Photographer's Note
I am no fisherman; my fishermen friends will attest to that. It has always seemed to me though that this is a very laid back, relaxing sport, where there doesn’t need to be a lot of physical activity. I have seen though, since coming to Australia, that fishing can take different forms. Given the amount of coastline here, with the large access to water it is very popular here in many different ways.
What you see in this shot is something I never knew existed. I call it Extreme Fishing; here it is called Rock Fishing. It is another form of fishing that presents a whole new challenge. It’s surf fishing with a difference. These guys get wet, and some of them get hurt. It’s a dangerous sport (probably the most dangerous aquatic related sport in Australia), with a few different challenges thrown in with the waves and rocks, to keep things interesting. People do get hurt in this sport. In New South Wales, 74 people died in rock fishing accidents between 1992 and 2000. Government at various levels, while striving to keep it open, is working to make this a safer sport.
The guy on this day was fishing with a buddy. They seemed to be taking turns, one guy to fish, one to watch; probably not a bad idea, in case one got in trouble.
Some of this from: http://www.watersafety.vic.gov.au/CA256DC70017DA1D/page/Fishing?OpenDocument&1=50-Fishing~&2=~&3=~ and http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Fishing_preventing_injury?OpenDocument
Workflow was as follow:
Shot taken in Raw - NEF files adjusted for exposure and shadow only
Adjusted levels
Adjusted curves – in 2 steps to accentuate the spray
Added an overlay layer and dodged and burned with 10% opacity black and white brush
Added saturation layer +15 to master
Added a layer for sharpening with USM
Modified sharpening with a layer mask (30% opacity black brush)
Saved as a tiff
For this post, cropped to longer landscape format, resized, sharpened edges on original USM layer, framed (the experiment continues) and saved as a jpeg
Critiques | Translate
evarol
![Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Silver Note Writer [C: 110 W: 10 N: 43]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-s-s.gif){kind=small}
(196) 2007-07-25 19:07
Hello John,
This is a good action shot of a fisherman at work. I like how you gave more room to the waves than the man, showing how small he is than the sea both literally and metaphorically. Informative note too.
Regards,
Erdem
Cormac
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2553 W: 61 N: 5828]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-g-g.gif){kind=small}
(26565) 2007-07-25 19:39
Fantastic shot! The lone figure out on the edge of the ocean would be good by itself, but when you add in that great wave splash then it really makes this special. This really presents the idea of "extreme fishing" very well, making the fisherman appear to be on the edge of disaster!
devimeuxbe
(58557) 2007-07-25 23:13
Hi John
Very nice capture.
I lke the graphisme, the timing and the beautfull light.
It's very impressive
Bertrand
ohe
![Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 455 W: 40 N: 302]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-s-g.gif){kind=small}
(2334) 2007-07-25 23:42
Dear John,
Very nice composition.
You press at the right time.
Composition in a panoramic format is very well chosen.
Thanks for sharing,
- Olivier -
berek
(50518) 2007-07-25 23:54
Hello John,
he he powerful waves with fisherman. simple and impressive active picture. have a nice day.
B.Erek
baba_flies
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1376 W: 3 N: 1963]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-n-g.gif){kind=small}
(8829) 2007-07-26 7:50
Hello John! I love the spray coming up adding adventure and action to your photo. He seems to fight out there against all sorts of things. I rather watch but I can understand the fever. Take care ... Barbara.
pablominto
(53746) 2007-07-26 8:36
Hello John,
Great action is well captured!
Lovely composition, and the forces of the sea are well visible...
Greetings,
Pablo -
mvdisco
(17798) 2007-07-26 18:28
Bonsoir John,
Belle prise de vu et une excellente composition,belle note, et superbes couleurs, good timing to take this picture very well action on the wave..beautiful catch..well done..
Michel
zeca
(19762) 2007-07-26 21:22
Hey, John! Excellent timming capturing this splashing waves! The fisherman is very well positioned, both for his safety and for your photo! Well taken!
Regards,
Zeca
wishlist
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 786 W: 90 N: 1155]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-g-n.gif){kind=small}
(4133) 2007-07-27 2:28
Hi John,
stunning shot with a great timing and realisation. Compo is simple but impressive with nature showing off all its power. Excellent details throughout and colours; frame is nice too.
Result delivered: excellent!!!
As usual, gret note and it's great to know how you post processed the picture
Thanks for sharing John!
