Panasonic TS3 ups the ante over the new Fuji GPS-featured waterproof camera by throwing in GPS, barometer, altimeter and compass!

In my last post I was pretty excited about the new Fuji "tough" camera that included GPS.  But my favorite modern "tough" cameras are coming from Panasonic, and Pany has just upped the ante.  Their new model (there are actually two new models, but I view the one shown here as the better one) is the DMC-TS3.  I'd add a link to the panasonic Web site, but the camera is so new (and not yet available) that it is not yet on the panasonic USA Web site.



I don't know how the image quality will be but I like the fact that this has fewer pixels (12 megepixels) than the 14 megapixel Fuji.  Even 12 megapixels is way too many on a camera with such a small sensor.  But more pixels is what marketing departments want.  Image quality would be far better with 6 megapixels on sensors of the size of 99% of all pocket cameras.  Did you know that even on a 24" monitor that images are downsized to about 2 megapixels to fit?!  About 5 megapixels is all you need for an uncompromisingly sharp 8"x10" print.  I've even had some gorgeous 9"x12" prints from my old Pentax 3.3 megapixel waterproof camera.  The problem with more pixels is that the camera's ability to take low-light images is decreased and there is much more noise (grain) in the image... all else being equal.

...So, here are some of the main features of this new panasonic:

GPS

Altimeter

Barometer

Compass

Image stabilization

28-140mm (effective field of view) lens

Full HD movie capability

Waterproof to 12' (40m)

Shock proof for drop of 6.6' (2m)

Dustproof

Freeze proof down to 14F (-10C)

Pretty awesome, I would say.



Fuji builds first compact waterproof camera with GPS (Fujifilm XP30)

I've been a big fan of the waterproof point and shoot cameras since acquiring the now "old" pentax 33WR in 2003.  I still keep this camera in my fly vest, but am always following the newest cameras and dreaming that I might buy an "upgraded" replacement.  The Fujifilm XP40 XP30 was announced earlier this month as a "pre-CES 2011" announcement.  CES is the International Consumer Electronics Show held annually in Las Vegas.

[In the "for-what-it's-worth" department: So far, my choice would be the Panasonic, for it's useful 5x zoom with 28mm wide angle, effective image stabilization, and arguably the best image quality of the "tough" camera category.  I say this after reading perhaps every review available on the Internet. Panasonic will remain my choice until I can read reviews on the Fuji's image quality. Perhaps some meaningful reviews will be available before the spring fishing season begins!]

So far, I believe Panasonic has offered a better camera than has Fuji, which until now did not have image stabilization.  I find image stabilization to be very important for low light photos because it allows you to take shots at slower shutter speeds, and therefore get a good exposure without increasing the ISO.  (Higher ISO settings increase the sensor's sensitivity to light so you can get a good exposure using a higher shutter speed, but image quality is compromised.)

The new Fuji has included image stabilization, but more importantly (or perhaps just more interestingly) it has included GPS features.  I can see using this whenever I find a "hot" fishing spot on a remote stream.  Just take a picture of the location... perhaps, if you're lucky, a picture of one of the fish caught there.... and this will record the location.  It is my understanding that it will record the more exacting latitude and longitude and/or simply the place name (such as Yellowstone National Park).  According to the press release, the camera has an imbedded list of over one-half million place names around the world.

It is waterproof to 5 meters, shockproof up to 1.5 meters, dust and sandproof, and freezeproof to minus 10C.  These features are all pretty common on this category of cameras.

The screen shot below is from the Fuji Web site.  My daughter will be happy that it comes in her favorite color, orange.

Here's a link so you can read more about this new model:
http://www.fujifilmusa.com/products/digital_cameras/xp/finepix_xp30/





Flies With a Story: Randy Knapp's version of the Gurgle-pop

Randy Knapp sent me a great story of catching a 30" fish on a yellow Gurgle-pop and included a couple of photos of it he took in the dark.  He also has found that a slight modification of my pattern has rewarded him with a greater hookup percentage for sunfish.

