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Through the Lens

Kentucky crappie, bluegill bedding!

Thu, May 10, 2012

I had the great fortune to be invited to Kentucky by my good friend and fellow outdoor blogger Jody Narrantic of The Hunter’s Wife fame. Prior to my scheduled departure she started texting me and sending photos of over flowing fish baskets and cleaning tables. The crappie and bluegill were on fire she said, making my scheduled departure date seem light years away. With each little update she would send, I was sorely tempted to chuck it all and point the snapshotmobile south at high rate of speed.

I joked with her once I finally got underway that I was pretty sure that once I arrived the bite would shut off like someone throwing a switch. Luckily that wasn’t case!

Our fishy home away from home at Eddy Bay Resort

Upon my arrival at Eddy Bay Resort Lodging, where The Hunter’s Wife and her dear husband Mark make their home for a few weeks each spring, I was greeted by said husband who immediately begin to spoil me and ruin me for all my male fishing companions here at home. Mark’s knowledge of the lake, and the hot spots was phenomenal. Although he isn’t a fishing guide, I’m pretty sure he should be!

One look at my ratty redneck tackle bag and beat up rods and reels, Mark announced - “Just leave that stuff here at the lodge - I have you all set up.” And boy did he ever. My rod and reel was set, ready to go, assorted lures and baits that Mark knew would be productive were laid out like smorgasbord for me to pick from.

Within just a few minutes of hitting the water we had fish on.  Fat bull bluegill were hanging over the beds - easy to see in the clean clear water of Lake Barkley. The beds were in the shallow coves and most often at depths of not much over 3 feet, while the crappie were hanging just a bit further out in depths of about 9 - 10 feet.

Just one of the happy crappie moments - photo courtesy of The Hunter’s Wife

Mark had expertly rigged my pole with a teeny green Nail Tail tipped with a wax worm. Mark’s selection was spot on and the first cast a big bull gill slammed it.

Gills I can catch, but I’ve always had troubles with crappie - rumor has it I’m just to jerky and rough on our little papermouthed friends. Mark helped me learn to ease them along and “Get them in the boat” .

The crappie that had me jumping around like a three year old! photo courtesy of The Hunter’s Wife

I was thrilled with the first crappie I “Got in the boat” - while not a slab by most standards - the 13 incher made me a happy gal!

I don’t want to ruin The Hunter’s Wife “EEEW that’s icky - I am not touching a slimy fish” reputation with this photo, so I am required to say .... she only agreed to pose with it because I whined - she remains anti fish slime, and anti icky things!

By the time we were ready to head in for late morning snack, the fish basket was full to over flowing and we had to take a break to clean fish and empty the basket.

And so it went during my whole stay with The Hunter’s Wife. It was some of the best fishing ever- the action was constant, so constant that I had to periodically had to just set my rod aside and rest while I drank some coffee and had a snack.

By days end on day one- the evening fish fry was most welcome and it wasn’t long after feasting on fresh as could be fish, Jody’s delicious special jalepeno hush puppies, corn, slaw and tasty beverages we tumbled off to sleep so we would be ready again at dawn to slap more crappie and gills!

I’ll be posting more from the trip, but this morning (after only being home about 24hours) I’m heading out the National Archery in Schools Program’s National Tournament.  I’ve been “embedded”  with a young shooter form Missouri, and his mother just called to remind me to not be late!

Stay tuned Heartland friends, there’s more fish tales, (and soon arrow tales) coming!

Thanks so much Jody and Mark Narrantic and The Hunter’s Wife for such a wonderful mini vacation!

 

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5 Ideas for an Outdoor Mom

Thu, May 03, 2012

Mother’s Day is hovering on the horizon and it’s time to look at some great gift ideas for the outdoors woman in your life!

