On Sunday, Salmon-a-Rama wrapped up with angler Roger Hellen taking the grand prize of $10,000 for his 41.5 pound Brown trout caught on Thursday. It was the final day of the tournament, and I knew that it was a make-or-break day for me as I needed a few more interviews and some different images. I was tired of hauling all of the lenses that I had been taking with me every day, so in favor of the 70-200mm f/4L IS lens that is my standard telephoto, I borrowed my dad’s 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS lens–one of only two Canon lens that intentionally diffracts light to create a more compact lens. (The other is my longest lens, the 400mm f/4 DO IS.)
I’m hoping to put together an audio slideshow of Salmon-a-Rama that could stand alone from, as well as become a part of, my master’s project on Asian carp and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.
Last night I had a fairly productive evening at Salmon-a-Rama. I still need a couple of audio interviews, to gather some ambient sound, and to shoot some video, but I have the feeling it will all come together.
Some of the photos are more visual “notes” that I like the idea of an image, but that a given frame is not enough to push it into the final edit. I’m hoping to perfect all of these frames before the week is out, although the one above may be tough to beat given that the Yellow perch (“Lake perch”) were still jumpin’ on the table!
The largest freshwater fishing tournament in the Great Lakes kicked off on July 10 in Racine, Wis. One of the great concerns about the possibility of Asian Silver and Bighead carp entering into Lake Michigan is the potential for the destruction of sport fishing due to the radical changes that could happen to the food chain. The carp are voracious filter-feeders, and could out-compete the fish that serve as “food” for the trout and salmon, and could be the final nail in the coffin for the lake perch.
It wasn’t foremost on the minds of the anglers participating in Salmon-a-Rama, but when I explained the idea of my project, there seemed to be universal concern about the invasive carp, most recently found only six miles from the shoreline of Lake Michigan. It’s encouraging that this project is relevent even if the environmental outlook for the Great Lakes seems to be discouraging. Continue reading “The Largest Fishing Tournament on the Great Lakes”→