You can read the story and see the pictures on the main Web site here:

http://www.fishingwithflies.com/GurglePopPopperRandy.htm



Fall Fishing begins

On Sunday morning as the temperatures began to climb over 50F, I decided to take a drive to one of my "spots" on the Millers River in central Massachusetts to see if I could catch some of the newly stocked trout. Fresh stockies was my only hope for trout, as I figured there would be no hold-overs this season.  After all, to date this is the warmest year (January through September) in history, and also one of the driest summers in Massachusetts history.

Many of the bigger rivers in Massachusetts get stocked both in the Spring and again in the Fall. October often has some of the best fishing of the season.  June if good too, but in October the air is clean and clear, and there are few anglers.

On this day, however, I got skunked.  One small fallfish (around here we erroneously call them "chubs") was all I managed to catch.  Even the smallies avoided me. But it was still a beautiful day, and after walking for an hour in the water upstream I figured at the very least I had gotten my aerobic exercise for the day.

Too, I had my camera with me.  Actually, I had two cameras. The old Pentax water resistant one, as always, was in my vest.  I used it to take the picture of the submerged maple leaf.  And in the car I had one of my newer point-and-shoots, the Panasonic LX5, which took the other two pictures below. 

Hope you enjoy the photos:





A few images from my day-trip to northern NH [Sep 19]

On Sunday the 19th, my friend Paul and I drove to northern New Hampshire for a day of fishing.  Unfortunately the water was a bit cooler and a bit higher than we were hoping for. As it turned out it was a great day of fishing but a poor day of catching! 

We each tagged a couple of bigger trout (stockies) in the morning and I did manage a couple of pictures (a rainbow and a brookie, posted below).  Each was caught with a parachute fly with a brightly colored post.  Mine had a pink post. Paul was using an orange post. 

That's Paul below drifting a dryfly:

In the early evening we picked up a handful of the smaller fish, as a caddis hatch broke out just before sunset. One of my most pleasant surprises was the picture immediately below.  It was actually three images overlapped and combined in photoshop to create a vertical panorama, though it has been cropped to a more normal aspect ratio.  I did this because the camera lens was not wide-angle enough to capture the water falling in the foreground plus the beautiful sky.

Additional Images (for non-New Englanders, that is the Mt. Washington Hotel at the bottom):

My friend Steve sneaks in some bassin' while visiting his parents in Florida



I just got an email from my friend Steve, who has returned from a vacation visiting his parents who live in a condo in Sarasota, Florida. I had heard that lots of the "man-ponds" in the condo developments down there held some pretty big bass, so I was very interested in how Steve would make out when he told me the week prior that he planned to take a fly rod. I've included his email below and some of the pictures he sent me. Note the professional fly fishing outfit *grin*.

"I took my 8-1/2' 6-weight with me, and bought a few flies down there (Never again! Way too expensive.) I fished three times, and caught 2 bass each time. As you'll see from the photos, it was most productive half an hour before dark. I broke off two fish, one on a green deer-hair mouse and one one a popper. The mouse stopped floating, so I just twitched it along underwater. It just stopped, and when I pulled back on the rod, it didn't move at all, and then just broke off at the knot. It could have been a gator or a turtle, since it didn't behave like a bass. I then lost the popper during the ensuing fight, again at the knot. I then cut the leader back a bit, and didn't lose any more fish. I had to cut off a foam-bodied popper (gurgle bug?), since it just wouldn't come out of the fish's jaw. My last fly was another popper, which I still have.

"Most of the fish were pretty big, at least for me. Karen took all of the photos. I think I'll take a heavier rod with me next time (Nov.), since the rod I had didn't have enough backbone to lift the fish out of the water, and I was reluctant to stick my hand down into the water next to the bank to pick them up."



