Sea Angler cover and lure fishing bag

• Here's my cover photo on the current issue of Sea Angler magazine that I was talking about the other day (see here) - I like what they have done with my photograph, and this cover is a tight crop of a shot I took of a decent bass over in Ireland. Anybody with any interest in photography will most likely recognise that a fisheye lens has been used to get in really tight on the fish and emphasise that predator head with a very slight degree of natural distortion that comes from using this sort of lens in a situation like this.

• The exact lens was the Canon 15mm f2.8 fisheye, but to be perfectly honest, the reason for using a lens like this makes more sense when you look at the original photo that the Sea Angler designers cropped from to make the front cover. See my original shot of the bass below. The photo being cropped so tightly for a front cover shows how clean and flexible high resolution digital files are these days from professional SLR cameras. The current issue of Sea Angler is going to take some beating I reckon, but they have some good people working for them who keep on finding really good looking UK sea fishing material.

• I am always trying to keep an eye out for products that I reckon will work well for our fishing, and I came across a really good looking waterproof rucksack the other day that should make for an excellent kind of mobile lure fishing bag for bass fishing. Snowbee make this waterproof rucksack, and these guys will need no introduction if you are from the fly fishing world. They also do a load of sea fishing gear as well that you should check out.

• Here's a photograph of the bag I am on about, and you can see a bunch of details right here. I believe I am right in saying that this bit of kit retails for around £50, and for a purpose built waterproof rucksack, I reckon this is really good value for money. A lot of us bass fishermen for a start want to make sure that our stuff stays dry, whatever the weather, and wherever we are fishing, and the idea of a lightweight rucksack that you can walk with all day long really appeals to me. The simplest things in fishing are often the most useful. I would guess that a load of UK saltwater anglers would fine a bag like this to be of use, whatever you fish for.

• There seems to be a lot more "crossover" of products these days between the different fishing disciplines. I know we tend to split our fishing up into game, sea and coarse in the UK, but in my mind that is somewhat counter-productive, and I tend to believe we are all just fishermen, however we choose to catch our fish. Word of mouth and the power of the internet I believe is making it far easier for fishermen to see lots of different kinds of products and cherry-pick the ones that they want to use for their own fishing, regardless of what the original purpose for the product was.

• Take breathable chest waders for starters - I see more and more guys in the sea fishing world wearing these things, but of course they were originally designed for the game fishing market. But we find them useful, so we use them. How about wearing short wading jackets from the game world instead of those somewhat (generally) heavier and bulkier specialist sea fishing waterproof tops ? Being able to roll a lightweight wading jacket up and stuff it in my bag is so useful to me, and again, I see more and more mobile sea anglers doing this.

• Times are a changing, and I would guess that the tackle companies and retail outlets who can retain the flexibility to adapt to change swiftly and efficiently will be the ones who come out on top. Making the same old stuff and marketing it in the same old way in my mind does not cut the mustard any more. You want an example ? Why are so many switched-on, internet-savvy bass anglers increasingly buying rods, reels and lures with heavy Japanese and French influences that are not designed in the UK ?

Big soft plastics article out now

• Check out the latest issue of Sea Angler magazine for a big feature of mine on catching proper bass on soft plastic lures - look on pages 4, 5, 6, 7 and, 8 for my words and photos. All credit due to the guys at Sea Angler for making the stuff look so good, and for giving over so much space to this continual explosion of interest in a more "modern" style of bass fishing that so many of us as addicted to.

• It is my photo of the head of a bass that is on the front cover of the latest Sea Angler, and when I get hold of a copy of it I will post it up here. As always, I never get a say in the choice of covers, but I really like this one - ok, so perhaps I am a bit biased 'cos it's my photo on there !!

• There's a couple of photos here from that epic day in south east Ireland late last year, when Tom Hollyhock put on a MegaBass XLayer soft plastic lure, mounted on a small jig head, and then proceeded to blow his mind with the quality of the bass he nailed. Those few days of fishing and photography play on my mind a lot when I can't get out fishing or the weather is rubbish. Check out a load of photos from that particular trip right here. If I see many more days like that then I will be a lucky man..............

