Bikini Flies

As a photographer, paying attention to [ppw id=”133618261″ description=”photography” price=”.10″]

details, trends and styles, is part of the grey matter that matters. It becomes impossible to turn it off, and a seventh sense of sorts. So, when I see the seven hundredth shot of some little model, or big star tugging at their bikini bottom string – up, down, in out or to the side – that’s all I see. The mainstream money making photographers have been doing that move for years now, and I thought it would have run its course a long, long time ago.

If you focus on fly fishing images, there are these same distinct images that apparently sell, which in turn sells photographers on the idea they sell, and we see a flood of shots like; 1) rod held at side pointing at water – reel in focus, long lens, tight perspective on reel 2) desolate flats – boat, fly fishing, big sky, beautiful water – in equal proportions. Then there are the amateur fish porn shots, the ones we all take; wide angle, move that fish toward the camera – YEAH! BIG. I love those shots because it so distorts reality – no one really can tell how big that fish really was unless they were there. And the quantity of these images is staggering, exploding since the digital revolution made cameras part of the standard equipment for fly fishers. It is engrained – take only pictures, leave the fish for someone else to catch again.

For the most part, with the exception of the Simms, Sage and Winston catalogs (there may be others), you will see creative kitsch abounds. Now, with the downturn in the economy, it is probable the big manufacturers will curtail if not eliminate the spending that went into their past publications. Those good times are gone, for now, and maybe forever.

One of the strangest subsets of fly fishing photography is photographing flies. Flies have all the ingredients that concoct heaps of frustration; small size, need for high detail, and what is becoming apparent – no real trends, or distinct styles that dominate the fly photography shown in magazines, on tiers sites, or in advertising imagery.

In my interpretation, fly photography – the photography of flies, is in its infancy, and that in itself is exciting. There are things that have yet to be tried, and from what I’ve seen, there is a complete lack of implementation of Adobe Photoshop in the process. As much as it is a pain to set up a complete studio to photograph something that is nearly weightless, I cannot resist the chance to capture some RAW images, put the ‘Shop on them and see what results.

So, as the world turns, take a glance back here and see how the experimentation in modern fly photography is going. There should be a few new images coming out before the fish distract the photographer from his business.

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Tags: flies, fly fishing photography, Fly Tying

Category: Fly Tying, Photography