Do you know any other hook-less angling techniques?

Apart from fishing with a camera for underwater trophy shots, what other ways of hook-less fishing do you know where you can still get a thrill of action? A quick google search returned hook-less fly fishing, or as I experienced myself this year, fishing for garfish by using a bit of silky thread - it works a treat apparently by snaring the sharp teeth among the fine twine. Hybrid angling worked as well: sometimes without a hook, sometimes with.

Fisheries symposium in Ireland

This was my contribution to the Inland Fisheries Symposium in Ireland in June 2022. It is nice to see that some angling cam manufacturers are actually buying into the citizen science approach and buddy up with science partners to unlock the gold of (big) data.

A new toy for my tech tackle box

As a Christmas present to myself I ordered an animated lure. It worked a treat at my local (despite the limited field of view with the camera pointing straight down) - and not sure whether I will be able to trick my guinea pig pike for a second time though. Still - hookless fishing fun.

Some sad news for big game trophy shooters.....

….your giant monster catches are shrinking over time….Researchers from the University of Washington have found evidence of the shifting baseline syndrome in news items relating to fishing records. In an article published by PeerJ, the researchers provide evidence that over the last 140 years, relative lengths of newsworthy fish (reported length divided by max. length) have declined over time. But I am sure, a few cms do not matter, when looking into the beautiful eyes of such magnificent fish (yellowfin tuna and dolphinfish) shot in action by a colleague recently on a trip to the Indian Ocean.

Bammm!!!.....with a bait bonbon

These underwater trophy shots were taken from yellowtail scad and a leatherjacket in Port Philip Bay using the wee ol bait bomb approach. Stuff a mesh sock with chicken and other meaty bits and let the odour plume do the rest - no need for mimicry to mimic shape and behaviour of bait fish. Been experimenting with other odoured lures lately. Have you got any recommendations for some smelly artificial baits that work a treat? Don’t be shy…

Autumn sun rays

Enjoying a sun-drenched afternoon at one of my favourite fishing spots in Germany. A school of redfins came flying past.

Flat-faced in Denmark

On a work-related visit to Bornholm, I found a nice harbour to deploy a bait bag which made it difficult for this one to keep a straight or shall we say flat face, and made for a nice aquatic trophy shot :)

Blind spotting

On a recent trip to France (Brittany), I managed to break up the road trippin for a quick dip of my camera rod into a roadside lake. Initially, I would have gone home thinking: “well, another day without a bite”, but luckily after some extra reviewing efforts of all footage, I spotted a pike investigating one of the lures I tried on that day. Camera angling has its merit - without a camera, I would have gone home without a trophy shot….

Have you ever tried camera angling for trophy shots ? What has been your experience with it? Feel free to leave a comment. Cheers

Irish delights - mackerel eyeing up the wolf

Kicking off a series of epic “drschnappiesodes” by some fanatic angling camera ambassadors. In this clip off the Irish coast on a beautiful calm sunset, a mackerel went for the lure, but got put off. Maybe the waterwolf spooked it? What do you reckon?

Crystal voyager

Finally…..I found my match…..a crystal clear freshwater body in mainland Benelux, Antwerpen area….now, I just need to attract and spot some fish, and improve the settings of the app, to have it not crashing as soon as I would like to review clips in real time (which is one of the functions I was really looking out for when I bought this particular cam).

Shoreline trophy shots

No need to water any angling cams lately…..been spotting plenty of Northern pike (Esox lucius), soaking up some surface sunlight in Dutch canals (photos: A. de Vos).

Missed opportunities equal new chances

Just when drsnapper was about to give its mission of promoting hook-less trophy angling a research twang, the scheduled presentations at the VLIZ Marine Science Day and the World Recreational Fisheries Conference have been cancelled or postponed, because of the world’s most famous tiny particle that looks like a strawberry turned inside-out, and that passes on its genetic material in a parasitic, and for its host rather unpleasant manner. Anyway, taking any of of these missed opportunities, to develop a new momentum.

Photo credit: Coenraad Deputter

ID your trophy shots straight away

With some great apps like iNaturalist, it is really easy to ID your trophy shot straight away. Well, not that straight yet - it would be really cool if the camera app would link up automatically with the algorithms and database of iNaturalist to allow for instant species identification. I think that could be really something for a new version of an app. I use iNaturalist for any kind of fauna and flora spotting. It works a treat for me!

