the frame rim, messing with the spool latch cover, and making it a disc drag reel. Some things ought not to be touched.

 

[tlitody]

what I find faintly amusing about fly fishing is that the trout is the easiest of all fish to catch. Just put a big wriggling lob worm on a hook with a float and you can pull em out one after the other all day. Fly fishing is an exercise in making a simple job difficult. I guess there are parallels to be made with using a rangefinder, manual focus and manual wind on of film.

Night time fly fishing for sea trout is where it's really at.

 

[Ken Smith]

what I find faintly amusing about fly fishing is that the trout is the easiest of all fish to catch. Just put a big wriggling lob worm on a hook with a float and you can pull em out one after the other all day. Fly fishing is an exercise in making a simple job difficult. I guess there are parallels to be made with using a rangefinder, manual focus and manual wind on of film.

Night time fly fishing for sea trout is where it's really at.

If it was just about getting fish, we'd either all just go to the fish market or use dynamite. It's more about the path taken than just arriving at the destination.

 

[250swb]

I know if I took up fly fishing it would take over my life, it has everything about it to turn me into a fanatic. So I stand well clear because I'd never get anything else done, and there's a lot of photography left in me yet. But my best pal is one of the best dry fly fishers in the UK so vicariosly I still hear about the subtleties of the art.

http://dryflyexpert.blogspot.com/


Steve

 

[tlitody]

If it was just about getting fish, we'd either all just go to the fish market or use dynamite. It's more about the path taken than just arriving at the destination.

Yes I've tried using a spear gun for trout and a home made 3ft bamboo rod for stock pond fishing in my formative years. Now that was exciting! Had to give it up when I grew too old to be able to plead ignorance when I got caught. Was forced to comply with the rules of using only dry fly upstream so that we couldn't catch too much. Ah the old days were so much more fun.