Proper Fish Handling + Photography

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ChaseChrome

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With the pending warmer weather and the trout opener I expect we will see a spate of wonderful fishing reports--sharing with members and guests alike the results (and perhaps, the techniques and methods) of our pursuit of Mykiss . Of course our excitement and jubilation of having sparred with nature and come out as victor (sometimes) also involves the sharing of photos of this august fish. And it is precisely this aspect of our reports that is of some concern--there is a reason why we oftentimes call Mykiss the "August Fish." Whether the nobility of salar, the painterly markings of the brook trout, or, indeed the bright chrome, small headed, thick-bodied torpedo that tests our terminal tackle, these fish are "stately" and should be respected and treated as such.

Of course I am admittedly (as many others here) a conservationist without apology and do not expect everyone to necessarily subscribe to my brand of "sustainability." I do however take very seriously the manner in which we handle and treat fish...in particular the oblivious disregard for the general well-being of these fish for the sake of a photograph. (SEE Part I: the Ministry Guideline to Proper Fish Handling.)

Please know that we love a good story and one with pictures even more, however please ensure that fish are ALWAYS photographed in the water or very near to it so as to mitigate stress to the fish.

This represents only THIS anglers' opinion and not board policy...I should prefer not to see pictures of beached fish...

jmo

good hunting
cc


This post has been promoted to an article
 
Great post CC. Just to add, it's also important to remember that the amount of time they are held outside the water is a factor. The faster the release, the more likely they are to survive 8)
 
So no more colourised "glamour" shots of the thousand dollar reel and hand made rod with a beached trout gasping for air laying in the dirt in front of it....? :cry:
 
mikeh said:
So no more colourised "glamour" shots of the thousand dollar reel and hand made rod with a beached trout gasping for air laying in the dirt in front of it....? :cry:
Click to expand...
People are still going to do it regardless of what anyone says. I think it's worse when they drag it into dirt and it starts flopping around everywhere. I know a lot of places it's very difficult to land a fish without getting it dirty due to the muddy riverbed and banks.

In my opinion, if you want a picture of the fish and if you're going to beach it, pop the hook and get it back in the water quickly and keep it in there until you can can get the camera out. Or just ask someone to assist you with landing the fish. Just my 02 cents.
 
Since I fish alone 99% of the time I don't take a camera to snap pictures. I don't need to have a picture to know that I've had a great day, besides I'm so clumsy I would likely drop the camera. I prefer to do a water release if possible.
 
mikeh said:
So no more colourised "glamour" shots of the thousand dollar reel and hand made rod with a beached trout gasping for air laying in the dirt in front of it....? :cry:
Click to expand...
this is a fantastic post, i laughed uncontrollably..not cause of the fish part...ya and i agree with the shake and bake fish...
 
As a rookie at snapping pics I'm glad this was posted. I'd like to share my thoughts and if anyone could give me pointers on how to improve my technique I'd be grateful.

My philosophy with landing fish is pretty simple: Get it to the boat/shore as fast as possible, get the hook out, and release. With big fish, I use the net. I find it takes too long to "tire them out" to the point they can be safely handled without a net. I find if you pick the fish up too early your hands end up all over it and you usually have to really grip it to keep it from flopping around and hurting itself either on the shore or on the bottom of the boat.

My plan for snapping pics was to net the fish in the water, keep it in the water, pop the hook out, lift for a quick pic, then release.

Anyone think using the net will be more harmful than landing it by hand? Any pointers?

Thanks!
 
with bass i think landing fish is prob the least of your or the fishes worries--setting the hook with a hand granade is prob something that should be looked at in the bass world HAHAHA funny stuff--i watched a show last night and buddy almost flipped of the edge of his bass boat when he set the hook--i am surprised they dont come out of the water fillet'd and ready to eat hahahahahahahaha cant wait to fish with you bro good time!
 
remyboy1 said:
with bass i think landing fish is prob the least of your or the fishes worries--setting the hook with a hand granade is prob something that should be looked at in the bass world HAHAHA funny stuff--i watched a show last night and buddy almost flipped of the edge of his bass boat when he set the hook--
Click to expand...
haha I guarantee someone has fallen over doing that before. You might need a set like that chsing 15lb georgia buckets with a 5" craw texas rigged on a 1oz jig but most of the bassn i do is with a small exposed hook that pretty much sets itself.

remyboy1 said:
i am surprised they dont come out of the water fillet'd and ready to eat hahahahahahahaha cant wait to fish with you bro good time!
Click to expand...
lol I wish they did it would save me a ton of time dicking around with knives. Same to you bro, I'll try not to bowl us both over with my hooksets haha :mrgreen:
 
i will strap in when we fish,i just hope the lure doesnt miss and i get shanked..
 
If you choose to use a net make sure it has a "fish friendly" bag and not a coarse nylon type bag.
 
staffman said:
If you choose to use a net make sure it has a "fish friendly" bag and not a coarse nylon type bag.
Click to expand...
Thx for the input man. I agree, nylon is a fin shredding slime removing machine. I like the thick rubber as opposed to the fine mesh, any opinions?


remyboy1 said:
i will strap in when we fish,i just hope the lure doesnt miss and i get shanked..
Click to expand...
Best bring tha vest and protect ya neck bro
 
...i wonder why the fly guys on TV always handle the fish gently, but the guys with mercury written on thier shirts grab every single trout and sensitive species of fishby the gills---some of these guys life the fish up and its almost folding in half by the gills...millions of people watch these shows why doesnt anyone complain or mention they are a senstive fish not a duffle bag? does anyone find this strange?
 
lol its like asking why we create mini earthquaques and then pump hundreds of millions of litres of fresh water and chemicals in to the crevices to flush out natural gas, or why we allow companies to use freshwater lakes and streams to filter raw bitumen...

some people are just all about getting that claude monet bro. nothing else.
 
that was deep stuff brother--u just explained yanking fish gills at a quantum level..epic.
 
lol probably more of an over simplification than anything else but yah i like to follow the money...

Anyways before I hijack yet ANOTHER thread with my musings I better shaddup.

Back to the picture controversy haha, cheers.
 
Thanks for the thread CC...I personally like the fish in the water shots typically used on OFF...I think that the fish look much more beautiful & natural when viewed in their natural habitat! :)
ChaseChrome said:
With the pending warmer weather and the trout opener I expect we will see a spate of wonderful fishing reports--sharing with members and guests alike the results (and perhaps, the techniques and methods) of our pursuit of Mykiss . Of course our excitement and jubilation of having sparred with nature and come out as victor (sometimes) also involves the sharing of photos of this august fish. And it is precisely this aspect of our reports that is of some concern--there is a reason why we oftentimes call Mykiss the "August Fish." Whether the nobility of salar, the painterly markings of the brook trout, or, indeed the bright chrome, small headed, thick-bodied torpedo that tests our terminal tackle, these fish are "stately" and should be respected and treated as such.

Of course I am admittedly (as many others here) a conservationist without apology and do not expect everyone to necessarily subscribe to my brand of "sustainability." I do however take very seriously the manner in which we handle and treat fish...in particular the oblivious disregard for the general well-being of these fish for the sake of a photograph. (SEE Part I: the Ministry Guideline to Proper Fish Handling.)

Please know that we love a good story and one with pictures even more, however please ensure that fish are ALWAYS photographed in the water or very near to it so as to mitigate stress to the fish.

This represents only THIS anglers' opinion and not board policy...I should prefer not to see pictures of beached fish...

jmo

good hunting
cc
Click to expand...
 

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