- IF4, International Fly Fishing Film Tour, a special Saltwater Cut for us here in Florida.
- Very Cool trick try this it works awesome.
- Dragon Fly paddle boards in South Carolina Show this weekend.
- Real truth about SOPA
- Natural Laws
- Clay Dyer, can’t help but to be inspired by this guy
- Invisible to the Naked eye water proofing you iphone
- Tuna gets over $700,000 at the fish market
- Real Cyclops Shark found
- White Pelican eating a pigeon
Aperture Books & Borders FX Plugin
Been playing with new ways to present pictures to friends/clients and came across a pretty cool feature in the photo editor I use – Aperture 3. The software allows you to select a number of photos and then include them in “book” format. The intention is for you to arrange your photos to form a coffee table book or a book to share with family (I’m actually considering doing a coffee table book for the house with some fishing pics). Coffee table material aside, I think the “book” layout is pretty cool just for one single photo assortment. You can document a day’s worth of fishing on one big photo collage…just chose several photos and click “new book”. You can tweak the size of each photo and color the background however you want. You can also use the borders fx plugin to add text without going into photoshop. I used it to give a friend of mine some ideas on a new flyer for his charter business…they’ve got tons of letter fonts to chose from. You could potentially arrange flyers, business cards, or whatever with your photos and designs without having to fork out a bunch of cash. Anyway, hope this is useful for somebody out there. I’ve had fun messing around with it.
January Redfish Trip
Summer Grass Flat Fishing
Random Georgetown Pics
Douglas’ Flyer
Loon Nip N’ Sip review by Brian Sawyer
By: Brian Sawyer
I was growing tired of carrying the same dull pair of finger nail clippers in my back pocket I decided to surf the internet for a decent set of line nippers. Low and behold I stumbled up upon these little guys, The Loon Nippers. So I got on the horn with Loon, and I was delivered pair within three days. Seeing as how they were priced at only $20 I didn’t exactly think I was getting the world’s greatest fishing tool. Man was I wrong, these things are amazing!
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As I am on the water quite frequently I always carry a pair of pliers on me, any fisherman would be a fool not to. However, sometimes your standard pliers just don’t cut it (no pun intended). When I need to cut the tag ends of a blood knot all the way to the knot or clear an eye of a hook, regular pliers tend to fall short and you need a more specific tool. That’s where the Loon nips have really come in handy.
Of course I had a few test of my own:
I cut several thickness of mono line including 10lb -120lb and even 400lb! Although the 400lb line needed quite a bit of pressure, it cut through all of them flawlessly.
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(400lb Monofilament Line)
Another great feature that performed impeccably was the eye clearing needle. It is located just in-between the jaws out of the way of any accidental slip of the finger. Its stainless steel thorn will clear the toughest powder coat build up on any jig head as well as any excess thread build up around the eye of a fly.
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Overall, the Loon “Nip ‘N Sip” nipper is quite an impressive tool. Whether you are a hard core fly fisherman or just a beer drinking weekend warrior these nips are perfect for any angler’s pocket. At a low cost of only $20 and a stainless steel construction you can’t go wrong.
Amazon Link to the Loon Nip N’ Sip
X-Fish SUF Fishing Boards review, based out of Sarasota Florida
The last few years I have seen the popularity of the Stand up paddle board(SUP) grow drastically. Most were buying them for exercise and some fisherman started to modify them to fish from.
They figure by adding coolers, seats, leaning post and rod holders they can get to the fish quietly and in the up right position. Versus a kayak, this allows for better sight fishing and of course there’s the “coolness” factor as well.
With every gadgets of this sort there are always people willing to pushing the envelope. Soon what was once just a big surf board gets bigger and bigger. People beyond just the rod holders and added trolling motors, seats etc.
This brings me to the X-Fish SUF fishing board my friend told me about it when they attended a boat show recently. After reading about my interest on Facebook, Frank Wade one of the guys that own one, called me up and ask if I wanted to demo the unit. One fine morning, I was glad to meet him down at EG Simmons park to check it out.
Being on a SUP only once in life I’m by not means an expert one but I sure as heck fish a bunch and know what I like.
I would call this a micro skiff, stand up paddle board hybrid. Not quite as light as a SUP but not a real boat either.
The SUF looks great and well thought out. Handles to carry it easier, wells for fly lines in the front, rod holders and such.
