One of the first lessons I received when learning to fly fish was confidence. "You've got to have confidence in that fly, in yourself," Jacob's words have remained with me all these years. It's why I fish certain patterns, choose long casts over short rolls and why I move through the water the way I do. It's all about where my confidence lies.
It's a funny thing when you lose your confidence. Perhaps you've spent some time off the water or had one too many bad trips. Maybe it was caused by a harsh word or unfounded judgment by a fellow angler. Then again it may have just disappeared and you have no idea how it happened.
For a while now my life has been filled with surgery, doctor's visits, high water, and more doctor's visits, with strict orders to stay out of the rivers and off the mountains. My body became fatigued during the process and my mind weak, resulting in a catastrophic lack of confidence.
Remember, It's Not All About the Fish
*Not a picture of a fish
When you're staring at a computer screen for multiple hours straight you begin to get dull ache behind eyes that are strained and on the verge of crossing. I had just reached that point. January 2017, sub-folder, Davidson, sub-folder, 1-23-17; then on to 2016, 2015, and so forth. Some part of me had no idea how many photographs I had acquired over the years, another part was fully aware, which is why I'd been putting this project off for so long.
I was asked by the Carolina Cane Gathering to give a talk on photography and fly fishing, and I needed to pull all my thoughts together in a visually interesting way. Look for triangles. Avoid direct sunlight; remember, all things on the river are reflective. Don't hold a tout with dry hands. Don't hold a trout with gloved hands. "Banking" fish is bad. Etc, etc, etc...
Remember, it's not all about the fish.
Read moreI Got Called Out
So, I got called out, and I totally deserved it.
As some of you may remember from a few months ago in my A House Divided, Again post the past two weekends were filled with meeting fellow anglers. It's been a busy few weeks and I was using that as an excuse for my lack of posts.
Read moreMy Story
When I was young, very young I had a unique soap set for bath time. The bars were in the shapes of different endangered species around the world. It was produced by the World Wildlife Federation to help get kids interested in animals, the environment, etc...
This is my first memory of conservation.
Read moreThe Next Valley Over
"The majority of anglers who travel to fish are by nature either pastoralists or nomads."
-Charles Gaines
Meaning that while we're all there for the same reason, you've got those that are happy to stay in the "designated" waters and those that are always looking towards The Next Valley Over.
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