This might sound like a bit of a dichotomy considering I used to present some fishing TV programmes on some obscure Discovery channels that were forever changing their name and their “direction”, but how many of you here watch at least some kind of fishing related content on the behemoth that is YouTube? I know I do, and whilst the quality of the content obviously varies wildly, there is also some really creative and well made and professional stuff out there which I find far more interesting if it isn’t simply “so and so fishing away with no concept of camera angles and editing and decent sound” and so on………….
But we live on a relatively small island with a large population, so whilst I could and indeed probably should discuss just why we mostly want to “protect” where we go fishing, for the sake of this morning’s musings let’s just go with the fact that most of us here don’t particularly want to turn up at a fishing spot and find a load of other anglers there as well. It’s not what fishing is about to me but I do accept completely that some forms of fishing are more social than others. I would suggest though that bass fishing from the shore is not that kind of fishing.
So let’s say you want to film your own fishing. I think back to the old days as such when things like GoPros and mobile phones with amazing video cameras and hybrid mirrorless cameras with pro quality features and abilities simply didn’t exist. Now though literally anybody with half a clue can at least make an attempt at filming their fishing for the world to see. The quality and interest of the end product might vary somewhat, but most of us here have access to some kind of video camera that weighs next to nothing and which can open up the world of fishing to more people.
Which I passionately believe in I might add, but how on earth do you go about filming something like bass fishing from the shoreline of a smallish island with any degree of creativity yet not help ruin where you like to go fishing? Perhaps it’s selfish to want to “protect” where you love going fishing, but I am in in the camp of kinda wanting to film some of my own fishing because I can, I enjoy the learning process of trying to film it, and it’s fun putting it out there for a few other anglers to see, but for the life of me I can’t see how I can properly film some of my own bass fishing in at least a moderately creative way without trashing where I like to (quietly) fishing. The short video above for example was a complete fluke when I went and hooked a bass whilst I was trying out a new GoPro locked off on a tripod, but even then I have had to crop in slightly to the video image to “hide” a few things, and in truth there is very little interest within the short film to hold the viewer because it’s basically the one shot with a few cuts to shorten it down. I don’t know how much any of you know about how films and TV programmes and adverts etc. are put together, but a variety of camera angles and shots and then a lot of editing gets them to where our eyes and brains are engaged to the point of wanting to watch more - if said film or programme is any good of course!
But we bass anglers are for the most part a secretive bunch. Hell, I specialise myself in shooting a lot of fishing photos which very rarely show anything identifiable about where the actual fishing spot is. I have had a few anglers give me grief over the years because they might recognise something in one of my photos which happens to have been shot around a spot they fish themselves, but my argument straight back is of course you should bloody well recognise the photo if you happen to fish there a lot! It’s far easier though to “hide” where you’re fishing with a still image than it is a bit of video, and especially if you are trying to at least have a stab at making a short fishing film which looks half-decent because it’s got a variety of wide shots and tight shots and B-roll and so on.
In my rather long-winded way I guess I have come to the conclusion that if you value where you fish then it’s almost impossible to film your own bass fishing in any meaningfully creative way. A lot obviously depends on where you live and fish because it may be well off the beaten track with very few other anglers around, plus who the hell says fishing spots have to be protected anyway, but my personal view is that I can’t really find a way of filming my own bass fishing here in the UK in any meaningful way without doing some kind of damage to where I so love to go fishing. None of us own the coastline and I would urge any keen anglers to get on something like Google Earth and then get out there and look for places to go fishing, but I would also urge those same anglers to look after these fishing spots if they want any chance at all of some quiet fishing away from the bustle of everyday life. Even when I try filming say a simple spinning reel review as per above, I chose a spot where I don’t actually fish so it’s sort of meaningless to me, but who is to say that where I shot that video isn’t another angler’s bass fishing hotspot and I have (unintentionally) harmed their fishing a bit by filming there? Your thoughts?