The model Frank had rigged up was the motorized version. The rig was cleverly done. The controls for the trolling motor is tethered to the chair. When you pivot left it turns left, when you pivot right it turns right. The control of speed, forward and reversed next to your thigh.
The sitting position is super comfortable. I say more comfortable that any kayak seat I have been in. Stability while sitting is also excellent. I stood up and did not have any issues with balance. If you like standing up and fish you will like how the X-fish fish.
There is a cooler holder in front of your seat which fits perfectly a Coleman cooler. Not only does this allows you to travel with food and drinks it also doubles as a casting deck. The casting deck gives the angler better view and vantage point when looking for those sneaky fish on the flats.
In front of the cooler is recessed area. This space is great for holding fly line from blowing into the water.
Once in the water the boat moves around very nibble. The draft is minimal but you will need about 12 inches if you are using the trolling motor.
I ran the boat with the motor as well has turning it off, paddling it standing up. Even with the excess weight of the battery and motor I though it was paddled well and was very stable.
If you’re looking for cross over from Kayak, SUP + micros skiff this might be the unit for you.
It will not be for you if you are looking to throw it over a fence or put it on top off a SUV. It has more weight than your regular kayak and a bit cumbersome to launch but once on the water it is a very good fishing platform.
Loon Outdoors “Nip N Sip” – Holiday Gift Idea
Came across a cool product from Loon Outdoors that I thought I would pass along…its is called a “Nip N Sip”. When fishing aboard someone else’s boat, I’m always fumbling around trying to find scissors or something to cut leader material and braid with. The Nip N Sip may be the answer – it is a line cutter on one end and a bottle opener on the other end. Two things that can come in handy on a weekend fishing trip. There’s also a needle for clearing hook eyes. The Nip N Sip is a solid piece of stainless steel that should stand up to plenty of abuse and bottle openings – and it fits easily on your key ring. Would make a great gift or stocking stuffer for the angler in your life. www.loonoutdoors.com
Fishing camera, Nikon AW100, slow motion video, waterproof camera
Review of the Nikon AW100 16mp waterproof camera, with HD video 1080p and slow motion video features.
Since I’ve been fishing quite a bit in Kayaks lately it was such a total pain to take photos with a bulky DSLR. The iphone was ok but really didn’t want the hassle of carrying it around. I own a kodak playsport still but at 5mp and no flash the photos just wasn’t the best. Beside it was 2 years old and plenty of waterproof cameras has came out side then.
After some research I decided to get the Nikon AW100. It had Nikon glass, rugged and waterproof up to 10 meters. 16 megapixel was big but I wasn’t too worried about that. I like the fact it was 25mm wide angle so it allows me to take good photos of fish while measuring them for tournaments as well.
The camera was rugged and flat. Super easy to to use. No much in manual controls but if you’re looking to just turn it on and shoot it’s perfect. I liked the Canon D10 but it only did SD video and was kind of bulky.
A big plus was the way Nikon decided to make the latch on the camera water tight. When you open it, you have to press a button down then turn it. This makes it practically impossible for you to leave it open accidentally before entering the watery domain. I had a Pentax and this was a big issue with many people. Just bumping it wrong while underwater will cause the Pentax to leak. This more than likely will not happen to the Nikon.
The macro features allows me to get ridiculously close to the subject, almost touching it. The video was what sealed the deal for me. I wanted 1080p HD which many of them did, but this one did at lower resolution 120 frames as well as 240 frames per second.
Note, one thing it does not have is the ability to shoot raw.
Overall I’m pretty happy with the camera. I will keep it with me while doing travels, especially kayak fishing and other rugged activities when the DSLR is just too bulky to carry around.
For the Holidays Amazon is running a discount on it. Nikon AW100 16mp waterproof camera
This was shot in 120fps and slowed down even more in post.
More on the water photos of the Nikon AW100 here:http://saltyshores.com/wordpress/2011/12/15/fishing-reports/kayak-fishing-tampa-26-trout-first-photos-with-the-nikon-aw100/
Gift Idea: Zip Cut Pro inrod, line cutter video review
How often have you been fishing,want something to cut your line but it seems you are always fumbling around looking for your pliers or cutters.