Take care and regards
Igor
capthaddock
(28790) 2007-07-27 11:59
Those are major waves John, excellent timing and kudos for the brave fisherman, I want to decrease the brightness a little, and prefer a thinner frame.
lyn
![Silver Star Critiquer [C: 26 W: 0 N: 2]](http://i1.trekearth.com/misc/s-n-n.gif){kind=small}
(139) 2007-07-27 19:53
What a great splash! Decisive Moment.
And very informative note.
Good work.
*** lyn ***
jhm
(211736) 2007-07-28 8:41
Hello John,
What a nice moment, the waves care for a wonderful view, the man is absolutely a daredevil between the waves.
Interesting note too. TFS.
Have a nice weekend,
John.
MLINES
(12516) 2007-07-31 17:49
Hi John. Another very effective active sporting shot. I like the way your frame matches the colours within so well. Murray.
adores
(46979) 2007-08-05 17:32
Hi John!
Seems he's trying to challenge the sea! Good composition, we can almost feel the strenght of the waves. Well captured!
pboehringer
(770) 2007-08-09 22:14
John, your title says it all. That is really extreme. I wonder what sort of fish comes out of these turbulent waters. The extreme off center placement of the fisherman is perfect and just that would be a good shot, but with the additional gigantic splash this achieves a complete different dimension. I think that Tan got some valuable points in his critique.
Best Regards, Peter
bakes888
(18499) 2007-08-29 1:27
Hi John. We have the same deal here in NZ with many fishermen drowned rock fishing and many lost while fishing from boats also. Excellent photo. You have excellent balance in the composition and great timing also. Nice work and thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.
robsz
(741) 2007-11-26 6:19
Nice one! Good exposure, with excellent detail in the white water spray. And of course very well timed. You must have staked out this location for a while waiting for the right moment and patience paid off. Nice colors, with the white waves against the pastel blue sky.
Regards,
Rob.
somkiat
(1104) 2007-11-29 17:14
hallo john,
this is the perfect photo.you captureed at the super special moment.i really wanna be at this situation.just one thing,i wonder he can fish?
very very cool photo,you took.
somkiat
vinicio
(23423) 2008-02-16 14:37
Spectacular image John, well done, compliments, in its simple composition it have great force and beauty of nature, I much like this view, bravo.
Ciao
Vinicio
Matthew-Watt
(5934) 2008-03-28 15:28
Hello John,
You have a good series of Australian fishermen, with 'Fishing on the edge' and 'Sunset Fishermen' also accompanying this shot. Up on Fraser Island, an annual fishing competition sees many thousands of fishermen (and a few fisherwomen also!) line the beach, braving some big swell like this also. Your choice of tight cropping at the bottom makes the power of the waves seem more significant. The blue tinged frame is very well created and presented.
Matt
cyrrhus
(2878) 2008-04-08 12:54
Hi John,
Quite hard to believe that it is possible to fish something in these conditions. But your image is quite spectacular and testifies about this dangerous sport.
Just a regret, the framing is a bit too generous and thus not bring a + to the final result.
Regards,
Eric /.
Photo Information
-
Copyright: John Plumb (JPlumb)
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 710 W: 158 N: 1008]](//i1.trekearth.com/misc/g-g-g.gif)
(3159) - Genre: Άνθρωποι
- Medium: Έγχρωμο
- Date Taken: 2007-04-15
- Categories: Καθημερινότητα, Φύση, Αποφασιστική στιγμή
- Camera: Nikon D200, Nikkor 18-200mm 3.5-5.6 G ED AF-S VR
- Έκθεση: f/16, 1/125 δευτερόλεπτα
- More Photo Info: view
- Έκδοση φωτογραφίας: Πρωτότυπη έκδοση
- Date Submitted: 2007-07-25 18:52
Discussions
- To wishlist: Frame (2)
by JPlumb, last updated 2007-08-10 01:26 - To capthaddock: Decrease Brightness (1)
by JPlumb, last updated 2007-07-29 09:34 - To pboehringer: Yes he did (1)
by JPlumb, last updated 2007-08-12 05:03 - To robsz: Staked out the Fisherman (1)
by JPlumb, last updated 2007-11-27 01:37 - To Matthew-Watt: Fraser Island Fishing (1)
by JPlumb, last updated 2008-03-31 10:44
