We have discussed this briefly in the past. I have just about all of the gear I need (and hopefully most of the editing skills) to shoot and produce a high quality fishing based film.
This is not about advertising locations (who the wants to do that?) but more about producing something of decent quality and general interest. I have some of my own ideas for this and how to go about it and I'd like to hear about any ideas you might have.
Like any project on any subject it would have to be well planned and scripted at least the basic framework anyway.
All the best fishing books, films etc I have seen have been based around fishing rather than being exclusively about fishing. Lots of background, nature etc and have some kind of plot and theme.
So what might your ideas be?
As little talking as possible!
I've been watching Paul G's series on YouTube I know its about tenkara but massive portions of it are interviews with the Japanese talking about how they got started and other things but after 2 minutes I loose interest. Its nice that they have gone to the effort of this but for me its not what I want to watch. I'd rather see the practical side on skills on the water a 15 minute video of constant fishing and talking about the technique being used is far better to me than 50 mins of interview and 3 minutes of fishing. That's my opinion and I'm sure others will disagree.
I also watched another YouTube vid of a chap fishing a small stream in Yorkshire again not a lot of fishing but a lot of what's going on around grey wagtail tree creeper etc. Here's the but he spent too long on this stuff and you didn't see much fishing. I think its about creating an even balance.
Now don't get me wrong I'll be the first to say I'm interested in all things nature as you will probably know but when I'm looking to watch a fishing programme I don't want the host to side track onto dead trees with multiple fungus growing off it and holding the camera there for 5 minutes or using the wag tail again for 3 minutes when its not doing anything of interest. If its fishing it should be fishing focused and anything else should be included but not as a main feature.
Humour needs to be in there somewhere and a good soundtrack in parts too, for me fishing is not just about the fish, it's a whole atmosphere.
Not sure that this will help, but I have seen lots of videos of (obviously) trout fishing on Scottish rivers and a lot about habitat improvement/pressures which is something I am interested in (diffuse pollution, predation, bank stabilisation, removal of impoundments, abstraction, stopping beasts poach rivers etc etc). I not sure I have ever seen a video that linked the issues.
A classic case in point would be Loch Leven; it has had it all old classic fishery, diffuse pollution, decline, terrible management decisions (over stocking/rainbow), cormorant predation, return to wild fishery and continued improvement.
Similar stories abound on the industrial rivers of Central Scotland?
All suggestions and opinions help. :D
Great idea Fred.
I always liked the way Oliver Edwards went about his programmes. I like the idea of tying a fly, then showing how to fish it, what kind of water you are looking for and hopefully show it catching as well!
Quote from: sagecirca on April 16, 2017, 10:50:49 PM
I always liked the way Oliver Edwards went about his programmes.
They had a good balance. I really enjoyed his films.
I'll need to go out and buy a Morris Traveler! :lol:
The 'Passion for Angling' series featuring the brothers Yates was one of my favourites. it was just so natural and easy going. I think the narrator as well as those in the film actually speaking is a good format. I always like to know the purpose of the film from the start and its always better if its a challenge to find and catch by a particular technique. the failures are as interesting as the victories but no Robson Green style tantrums please ! :lol:
I also liked the Olive Edwards programmes. I find many of the videos really just show you a couple of pieces of stunning scenery, a few rising fish, few arty shots of insects or flies in or on the water and then a series of scenes of people stiking into fish and subsequent screaming reels.
A more general instructional plot would be more attractive to my self, a background commentary describing details of the water shown where fish are likely to be lying, why a certain approach was used. In this resect use of a drone could be good to give an overview of a stretch of water, highlighting area of interest, fish lies etc. Then progress onto more conventional camera work for the actual fishing.
I would also agree that additional information on local flora and fauna is great to include but should be fishing related.
i have been thinking about a project concerning my local river, especially as my best mate (a semi-pro photographer) has now started doing drone stuff. i had the idea of a story to hang it on, being a piece of writing about the river; when we first moved in Part-Time dropped round the day after with "the Muckle Troot of the Dulnain". we'd never met before, but became firm friends....
you can see where this is going, hopefully? sort of a work in (not much :lol:) progress
some 'framing' footage of planning & discussion in the tackle-room/balcony, a bit of socio-historical/natural history bollocks, trying to hunt down our very own muckle troot (location, tackle, tactics), an exploration of the river, great friends finally triumphant or thwarted (doesn't really matter either way). ZZZZzzzzzz next stop BBC2 & Ewan MacGregor doing the voice-over :lol: :8)
These old films were good & still are they set the standards for others to follow.
Having said that there are some really professional films out there. Only concerns I have about some them are in some cases the actual fishermen are how can we say it not very good. The one about Spring Creeks is a case in point poor casting. The filmmakers in the main though are the opposite, very good. Only other gripe is the "mad music" in a few does my nut in. A tasteful selection to enhance the film works well should be no problem for Fred ?
:)
Other than that a nice mixture works well. A beginning ,a middle & an end.
Tight Lines
Quote from: corsican dave on April 21, 2017, 01:59:04 PM
Ewan MacGregor doing the voice-over
I was hoping for David Tennant. :lol:
Quote from: Highlander on April 21, 2017, 02:22:19 PM
Only other gripe is the "mad music" in a few does my nut in.
Same here. I love Led Zeppelin, but James Taylor style would be more appropriate for a fly fishing film.
Quote from: admin on April 21, 2017, 02:24:39 PM
Same here. I love Led Zeppelin, but James Taylor style would be more appropriate for a fly fishing film.
depends on the subject and the style. trashy, urban with strange angles & rapid jump-cuts lends itself to RATM or similar....
cuts & fades are a subject in their own right. most amateurs use far too many fancy cuts & it just looks rubbish. most professionals generally only use a straight jump cut or fade.
it's also worth timing each shot on a film you like. you'll rarely find a shot that lasts longer than 20 seconds or so. even when it's a speech to camera there'll be other shots cut in or taken from a different angle by a second camera to break it up a bit
I really like what these guys do. As Burnie says, a good soundtrack (subjective, of course) goes a long way. As you allude to as well Fred, it's about the adventure, experience, and environment as much as the fishing . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmsxtidcXso (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmsxtidcXso)
the short film "the source" re. new Zealand is another that's always stuck with me.
Chris Yates and Bob James were recruited by top wildlife cameraman Hugh Miles to make Passion for Angling, my favourite by some distance. I understand from talking to them that the shooting of that series took years and the editing took nearly as long, sounds like a marathon task if you got the extreme end.
From a purely aesthetic point of view Fred I think that casting a fly pin is worth giving some 'air time'
If you can capture the sound and the loop of the line flipping out and laying nicely on the water it's got a very graceful, hypnotic quality on film. Very often you just see the fishers face and his arm flying back and forth with the sound of his waterproof jacket rubbing. It's hard to capture the excitement Watching people play fish but you can sum up the peace of a quiet place casting a fly line.