• I got back from my meetings at Hardy Greys up in Alnwick late yesterday morning. We got plenty done, but it's always good to get out of an office environment and back to what I do day to day. I have the utmost respect for anybody who works within the sport fishing industry, and I suppose so much of what makes it so interesting is that there are so many different niches where people can fit into and make a go of it. And there is so much more to do.

• I am going to do my utmost to start getting out bass fishing a proper amount now - work and weather allowing. There are some tiny tides this weekend, but I reckon the conditions look ok for various parts of the south west, and I keep hearing of more and more bass being taken on lures and baits. A lot of people want to know just how "big" bass fishing is in the UK, for various different reasons, but I can't see any way of measuring what is a kind of cult way of fishing that in my mind seems to be getting more and more popular all the time. So many people want to know about catching bass these days, on lures especially, and I reckon there are some exciting times ahead. If we have a decent season on the bass then I will be extremely interested to see where all this stuff goes.............

How about this weather ?

• There is nothing like the first proper taste of spring here in the UK - big blue skies and (relative) warmth is about as good as it gets, and I for one am loving it. Granted, I would rather not be working when the sun is out, but that is not the point. Living in Devon when the weather is like this is a privilege.

• The photo above is actually from one of those extremely rare days last summer when we actually did see the sun !! Other countries I know think we are all a little mad to be so obsessed with the weather, and we are, and we make no apologies for it. The moment the sun comes out and we all go a little bit loopy. Kind of like werewolves in reverse.

• Make sure to check out my latest article in my modern bass fishing series in the new issue of Sea Angler - look at pages 48, 49, 50 and 51. The opening DPS photo is exactly the one that I hoped they might use. The article itself is all about fishing for bass with surface lures, and as I said yesterday, the magazine is looking awesome. If there is a more exciting way to fish than with topwater lures or flies, then I have yet to come across it. Anybody who doesn't shake with adrenaline when a fish swirls on a surface lure is not really alive.

• I left my office behind yesterday afternoon to go and check a few potential bass marks out. I have walked and explored most of the south Devon coastline before, but for some reason this particular little area had escaped me. And it looked great.........I was looking out for likely looking bass spots, but really I spent most of the time looking for treasure with my eldest daughter. My sheepdog Jess was happy chasing sea gulls, and my daughter and I trawled the beach and rocks looking for shells with holes in them and those smooth bits of worn down green glass you find. That is the treasure, and we came back with masses. The things we do as parents !! It won't be long though until I am down there chucking a few lures for the bass. It was properly warm when we tucked out of the east breeze as well. Stunning.

• I love living in Devon, indeed there is nowhere in the UK that I would rather live. The south west peninsular is a great part of the world, and for the keen fisherman there is a wealth of fishing on offer. I will talk up the merits of Devon until the cows come home, and I have a serious soft spot for Plymouth. It's a great place to live and work, and my family and I have a fantastic life here.

• But then you go and hear about the recent bass fishing they have been having over in Ireland recently, and in truth, the better quality of shore fishing overall, and you do begin to wonder. Less people, wide open spaces, countless spots that are simply never fished, lots of big bass, I could go on. The grass is not always greener, we all know that, and Devon is my home, but I will admit to dreaming. I am fairly restless by nature. You never know..........

Brand new look Trout Fisherman - out soon

• It fascinates me to see such a well known and well established fishing magazine like Trout Fisherman being completely overhauled and then relaunched. On March 26th you will be able to see the results of the new look Trout Fisherman magazine when it hits the shops, and here is a sneak preview. I know I work for them, but I have to say that I am hugely impressed by what has been going on, as you can see here. Magazines have to overhauled from time to time, and it takes a lot of hard work and vision to ring these changes. Sea Angler had the same thing a little while ago (see here), and the magazine looks better and better to me every month.

• What makes me even happier is that the powers that be have chosen one of my photos to go on the cover of the relaunch issue. Nice one !! OK, so I might be a bit biased towards their choice, but I really like what has been done with the photo of Nick Hart you can see on the forthcoming cover above. What a strong way to launch this brand new fly casting series we have been shooting recently - with words from Nick of course.

• The whole style of the magazine looks that bit "cleaner" to me, and personally I believe that is a good thing. So much information has to be crammed into these kinds of publications, and the trick is to make sure this info is put across in a way that can appeal to fishermen of very different skill levels. Plus you want a big dollop of inspiration in there. I reckon they have done this here, and the proof will be on the shelves at the end of this month.

