Photo by Pat Murray
By Pat Murray
In an era when virtually all anglers now carry a sophisticated, often-waterproof, phone camera in their pocket at all times, outdoor photography has taken a great leap forward both in volume and quality. Gone are the days where a casual photographer has to carry a camera bag, multiple lenses and other equipment to take a high-quality photo. But, even with this revolutionary evolution in phone camera quality, there are still ways to improve your odds of turning a beautiful or striking fishing scene into a publishable photo opportunity. With this in mind, I reached out to three leading outdoor photographers who regularly appear in TIDE Magazine and asked them for a tip for the experienced or better-yet emerging phone photographer.
“Don’t be afraid to use your phone’s multiple lenses (if available) and camera angles in non-traditional ways. Super wide lenses can create unique angles – such as from a cockpit floor looking up while an angler fights a fish. Additionally, super-close focused images can provide unique detail to that redfish eyeball or colorful yellowfin’s sickle-fins.”
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“Take lots of pictures! One dirty secret to being a good photographer is taking tons of shots and changing up your perspective for the desired results. It’s a numbers game, more shots equal more possibility to get a good one.”
“Proper lighting is arguably the most important aspect of taking any photo. Try to take a photo where the available light is on the subject to fill out the shadows but, if possible, the subject should not be in direct light that can creates hard shadows. With direct sunlight overhead, it helps to use the fill flash or light on the camera to soften the shadows. Also the portrait photo mode with the “studio light” setting on an iphone provides a softer, blurred background and seems to enhance the angler and fish in the photo.”