Von fern die Winde wehen

If you have not seen the sun for a while, are listening to David Gray a fair bit and daydream about your next summer holidays, the very least you can do to quench that thirst is to dust off your treasure box of polaroids and snorkel through some glistening memories. I reviewed some footage from a sizzling holiday in Corfu and found some snaps of flathead grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) shot with a waterwolf (and run a spirulina filter over it).

Between theory and praxis

This time last year when Australia was not burning that bad, I spent a lovely afternoon at the Mornington Pier and explain here what I was hoping for to catch with my camera. As it happened, it did not eventuate. Luckily, probably for both of us. First up, an Australian bull ray (Myliobatis australis) is a protected species, so better no meddling with even if its just with a hook-less bait ball. Secondly, that thing was huge. It probably would have accelerated not just the camera, but also its dry-footed, spectacled beholder, quite possibly into a downward-facing direction. I spotted the bullray next door, so happy as Larry.

dr snapper's 3 essential tips for what to do with crappy underwater footage

1) Have a laugh about yourself - hohoho - you wasted a fair bit of time at this spot, matie; 2) Scan and review it with your Python C++ home coded AI algorithm that detects any thresholded changes in pixel density in the hope to come across anything exciting - try to make it sound more complicated when you’ll explain it to your mates; or 3) Use it as visuals for one of your favourite electronica tracks from a Cafe Del Mar compilation. Then, project it onto a big screen and observe whether it moooves you.

I did the latter with this crabby footage I recorded within the tranquility of Galway harbour not so long ago. Music: Rhian Sheehan - La Boîte à Musique……so moooving, isn’t it ;) You will spot some gobies and a Palaemon serratus shrimp (also called ‘Common prawn’) that dart inquisitively around the baitball at this harbour’s dark corner floor, before the shore crabs come marching in.

The way to get to know you.....is to dive.....

Reminiscing now over a cuppa about a very special summer holiday when we dipped into the Australasian winter down under last July/August. Mind you, the day out on the Great Barrier Reef must have been freezin for a Cairnite, but with 23degC it was a balmy affair for us. We descended on a pretty windy day and boarded a Reef Magic tour. It was a memorable day out at sea. Here are some impressions. The fish you see are Moorish Idol (Zanclus cornutus) and a trevally (Caranx spp.) which I “drsnappered” with my spydro (for some of the other shots by courtesy of Reef Magic tours - it was not that sunny after all ;)).

Sharing an enthusiasm for discovery

This is what drsnapper is about: developing and sharing an enthusiasm for discovery. Coupling two elements for a new purpose: a fishing rod and a baited underwater camera - for hook-less trophy shots. Casting a camera to wherever you expect some underwater life, taps into a desire to "catch" the unknown. And just what it does to an angler to reel in a fish, capturing an underwater trophy shot gives you a bit of a thrill, especially when you can review your “catch” instantly on a mobile device. 

Here are some of my trophy shots from the last couple of years:

Hide and seek

Another beautiful coastal spot along the Mid-North Coast of NSW. Opted to drop a cam off an old pier and am now surprised to see all those surf beam or yellowtail bream (Acanthopagrus australis) appear while reviewing the footage, hiding in a deeper hole in the river’s channel. For a moment, they showed some interest in the small whitefish hook-less lure I used. There are still many more clippies to be reviewed from my trip to Ozzie land. So watch this space. I am looking forward to the shorter days, it means ding dong creative o’clock in the evenings. Well, let’s pretend that uploading a wobbly and blurry video is a creative moment.

Holding hands....feeding....ducking fish....

A former diving legend turned a daily habit of feeding fish in Darwin into a tourist attraction which lured me and a Spydro cam in as well (the fishing line nor hook-less bait I was allowed to deploy, because it would have resembled too much of a fishing operation which is prohibited in that bay). Depending on the size of the tide (which can be huge - up to 8 m), prevailing winds, and season, fish diversity and abundances change. On that day, milkfish (Chanos chanos), squaretail mullet (Ellochelon vaigiensis), Mangrove red snapper (Lutjanus argentimaculatus), yellowfin bream (Acanthopagrus australis), shovelnose, sting and leopard rays were spotted, among other species.