• Those Irish bass keep on coming. Keven Brain emailed me from Kerry to tell me of more bass up to 8lbs over the weekend, all returned. I would hazard a guess that he has the spots all to himself as well.

• And from south east Ireland, I hear that my mates Graham, Pat and Cian had a ball over the weekend, with numerous bass coming to lures and baits - the biggest going a cracking 10lbs (on a soft plastic lure), to the efforts of Mr. Hill himself. Check out the full report on Graham's blog here. That is some fishing, and again it proves two points to me - there is no better shore fishing for bass that I know of than over in Ireland, and that they can have awesome fishing all year round for them if the conditions play ball. I can't wait to start "discovering" a bit of the French bass fishing, but it is going to have to go a long way to match the fishing I know of in Ireland. Outstanding stuff indeed. The urge to emigrate has never been stronger !!

• How about the rugby on Sunday ? A day to warm the heart. The first half of England v France had me jumping up and down in delight, and I can't help but feel that those forty odd minutes had been coming for a while now. We just had to let go and play rugby if that makes any sense. It had to happen sometime, and perhaps it was just good timing that it happened against the French at Twickenham, and in perfect spring weather as well. The second half could never live up to the first, but what a fantastic game. I reckon England were almost so shocked at what they had achieved in the first half that they went back into their shells somewhat. Still, we won properly, and the big test now is to see how we perform against Scotland on Saturday. If we play well and win properly, I reckon we are allowed to hope again. Perhaps even dream again. But we shall see............

• While my website is undergoing a rebuild, I have come across a great way of putting up really good looking web-based galleries of my photos, and I have put a few up recently. Check out a load of black and white photos here for starters. For more, check out the links on the right hand side page of this blog, under the "My Photos - various galleries" heading. There is plenty of bass stuff up there if that floats your boat.

Confusion over fishing with lures

• Judging by the number of emails and feedback I get, plus the questions often asked on this lure fishing forum here, it strikes me that there is (and most likely always be) a certain amount of confusion surrounding the subject of fishing with lures. The more you get into this way of fishing, the more you find there is to learn.......

• By no means would I ever come close to claiming that I am some kind of "lure fishing guru" - far from it in fact. I know what I know, but I have got so much more to learn. I get to see all kinds of fish caught in all kinds of ways all over the world, and a lot of this information naturally finds its way into my own fishing. The key to understanding more on how to fish with lures is having an open mind and wanting to learn. We've all met fishermen who for some reason think they know it all, and I always leave these people to stew in their own dreamworld. I like spending time around people who have open minds.

• So where on earth do we go to find out more about fishing with lures, and especially using lures for "our" bass ? Good internet forums are great places to ask around and share information, and you could do a lot worse than have a look at WorldSeaFishing right here. Granted, on every forum I would imagine that there are going to be a few "keyboard warriors" lurking around, but the forums on WSF are generally full of lots of anglers willing to help out and share information.

• Read as much as you can. In a shameless plug for the features I write and photograph for Sea Angler magazine, I am of course going to say that this magazine should be high on your list. All biased words apart, I am in the middle of a "modern bass fishing" series for the magazine, and you can see a big feature of mine on shallow-diving lures in the current issue on pages 120, 121, 122, 123 and 124. There are a few "experts" who like to knock the various fishing magazines, but I simply ignore this sniping. Magazines have to aim at all skill levels, and I reckon the new look Sea Angler is doing a really good job at the moment. It has always amazed me though that so many of these "experts" who claim never to read the magazines often want to ask specific questions about certain locations, photos, fish etc !! "But I thought you didn't read the fishing press ?"

• Read fishing books. Just because a particular book might have been published a few years ago does not suddenly put the information within it out of date. Sure, modern lure fishing techniques are constantly evolving, but still the most important thing in fishing is knowing where and when to find the fish. All the shiny new lures in the shops are never going to change that.

• I have been searching my brain to think of a particular online fishing resource that actually shows you how to fish with different lures, but I can't really think of one - people often ask me what on earth it means to do things like "walk the dog" or "fish with a popper" etc. Again, I am hardly the most knowledgeable person there is on this, but I am learning more and more all the time. But all the photos and the words in the world are still never going to fully explain the different techniques, so does anybody out there know of any online locations where people can see decent video footage of fishing with different lures ? Please get hold of me through my website here and I can post links to them, or put them in the Comments section on this blog.