1 : Grab and Go Bag – this is an inexpensive way to put together a quick grab and go bag that your favorite outdoors woman will surely use and love. Purchase a small travel/makeup bag along with some lip balm, sample sizes of hand sanitizer, sunscreen, baby wipes, lip balm, insect repellent wipes, and hand lotion. Throw in a couple of single serve drink mix “straws”  and your favorite outdoors woman won’t have to scramble around each time she heads out the door. She can simply grab her “Grab and Go Bag” and have those commonly needed items ready and waiting. For an extra special touch, put in a little “I love you because…” note and she will always know how special she is! 

2.  Rite in the Rain – Regardless of what her outdoor passion might be, Rite In the Rain makes a product that will help your favorite outdoors lady keep track of her outdoor notes regardless of the weather.  Rite in The Rain offers something for everyone, including well thought out and weather proof kits that make journaling and note keeping even easier. Best of all, no matter how wet the conditions, Rite in the Rain papers and pens work every single time with no smudging, running or loss of those important notes or data!

3. Alpen Optics -  PINK 263P Series Binoculars – Tired of fighting over who gets a turn with the binos? What outdoor gal could resist the great and reasonably priced Alpen Pink series? The 263P compact model has all of the great Alpen Optics features any outdoors woman could want and also gives a second gift as they help to fund Alpen’s annual donation to breast cancer research. The Alpen 263P features lightweight, compact construction, a wide angle field of view, fold down rubber eye cups, multicoated optical system for brightness, BAK4optics for a bright and sharp high resolution image, durable rubber covering for shock resistance, comfort and firm grip, a handy and durable nylon carrying case, neck strap, and cleaning cloth, and Alpen’s No Fault, No-Problem Lifetime Warranty!

4. Prois Eliminator Series Jacket –  Really want to make your Outdoor Mother happy? Prois is always a perfect choice! The Prois Eliminator Jacket will quickly become your outdoors woman’s go to jacket for all seasons and all weather. Layer up under it during colder weather, avoid the sauna syndrome in warmer wet weather. The Eliminator is Prois’ waterproof/breathable jacket that is a necessity for the avid outdoor enthusiast. Engineered with 100% polyester 8000/5000 laminate- the shell is remarkably soft and utterly silent. Taped seams and waterproof zippers with snap-down sliders ensure the wearer remains warm and dry. The Eliminator is lined with Prois’ signature nylon tricot lining system which provides ease of donning and precision of movement. Hood is complete with exterior elastic drawstring to ensure optimal fit and peripheral vision. The Prois Ducktail sets this piece apart from the rest of the pack! This feature is designed to keep the ‘back side’ dry…the ducktail unsnaps from the inside to drop down and extend the base of the jacket to add additional dryness and water shedding in the elements. The Eliminator is the ULTIMATE rain jacket! *Just a note – this the jacket that I always have with me – year round it keeps me dry in even the nastiest wet conditions!

5. HerCamoShop -  Need more ideas for great gifts for the outdoor woman in your life? A quick visit to the great online store HerCamShop will reveal a large variety of items at an equally large variety of price points. Want to salute your special someone’s abilities? Grab one of HerCamoShops great logo wear shirts that feature a cool graphic with a either a bow or firearm. How about some of HerCamoShops signature line of scent free toiletries? The possibilities are endless at Her CamoShop!
Don’t delay – start making your list and getting on the ball. Mother’s Day will be here before you know it! And we all know…

IF MAMA AIN’T HAPPY, NOBODY’S HAPPY!

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Time to Shoot the Moon!

Wed, May 02, 2012

The largest and brightest full moon of the year is nearly upon us. It will be occurring this weekend, so dust off your camera, use these tips, and get out there to see if you can’t capture some great moon shots this weekend!

We know that the full moon has lots allure, lots of mystery, and the myth that lunacy tends to increase during the period of the full moon.  If you have ever felt like a lunatic out there trying repeatedly to capture a good photo of the full moon hopefully these tips will make it easier for you and give new meaning to “ shooting the moon” for you.

