Two PB Sunfish in 1 day :-)

[Fish Chris]

Sorry, it's been quite a while since I have been here. I LOVE big Sunnies.... If only I could connect with them on a little more regular basis, I'd spend more time here.

 

Anyway, a week ago, I got into some really good Redear fishing {+ a few good Bluegills mixed in, too}. Caught about 35 of them, with a bunch of legit 2 lb'ers. I kept 12 of them for the pan, and they went 22.1 lbs.

 

Now, in my experiences, I almost never go back to a sunfish bite like this a week later, to find them still there....

So from that standpoint, I guess yesterday was a blessing, because not only were they on still, but I caught my new PB Bluegill, of 2.0 lbs {yes, of course I took photos... but 1) the fish was really old / beat up looking, 2) it didn't show the size well, and 3) next to the photo of the Redear I'm fixing to post, it just wouldn't be worth posting.

 

Anyway, after about 4 hours of fishing, and numerous legit 2+ Redears, I stuck "the one"  :) I really thought I had hooked a good sized bass. I hadn't retied my 4lb leader for at least a couple fish prior, so I was really nervous / gentle with the fight, but I did finally land it.

It ended up going 3.2 lbs, and was 14 1/2" in length :)

I was extra pleased that the photos came out as good as they did.

 

Only bummer is, I won't be able to go back out for at least 2 weeks, and by then, they will almost certainly be gone :(

 

I sure know where I will be a BUNCH early next Summer ;)

 

Peace,

Fish 

[Tim Overbaugh]

Wow!  You don't see many that big.  Almost has the colors of a largemouth.

Excellent catch.

[Bruce Condello]

Chris, are you generally using any daytime fill flash?

[Fish Chris]

Excellent question Bruce, and the answer is, "yes". Lot's of fill flash :) In fact, I have found that since I use my camera in a pretty much full manual mode anyway, that if I go on an purposely under expose the rest of the shot by 2 or 3 stops, but light up myself, and the fish, with a good amount of fill flash (about 3/4's of max, on my camera) it can really help to eliminate the shadowing that you often get with hard, direct sunlight.

It also really helps with a nice, blue sky, and greenery in the back ground :)

 

Oh, and finally, because I run such a fast(er than normal) shutter, it really eliminates any shake. A cool little bonus is when I can catch a water dropplett or two in mid-air, below the fish ;-)

 

Peace,

Fish

 

[Fish Chris]

Thank you 2lb :)

 

I have a Canon T1i (500D)..... but wish I could afford a 7D (for wildlife) and a 5D2 (for landscapes).

 

As much as I love my A630, A640, and A650is (point and shoots) for self taken fish shots, the only thing that sucks, is that Canon quit making these a couple years ago, and basically made nothing as an exact replacement :( I still believe Canon decided they were too much camera, for not enough $ {cutting their own profits, so to speak} So now you have to pay twice as much, for 90% of the camera :(

 

Here's a couple recent shots from my T1i

 

 

Peace,

Fish