• Nothing though is ever going to beat actually getting out there and doing it yourself. Most of it is really very simple indeed, and by getting out there you can play around with the lures and also get to meet other fishermen. I still say that there is no finer sport to be into than fishing, for the majority of anglers I meet are only too happy to share information and also help others along.

• I am starting to speak to the Jersey tourism guys and also some friends over in Jersey about the idea of putting together some very informal kinds of "bass fishing meets". We are not sure of the exact logistics or format yet, or even if it is going to happen, but some of us are really keen on getting anglers over to fish and learn together in one of the most magical places I know of. It would be nothing to do with "experts or brain-overloading", rather a chance to get together and pool what we know and see what comes out of it. There are some guys over there who know a hell of a lot about all this. The Channel Islands are just fantastic. Do these ideas have proper merit ? Any more information will be posted here.......

I am categorically not a fishing tackle tart

• Yeah right !! I am not thinking much at all about all those lovely rods, reels and lures (and more lures) at the Nantes fishing show (watch my nose grow as I type that sentence). I have spent so much time in France, and I love the country and the people, but this will be my first real chance to properly delve into the French sea fishing scene. And obviously the bass fishing is a big part of what fascinates me here......

• In all seriousness, weird rigs and strange set-ups don't do much for me at all, but give me a glimpse of high end rods, reels and those lovely, shiny "please buy me" lures and the tackle tart within me comes out to play. I've used countless different beachcasters over the years, and in my honest opinion I think we are making them about as good as they need to be, but the massive potential within the lure fishing side of things is what is driving me forward at the moment.

• On that front, check out pages 120, 121, 122, 123 and 124 in the brand new issue of Sea Angler magazine. There is a very cool feature of mine on fishing for bass with shallow diving lures - I know I would say it is cool because I back my own photos (modesty eh ?), but the guys at Sea Angler are really making the magazine look very strong at the moment. All credit.

• If you are interested in stunning photography, then I implore you to check out the outrageously incredible work by a photographer I have just stumbled upon. I love awesome photography of the world around us, and my wife gave me one of the most stunning photography books I have ever seen for my birthday the other day. Galen Rowell was an American photographer and environmentalist who tragically died in a plane crash in 2002. I can't believe that I have only just "found" this guy, but his work was and is truly inspirational. His use of light in his photography is truly jaw-dropping and it makes me realise just how far I have got to go before I am close to being fit to even carry the gear for these kinds of photographers.

• Galen Rowell's website is here, and the (awesome) book my wife got me is called "North America - the beautiful" (the cover is above) and you can get it from Amazon right here. There are plenty more books by the same guy here as well. I love my photography and I feel that I am getting better and better every year, but when you see a collection of work from a guy as talented as Galen Rowell then you realise just how powerful a medium photography really can be. If my kind of work can better help to show fishing off in the best possible light, then that is what I strive for.

Sneak peak at the new look Sea Angler magazine

• On the 22nd there will be a new look Sea Angler magazine in the shops, and I have managed to get hold of a "sneak peak" at this important relaunch. Not only the cover, but a couple of features that will be inside the mag, including the next one in my bass fishing series. I hope you like the look of it, because I have to admit to being really excited about what the Sea Angler people are doing with the magazine............

• I have worked on a freelance basis for Sea Angler for many years now, and they continue to use really high quality photography to illustrate the sport we all love. I am sure that most of us read sport and hobby related magazines for a mix of "wow, doesn't this look awesome, gotta do it" and also "I want to learn how to improve my own hobby/pastime/sport" - I know I do, and I do not envy the powers that be at the numerous magazines out there for having to create this kind of mix every month. I know I am a little biased towards the people I work for, but I reckon that the Sea Angler guys are pretty much spot-on.

• The relaunch in my opinion makes this all look a whole load better again - very "fresh, clean and hands on", and I like that kind of thing in this kind of magazine. The kind of feature you can see above does what it says on the tin. Bear in mind that all kinds of anglers of all kinds of skill levels read a magazine like Sea Angler, and it is vital to cater to your readers with a strong mix of features. They have done a good thing I reckon in bringing back the dedicated Boat Angler section.