First – throw out any ideas you have that you are working in low light, or at night. That’s where many go wrong when attempting to photograph a full moon. The full moon actually puts out a great deal of light; thus when you attempt to use settings that correspond to low light or nighttime, you end up with an extremely over exposed white spot. None of the texture and beauty associated with the full moon.
Here are the specifics that will help to make you lunar photography escapade a little less lunatic.

Gear
• Tripod – Although it’s a quick exposure, you’ll get the best results setting your camera on a tripod. Remember that you want detail and any kind of motion blurring can ruin the shot.  If you don’t have tripod, try looking for a fence post, a porch rail, any solid firm surface where you can securely rest your camera.

• Telephoto lens –  Another common error that many make is failing to use a long enough focal length lens to capture the moon and render the detail vs having just a small bright spot in an otherwise dark scene. For a good moon shot you’ll need a telephoto lens. You don’t need an expensive one, but you need a lens that will at least have a 300mm focal length. The longer the focal length the better. If you are using a super zoom point and shoot check your camera documentation to see what the 35mm equivalents are for your lens. 

• Shutter Release Cable – This one you really can fudge on, by simply using the time on your camera. The goal is to avoid any, or as much “ camera shake” as you possibly can and the accompanying motion blur in the image.  The pressure of your fingers on the shutter button will increase the motion blur. To avoid this you can can use a shutter release, a remote shutter release,  or use the shutter delay / timer feature of your camera. A 2 second delay is more than enough to get your hands of the camera.

Out there and shooting!

One easy way to remember what settings and how/where to start is the “Lunatic Rule” as I like to call it. Start out with F/11 at 100 ISO, and a shutter speed of 1/125 – 1/250. Remember that the Earth’s atmosphere absorbs a huge amount of the light and this initial group of settings will likely vary according to the angle of the moon above the horizon and the amount of dust, pollen and debris in the atmosphere. Using a “fixed” value does not always work in every situation, but it gives you a starting spot. You can easily make adjustments after a quick look at the images on your LCD screen .

Get your camera securely situated on the tripod, fence post, or big rock and dial in the following settings. A note here about point and shoots – this may not be possible of your particular camera model does not offer you the ability to use what is commonly known as “manual mode” .

Start with the following settings:
• Aperture at f/11
• ISO 100 or your camera’s lowest ISO setting
• Shutter Speed of 1/125 – 1/250

Now set your autofocus to point, aim at the moon, focus and turn the autofocus off. Don’t be fiddling around with the focus once you have it set. If you prefer to manually focus – have at it, in fact some cameras with auto focus will “ hunt” and not lock on the focus very well so you might have to manually focus.  Once the focus is set, there’s no need to keep fiddling with it – unless you move the camera location.

For good measure bracket your exposure one or two stops. Most of the DSLRS out there today will allow you to “auto bracket” . This a great option to use if you have it available. It will save you the trouble of shooting the image, changing the shutter speed, shooting again, and so on.

And that is really all there is to it!

After The Image Capture

Now that you have your moon photo, it’s time to work on it in post processing. Let’s clear up any misconception that I am a straight out of the camera snob kind of gal- especially since I always shoot in RAW.  A great image straight out of the camera can be stellar with a few post processing tricks.

Chances are you will want to crop the photo, so that the moon will come in closer appearing and to fill the frame with more of the moon.  Sometimes, this will be the only post processing needed for you to have a moon image that you are happy with and want to hang on the wall. If you want to make it even better, try playing a bit with the curves on Photoshop ( or a free program called GIMP) . You’ll probably manage to give more texture to your photo by increasing the contrast between midtones and highlights.  If you use Lightroom ( my personal favorite for photo processing and cataloging) you should try fiddling a bit with the clarity, contrast, highlight, and shadow sliders, to get the desired effect.

See there….shooting the moon isn’t so lunatic after all. It’s certainly not that difficult, so get out there this weekend, enjoy the biggest and brightest full moon of the year and grab some great moon photos!

I’d love to see your moon photos, so I’m going to start a thread over in the forum where we can share our moon images. Maybe if we ask nicely our fearless leader Jeff will share a few in an upcoming issue of Heartland!

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