"All of the flies I used worked. (You have to love how aggressive largemouths are.) The fly I plan to tie and take in Nov. is very similar to the Gurgle Pop I saw on your blog. The body is sparkly chenille, the tail is bucktail, and the body is foam tied in the length of the hook with a "hood" in front to create the commotion when retrieved. If you look at the pictures closely, you'll see a chartreuse one in the jaws of a couple of fish. Unfortunately, it was stuck too deep in one fish for me to get it out, so I cut it off and threw the fish back into the water."

Unboxing of two Gurgle-pops from Randy Knapp

Randy Knapp sent me a couple of samples of a Gurgle-pop redesign that he has found to work well for him.  He emailed a great story, too, which I will be posting soon on the "Flies With a Story" page. 

(The original design is here.  His modifications can easily be made off the base design.)

Wait until you read the story he sent me!  And the pictures of an outrageous fish, of a sort you would not expect to catch on a dry fly.

In the meantime, here are a few pictures of my "unboxing" of the package he sent me this week:

The most obvious modification is the use of double strands of thin rubber.  It gives lots of action.  I've always used just one strand of thicker rubber.

The other modification is the hook and body length. Randy has used a longer hook while keeping the body short.  He finds this gives him a nice hookup.  Should be killer on those bluegills that strike short!

Geez, it looks like I need to cut my fingernails...

Six classic wet flies tied by Paul DiNolo

I have just created a page in the "Flies with a Story" section of fishingwithflies.com, with pictures and pattern information for the six classic wets tied by Paul DiNolo (see my prior post for more information)

Here's the link to the new page:

http://www.fishingwithflies.com/SixClassicWetFlies.htm

Paul DiNolo to have an article published

My friend Paul is expecting an article he wrote about wet fly fishing to be published in September's On The Water magazine.  Paul is a frequent contributor to the magazine, and is known especially for his knowledge of small stream trout fishing. 

The magazine has two editions.  One edition concentrates on New England fishing and the other on New York and New Jersey.  Both appear to be more oriented toward salt-water fishing.  For example, of seven articles in the August issue, six are salt-water oriented. This orientation doesn't surprise me, as the magazine's headquarters are in East Falmouth, MA, on Cape Cod. 

You can buy a copy or subscribe to the magazine by going to their Web site, http://www.onthewater.com/. Back issues are available and their Web site also includes a "where to buy" list.

In preparing his materials for submission to the editor, Paul asked if I would photograph a selection of classic wet flies which he tied and delivered to me in the fly-box pictured below.

On my Web site's Flies with a Story page, I plan to post the individual images of each fly soon, along with some text and tying instructions from Paul.

Fished a new spot on the Merrimack

There's no doubt about it, the Merrimack in New Hampshire is "big water".  This new spot for me is south of Manchester, NH. It is a favored spot for my friend Alberto, who has been hoping to show it to me for a couple of years.  But the river so swollen in the spring that it is often not until August that the water becomes wadeable, and last season I don't think it ever was.

This was a weekend morning and Alberto had family commitments.  I thought I would try it myself.  I was a bit intimidated by the water, having not fished it before.  I will be better the second time, but there were no other fisherman and I had the place to myself for a couple of hours before some kids arrived to walk their dog along the rocky beach.

In this shot I am essentially in the middle of the river, looking downstream.  The biggest fish were caught in the little open areas between clumps of grass.  They would attack and dart back into the grassy cover, fly in mouth.

The smallmouth were plentiful, but not big.  Shown here is a typical size.  In the slow moving area I caught two sunfish, shown here as well.  But I don't know what kind they are.  They're not Bluegills and they are not Pumpkinseeds.  I've caught Rock Bass before in water like this, but they usually have bigger and red eyes.  Can anyone identify them?

Nothing worked on the surface.  But coneheads, beadheads and weighted nymphs and streamers were very effective.  Pictured below are the flies I used.