Instead of you using your teeth or asking your buddy for cutters there is new gadget I ran across at the ICAST 2011 called Zip Cut pro.
This little $9.95 gadget cuts line like butter and attaches right to the spinning, bait casting or fly rod. It even has lure/hook hanger for rods that do not have one built in.
It is made of stainless steel so it holds up in salt water and and cuts up to 100lb line.
This is perfect for wade fishing, as well as just strapping it on a railing on a boat so everyone can use it. Very useful fishing tool at under $10.00
Gift Ideas: Chums fishing lanyard and SWC hoodie, Polar buff
Chums Fishing Lanyard
Cool ideas for fisherman who has cutters, power pole remote, trolling motor remote all on different straps. This lanyard can hold them all pretty comfortably for under $20.00
SWC has always been known for their unique edgy artwork style on their apparel. They just recently came out with the hoodie for the winter months. It’s a 80% polyester blend with makes it great for quick drying if you get it wet and breathable. Thumb holes for slipping it into a jacket and a removable hood. I’ve been using it on the water for a few weeks so this is first hand experience not a brochure read.
Its very comfortable fit quite well. Fit and finish is excellent with double stitching and reinforced materials in all the important areas.
More specs in apparel words on the web site: Skinny Water Culture Hoodie
Here is a quick video I shot so you can see the fit. We were blown off the water(you can hear the 20knot winds even behind the mangroves) so I figure I use the time to do couple product videos.
Most people do not know this, but Buff one of the original head wear manufacturer, has what they called a “Polar Buff”
It is a made out of the popular and highly effective, award winning Polartec material.
It does not get that cold here in Florida, but on those long boat runs in winter time. The regular buff helps but just doesn’t cut out enough wind. This is where the Polar Buff shines.
I first found out about the Polar Buff a year ago in L.A. Tom of Wangachor and I was in LA last year fishing the marshes (Jan) and when the air temp is 29 degrees this was a godsend. If you often find yourself wishing for a warmer buff this time of year this is worth a look. It now comes in the Bug Slinger series of fly fishing centric design as well.
Here’s another video shot with Krista same cold windy day.
Portable wireless speaker system the Jambox by Jawbone: review
Being near the Christmas holidays I know many of you are looking for cool gift ideas. (more later on this)
Lauren told me about this speaker system the other day while we were shooting the 3Fadventures .
The product is called a Jambox by jawbone, the same people that makes Bluetooth headsets. I always wanted something I could carry with me to show people videos and music during trade shows and while traveling. I bought a couple wired ones($39 to $89 dollars range) that works but it was such a pain to deal with all the cables at times and they quite frankly did not sound that good.
A wireless blue tooth solution was perfect but I wanted something that was loud and sounded good as well.
After some research on the jambox I decided to buy one. I have to say I’m pretty satisfied. By no means will the sound beat a true monster home system but for the size and what it offers it is well worth it.
- The sound is excellent, good bass considering the size
- Last up to 10 hours
- pairing with your phone, ipad was effortless
- With only 4 buttons it was very easy to use and figure out.
- sticky shell so it wont slide on boats and car dashes
- Any phone with bluetooth can use it which is pretty much all smart phones these days droids and iphones.
- small compact, no knobs, nothing to snap off.
- Easy to charge. Any micro usb works
I found the unit at best buy at 25% off but looking on line many places were out of stock of them.
Here is a link to Amazon at the Sale price.: JamBox Amazon
Bellow is a video I did so you could hear the sound quality.
How to Deep Fry a Turkey for Thanksgiving with Hank
11.24.2011
Today like most people I had turkey for the Thanksgiving holiday.
If you have never had deep fried turkey you have to give it a try. To me, it taste better, more moist and much faster to cook.
Not that I am going to take credit for deep frying a turkey but my friend Hank said he would cook it for me if I got the turkey and bring it over.
Here’s the process.
1 already thawed turkey. I got one about 12 lbs at lest than 60cents per pound
I injected the turkey with a Cajun Butter kit from Stubbs. This was bought at Winn Dixie and it came with the injector and all for about $5.00
Next was to preheat the deep fryer filled with peanut oil to 325 degrees.
Lower the Turkey really slow to avoid spillage
let it sit for 4.25 minutes times lb of turkey.
So 12 x 4.25 = 51 minutes and I had moist delicious turkey. Thanks Hank!
