Okay. Today we can all shake our heads, look at the ground, and mutter the following……Rich is a bad photographer.
Now I take good pictures, work with clients, and know what I’m doing. I’m not a fauxtographer or anything. But today I did commit the cardinal photography sin. I didn’t have a the camera right with me.
This afternoon I went over to my sister and brother-in-law’s place for lunch. I had a camera with me and took some photos off of their dock. We enjoyed some food, I helped a nephew with his lego plane. Then everyone decided to head down to the water for a swim, and I decided to pop the camera in the truck. Then I borrowed their restroom, and as I was coming out I heard my sister yelling, “Richard, come with the camera….something about a fish.”
The truck was a distance from the house, and I figured it’s just a fish, I’m getting plenty of fish photos. I’ll let this one pass…..
Walking down the stairs to the lake I saw a Bass Boat near their dock. The fisherman was really struggling with something, but I couldn’t see what. As I got closer to the shore he began to get the fish ready to come out of the water. And then I saw it. A 3ft Tiger Musky without a doubt. They can get as large as 30lbs.
The fishing pole was nearly bent in half, the fisherman was trying to reach the backside of the fish to get it into the boat. And he just couldn’t do it. 3 times he tried to get it in and he yelled to us, “It’s mouth is full of teeth.” Finally on the last attempt the fishing line snapped, one of the eyelets on the pole came off, and the fish was gone.
I am a bad photographer for not having the big lens and the 5D ready. Seriously, catching one of these things is extremely rare. And they’re not supposed to be here anymore. Years ago they were introduced to the lake to thin some overpopulation issues in the lake. See, the musky eat other fish. Perch, small mouth bass, kivers, etc. And Tiger Musky (a hybrid) are supposed to be sterile. So when they were introduced here they were supposed to fade into memory after their job of thinning fish populations was done.
Well, one of them is still around. It’s 3 feet long, probably 25 – 30lbs, and looks pretty prehistoric and creepy.
Of course, when it was all said and done the fisherman went on his way pretty bummed out. And my nephews went right back to swimming where the huge fish released itself!
As they say here in New England, “That fish was Wicked!”
Too bad the pro photographer wasn’t at the ready, because this totally sounds like a fish tale. 🙁