• I love it when a magazine designer picks up on a particular photo that I just know is going to work well in a certain way the moment I have pressed the shutter. The photo you can see above in my feature is exactly that - in my viewfinder I could see my mate Graham Hill bringing a bass to hand, and at the same time I could see the photo running across two pages in my head (DPS, double page spread), allowing enough space to place text around it if needs be. He's a handsome chap isn't he ? Hell of a bass angler, all credit due.

• This is exactly how I would like my current bass features to be turning out - a mix of good looking fishing action together with plenty of "how to". I am in no way a "fishing expert", indeed anybody who knows me knows how much I despise the word "expert", but I get to work with some of the best anglers you could ever hope to meet, all around the world. What they do rubs off on me, of course it does, and I like to bring this knowledge and what I know myself together in a way that I hope is easy to understand and also very accessible. Fishing is an easy thing to do, and I reckon the new look Sea Angler goes a huge way towards making the sport more and more approachable. Look out for the new issue when it comes out on January 22nd.

Happy Christmas to you all

• A very Happy Christmas to all of you - I hope you have a fantastic break, and here's to 2009. I am going to take some time off now to be with my family, so I'll post back here in a week or so. I can not wait to spend some proper time with them all and see my two girls opening their presents on Christmas morning. This is what it's all about. I have just spent the weekend looking after my daughters while my wife was in London, and we had such a blast. You will be glad to know that I have so far managed to resist jumping up down on their Iggle Piggle or Upsy Daisy teddies......

• I have managed to put another online photo gallery up from my latest trip over to Ireland, right at the end of November - click here to have a look at some of the photos from yet another awesome bass trip. I hope you enjoy them, and there will be plenty more to come next year I am sure.

• Check out the brand new issue of Sea Angler magazine - look on pages 46, 47, 48, 49 and 50 for another article in my modern bass fishing series. I am really pleased with the photos that their designer chose to use. Make sure to watch out for the next issue as well, for they are going for a big relaunch of the magazine, and I can't wait to see how it looks. The magazine goes from strength to strength I reckon.

• Above is another shot from my playing around with black and white conversions - I took this on my first ever trip to what I term the "ultra remote Seychelles", and it took me a couple of looks through my files to pick this one out. Personally I am blown away by this simple photograph in black and white, but I would be interested to know what you think.

• The photo below is also from that same trip, of my friend James holding onto a barracuda he had just nailed on a fly on the flats. An awesome angler and a very easy guy to photograph, and again, a shot that I really like in black and white - not something I would have picked put immediately, but the sunlight glowing on the tail I reckon gives a really strong "in" with one's eye.

• Have a good one - thanks for reading this blog of mine, it means a hell of a lot to know that so many people keep checking back here to see what is going on, and the numbers keep on growing. Remember that you can also subscribe to my blog via Feedblitz on the right hand side of this page. Have a wonderful Christmas.

Off to Ireland, via London

• I have not seen photographs yet of the monster Irish bass from Saturday, but I have spoken about it with Graham again - what a fish. Part of me wishes that it had at least been weighed and then released, so we could know exactly how huge this bass really was, but it does not really matter. It was a huge fish, and no doubt there are some larger ones there......

• I am heading over to Ireland on the Thursday morning Stena Line ferry from Fishguard to Rosslare, and if I can get hold of a photo of this huge fish when I am over there (people and computers/cameras eh ??!!) then I will post it up here as soon as I do. But before I can get myself over to one of my favourite places on earth (Ireland), I have to head up to London this evening for a couple of meetings there on Wednesday, and then I can get all emotional when I go to see the Satyricon gig with a friend of mine. Work, metal, off to Ireland for more work (that I love) - sounds good to me. This is our winter time and I'll take whatever weather we get over there, and I heave heard from Graham that there are also a few cod showing, as well as the bass. I don't reckon on getting much sleep over there on this trip, but who really cares ? Coffee, early morning extreme metal in the car and fishing photography can keep me going for days on end.

