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We need creative & inspiring moviemakers!

As much as I enjoy watching these destination videos with amazing scenery and gin clear rivers, I always wonder why these videos all look the same? Why can't anyone come up with a new interesting format to cover this item? Is it the limitation of the subject, film equipment or the lack of creativity of the makers?

I've seen documentaries on BBC, Discovery Channel etc. how they follow the flight of an albatross (or was it a bee?) REALLY close. It's like flying on the back of a fellow bird/insect. They can even capture the natural habitat of a termite in its dungeons deep under the ground. So it's not the lack of technique that's limiting us from making innovative movies.

Why are fly fishing videos still using stone age scripts and techniques? For example, I don't like the parts where they play the fish. One or two takes of a big fish showing off while hooked is okay. I don't need to see more of them, especially when the fish are small. The presentation of the fly, close view drift of the fly to the fish and the take (both above and under the water!) are much more interesting. What about following a fish in its natural habitat, watching the fisherman from the fishes view and how it gets fooled by the fly? How about satellite overview of the river or stretch and zooming in on a certain spot or stretch. A view of the fisherman from a birds eye view?

The publishers / moviemakers of fly fishing videos need to take the next step in innovation.
Anyone in the business care to join the discussion?

New DVDs: Gmundner Traun & Henry's Fork

The long winter evenings are here, so time to enjoy some new DVDs on nice destinations! I recently bought two new DVDs on the Austrian Gmundner Traun and the Henry's Fork in the USA. The company who publishes them also has three other DVDs on Silver Creek / Madison, Green river and Cayo Largo (Cuba). I'm sure there are more nice destinations coming soon.

The Gmundner Traun is one of the most famous Austrian rivers, well known for its grayling population. I've fished it once so far and didn't have much success due to high water levels. One thing I noticed during that day was how difficult it was to follow the river from the road. The river is hardly visible from the road making it very difficult to look for nice stretches to fish. The steep and high banks along the river made river access pretty impossible.

This video shows how diverse the Gmundner Traun is during its course from the Gmundner lake to the downstream stretches. Rudi Heger, who managed the river for many years, tells us what makes the Gmundner Traun such a special river as well as how they improved the fishery the past years after a period when the river was in a bad condition. After watching this video I'm sure I'll give it another go soon. By the way, the tickets for this river are no give away either. I paid about 75 Euros (about 90-95 USD) back in 2004...

The Henry's Fork needs no introduction. This is without doubt one of the most famous rivers in the world. I remember reading about it when back in the 1980's. This huge spring creek is famous for its highly educated rainbows and the hatches of mayfly and caddis spieces. Who hasn't seen the wonderful scenery of the Harriman Ranch area of the Henry's Fork? I've visited the Rocky Mountain area about 5 times now, but I've never fished the Henry's Fork. It's still on my To Do-list.

As a reference for a trip preparation these DVDs will not be enough. You will still need to do your own research on your destination on the internet. But as a hint what can be expected, it's nice. These DVDs can be bought at the site of the makers Destination Mouche. Maybe your local fly shop has some copies on the shelf.


Update Dec 16, 2019:
I finally visited the Henry's Fork in the summer of 2018.
Here is part 1, part 2 & part 3 of my (way too short) visit to the Henry's Fork.

The art of wood carving

Ed Felker of the Flyfishin' blog really liked the brook trout I caught in Austria last month that he made it picture of the week on his site. Besides running a nice blog, Ed is a very talented wood carver too. Check out the carving Ed made of the picture. WOW! I think it's amazing how Ed captured just the essential contours of the picture.

Although I try to take pictures that follows some sort of 'picture taking rules' I see in fly fishing magazines and books, I never thought that one of my pictures would end up as art! It sounds weird but I'm kinda proud now. Thanks Ed!

I'm not sure how much a print made from one of Ed's wood carvings cost. I'm sure he will make a marvelous wood carving of your favorite picture (assuming that the picture is 'carvable') for you. Get in touch with Ed to get the answer and price. I'm waiting to see how a print made of the block turns out.


Update 20 dec 2006
Ed just made the first print of the wooden plate he carved out. These prints cost $50 and $65 if matted. Check out Ed's blog to read more about his prints.

Update 17 jan 2007
The print arrived today! I'll get it framed soon. Should look nice on the wall in the attic of our new house. Thanks Ed!

Powerfibers

Here is a picture of a slice from a bamboo culm I received from a buddy. Check out the dense powerfibers. Powerfibers are located on the outer part of the bamboo giving this living material its unique strength, flexibility and durability. I'm told that this is a slice taken from one of the thinner culms, showing at least 4 mm of powerfibers.

The quality of bamboo rod builders look for making bamboo fly rods are straightness, no (or hardly any) damages by insect bites, watermarks, etc. I'm sure these culms will end up as excellent bamboo fly rods!

Lanyard massacre

After my trip to the Czech Republic, I came up with the idea to make our own lanyards at our fly fishing club. These ' minimalist-vests' have been around for about 5 years now and they are getting more and more popular as a vest replacement. Sometimes it's just too hot for a fully loaded vest or just plain awkward (like on the bonefish flats). All you need are a clipper, a thermostat and some spools of tippet-material. Maybe a bottle of fly floatant. Fly boxes can go in the shirt pockets. Ready to fish!

Sure, you can buy them at your fly shop (like the one in the middle from Mountain River Lanyards), but it's quite easy to make one yourself. And it's a lot of fun too! We sure had a ton of fun at the club while making our lanyards. Ever seen 25 grown ups fumbling with beads and screaming for another colored bead?

Okay, what do we need to make a lanyard? About 1 meter of 3 mm rope (I bought them at the local outdoors shop), about 30 cm of 2 mm rope, lots of colorful wooden beads (do check with the size of the hole needed to get the rope through!), a clip (snap it to your shirt to prevent the lanyard from dangling), some large swivels, a piece of PVC tube, a piece of foam rubber tube and a line stopper. Check out the picture to see what the items are.

Some details you need to take a closer look at are the tippet spool holder, the line stopper (to get rid of the lanyard if you get caught with your lanyard in a dangerous situation), the collar tube to cushion the load on your neck and the foam rubber tubes to let your flies dry. Put 2-3 beads between each swivel to avoid the tools from getting tangled.

All you need to make your own lanyard is to call up some buddies, beverages and general tools like a scissors. To make your own personal version choose different style of wooden beads in different patterns.