Muskrat and Wine

[DUBBN]

Hook - Mustad 3906 size 18
Thread - UTC70 Wine
Thorax - Muskrat under fur
Collar - Brown Hen Hackle


letumgo, thank you for the tip of setting up my picnic table as an outdoor studio. I think this is my best pic thus far.

DNicolson, I really hope you can see this picture, and the pics to come. Your opinion as that of every other tyer on this forum matter to me immensley.

Hankeye, if I can bare my sole with my "beginner" photography, you can call yourself an intermediate tyer. Just do it!

I started tying this fly early this Spring. A fishing buddy of mine was doing well with Wine colored WD-40 emergers, and I am trying to copy his success with this Soft Hackle. I can't say that I have set the world on fire as of yet with this offering, but the fly does have merit. I am going to experiment with a shorter collar, as well as trying some different colored feathers. Dun, Brahma, Starling, and Partridge.

On a side note. I have an order in with Santa for a better camera. Till Christmas we are going to be stuck with these outdoor pics.

[willowhead]

That's a very nice fly.....well proportioned. i like the length and amount of hackle very much. i'd prolly pick out the dubbing a bit more. But that's just somethin' i likes to do. The pic is very nice.....good job all around.

[William Anderson]

This should be killer in a size 18. More or less hackle would depend on the type of water your fishing and this looks great overall. Great post.

w

[hankaye]

DUBBIN, Howdy



hank

[DUBBN]

Thanks all for the input. This is kind of a new chapter in my tying hobby. I am going to try and please the human eye and the trouts appetite at the same time. For the time being I am going to try to tie better/neater patterns that I currently use. So far the flys I have photographed have come directly out of my fly box, and as such are actual flys that I use to fish with. Thus they kind of get smashed after a while.
I will say this though. You become your biggest critic after you look at a photograph of your own fly. I know that I dont have to tie a "perfect" fly to catch fish, but it's fun to try.

[DUBBN]

My new studio...I have a box with white paper taped to it for a background, sitting on my glass picnic table. I have my renzitti set up on the table. Now I wish I had a pedestal instead of the C clamp.
I have a little flower pot set up on another table with a small piece of wood laying across the pot, and finally my little camera!
This is a work in progress, but dang, I'm having fun!

[letumgo]

What a great color combination! Unfortunately, I do not have the thread you are using. I may try these with some some claret silk (kind of close to a wine color). I recently bought a beautiful starling skin which has been dyed a rich red color. This may be the perfect pattern for trying it out.

I am delighted to see your playing around with the outdoor photography. Great photography set-up! I've used all kinds of different combinations.

The nice thing with digital photography is that you can get instant feedback on what works for you and what doesn't. You may want to find a piece of 20% to 40% gray or light blue craft paper. I have found using white paper makes it hard to capture the colors of the fly. When I use white paper backgrounds, the cameras autoexposure sensor tends to create images tight a lot of contrast (fly looks like an outline).

Lately I have been using the shutter delay feature on my camera (shutter activates 10 seconds after the button is pressed). This allows me to press the button and then let go of the camera while the picture is taken. The camera needs to be sitting on a platform or small tripod so that I don't need to hold it during the exposure.

Have fun!

[DUBBN]

Ray, thats the kind of info I am looking for. Thank you so very much! BTW, I am having fun.

[willowhead]

Ray and i bought the dyed red Starling skin at the same time same place.............the Dette Fly Shop in Roscoe couple weeks ago. i'm just sorting out all the materials from that trip now. Can't wait to see what can be done with those feathers.......and that Buff (some kinna Quail i think that one is), skin we got too. Wayne, lemme look around, if i can find a spare pedestal i don't need, i'll send it to you.

[letumgo]

Wayne - I was looking through some of my photography related web links and found one that may be useful to you with regards to exposure.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_card

The next time your are at at the hardware store, go into the paint section and see if you can find a paint sample card for flat (repeat flat) gray paint. According to this article, you should be looking for a sample around 18% gray. The next time your photographing a fly, you can use experiment with the holding the card behind the fly to see if it makes a difference in the end photo. I gotta try this myself. Looks like I am headed to the paint store. (don't tell my wife, or I well end up with another honeydo project...)