• Have a look at part 2 of my new modern bass fishing series in the latest issue of Sea Angler magazine - above is a photo from the feature on pages 50, 51, 52 and 53, all about where to go looking for bass. While it is impossible to cover everything you want to in just one feature, the issue of what I always call "watercraft" is in my mind the most vital part of any sort of fishing. Far too many of us spend far too much time worrying about rods, reels, and weird rigs, when in fact we should be spending far more time thinking about our quarry. This is partly why bass fishing drives me so much - I am forced to go back to the drawing board somewhat and learn new skills all over again.

• And as for last Saturday's rugby against the South Africans - gutted, truly gutted. As you can imagine, I had some "interesting" emails from some friends down there early on Monday morning, gloating over the record defeat, and generally asking what the hell happened. You tell me !! It has been hard to be an English rugby supporter since the glory of Sydney in November 2003 (the best day of my life), but we soldier on. One knock back after the other, but still we soldier on. The best man is in charge of the team, I truly believe that, but it looks like a team of scared kids on the pitch, almost frozen with indecision and a lack of free thought, endlessly recycling slow ball that moves laterally across the pitch with very little incision or depth. And we used to have a pack of forwards that were feared throughout world rugby, but not anymore. Come on England, let's get back to a squad of leaders like we had in 2003, and let's please start winning again. Make us proud, and save me from any more abuse from the South Africans I know. I need to be able to turn up there with my head held high.

• I am not sure when I will be posting here next, but most likely it will be when I am over in Ireland, so check back here for various trip reports - hopefully with a few photos of some decent fish and stunning light. We shall see !! This is my last trip away before Christmas, so it is going to be a great one whatever happens. Any trip to Ireland is just about perfect for me anyway. Bring it on.....

Check out my new bass fishing series in Sea Angler magazine

• I have been working on a whole series of features for Sea Angler magazine, based on modern bass fishing, and the first one is out right now, in issue 433 - take a look at pages 46, 47, 48 and 50. The photo above is the one they picked to go right across the intro double page spread, and I am really happy with it. It is of my friend Graham Hill casting out a bass lure at first light on the south east Irish coastline. See a bunch of photos from that particular trip right here. There are few more photographic styles of fishing than bassing, when the light goes off of course.

• Make sure to keep an eye out for these bass fishing features - I am working on presenting as much modern bass fishing info as I can, mixed together with a whole load of stuff about clothing, watercraft, lures, baits, locations and methods. This style of fishing really interests me, and I want to work on putting across a lot of what I have learnt, and am still learning day to day. I want the info to be both really helpful and very accessible, for I worry sometimes that a load of anglers coming into the sport can be somewhat overwhelmed initially. I have always believed that fishing is a pretty simple thing to do, and I work hard on trying to put that across. Strange rigs and fifteen different reels on the beach have never been my style at all.

• I am heading out later on today to try and nail a few photos of fishing live sandeels for bass, not far from where I live, and conditions are looking pretty good. We had a fair bit of rain over the weekend, but I am hoping not enough to be sending down so much freshwater that it turns the bass off. We shall see.......

• On Thursday morning I am heading off up to London for an afternoon meeting, and then that evening I am going to bang my head for a few glorious hours at the monumental Unholy Alliance Tour gig at the Hammersmith Apollo. The last time I saw Slayer live was at this venue, and they tore the place up big time. I can't wait to see the mighty Amon Amarth open the gig as well (see here). This one is going to be a blast.

Back home from South Africa

• I landed at Heathrow at about 6am on Monday morning, still dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, so it was somewhat of a shock to step out into a temperature of 6 degrees !! And then on Monday night we had a proper storm come in here in Plymouth, with really strong winds and torrential rain - another lovely welcome home as I took my dog Jess for a walk at 7am Tuesday morning, fully kitted out in waterproofs. All that after having not worn more than shorts and t-shirts or tropical shirts for nearly two weeks. I know you are feeling real sympathy for me, because I am getting none here !!

• But today it is beautiful, a properly crisp, early autumn morning, with big blue skies and light winds. It is such fun to be back home with my family, for it has been a seriously hectic few weeks of being away - but this is the life we have chosen and somehow it seems to work just fine. But now that I am back, I need to spend serious time in my office and get a load of photos sorted out for magazine features. Usually I never have a load of photos stacked up, but right now I have Canada, Ireland and South Africa material waiting to be processed, and I am just beginning to shift the Irish bass fishing stuff I shot the other day. I really like being away from what I have shot for a while, and then coming back to it with a refreshed and clinical eye - we nailed some awesome stuff over there, but I can only do this because I work with good people.

• Look carefully through the spray above and you will see my mate Graham Hill banging a bass lure out. Note that he is wearing some seriously good waterproofs, the Greys Apollo stuff, check here. They have a lot of new gear out at the moment, and it is really worth taking a look at these waterproofs - we tend to need them in the UK. This is the kind of photo that you hope people are really going to pick up on, but at the same time I wonder if some people are also going to worry about it presenting fishing as being perhaps a little "extreme", when in reality Graham knows exactly what he is doing and would not put himself at risk. Well, perhaps a little bit, they are bass we are chasing after all.......

• Above is Andy Bignell fishing just as the tide starts to drop, and right before I came down the rope to join him. It's a very simple composition, designed to work perhaps across two pages (a double page spread or DPS) with text laid on top of it. We shall see. You never quite know how various designers will work with your material.

• Talking of good material, if you come across the US fishing and hunting magazine "Traveling Sportsman", check the current issue out - this magazine looks stunning and it is seriously going places. I am proud that a 10 page feature of mine is in there (pages 80 - 89), all about fly fishing for Africa's outstanding tigerfish (check some photos here), and have a look at the magazine's website right here. If you are into good looking fishing, shooting and hunting from around the world, get this magazine.

• I have also been sent a copy of one of the most impressive fishing magazines that I have ever come across, called "Fishing Wild", hailing from Australia, and the brainchild of an outstanding Aussie photographer called Col Roberts. Have a look at their website here. Take it from me, this is a publication you want to track down, and how badly does it make me want to spend some proper time in Australia ? Thanks to Col for sending me a copy - when fishing is done properly it can look out of this world, but so few people really do it properly. Fishing Wild is done properly, like the Traveling Sportsman.

• Check out a cod fishing feature of mine in the current issue of Sea Angler, on pages 50 - 55. I shot this out of Poole this summer with some great guys who seriously know their stuff on the boats.

• Here is Graham with a bass that he nailed on a soft plastic lure out in Ireland, the MegaBass XLayer - you can get them here. I have a feeling that we have so much to learn over here about using soft plastics for our fishing, and I don't mean simply dropping down various lures over wrecks and reefs for cod and pollack. I mean potentially catching some really good bass, wrasse and pollack from the shore on a wide range of soft plastic lures.

• I was speaking with Nick from Bass Lures yesterday, and he was telling me how well they had been doing recently on the Lucky Craft Wander - they caught some really good bass recently up in North Wales, and it seems to me that very few of us over here have any real experience of this particular lure. Nick was saying that it is designed to be fished at virtually any depth you want, and that you can even walk the dog with it under the water, as you would with a Sammy or GunFish on the surface. It sinks slowly and is easy to control, either with a kind of fluttering motion, or as a sub-surface kind of slider, and you can still use it over very shallow ground without fear of snagging it up. Plenty of anglers in the US rave about this lure, see here. The Bass Lures guys are all fanatical bass anglers themselves and I take what they say very seriously indeed - so yes, you guessed it, I have found another lure I am going to have to add to my ever expanding collection. I can't wait to give it a proper go. Anyway, back to the stack of photos to process.......

Fantastic Irish bass

Photo courtesy of Matthew Thomas

• This kind of thing really makes my day here in the office - Matthew Thomas emailed me to tell me all about the huge bass you can see above (thanks for letting me use the photo Matthew). Weighing 11lbs 4oz, he caught and returned this magnificent fish around Waterville over on the Kerry coastline in Ireland. To catch and then return a fish like this really deserves huge respect from us all.

• But what has made me so especially pleased is that Matthew told me he had read some of the Sea Angler articles that I have done with his fishing guide over in Ireland, the extremely talented Kevin Brain. After reading those articles, Matthew booked a day with Kevin over in Waterville and this bass of a lifetime was the result. This proves two things to me - that fishing articles do work in putting anglers in touch with good fishing, and that a guide is as invaluable as a decent fishing rod. There are not many guides in our UK and Irish sea fishing worlds, so we need to use them as much as possible and help ensure their future. Well done to Matthew and to Kevin.

• Check here for a feature on what Kevin Brain does over in Ireland, and then contact him here. We filmed a TV programme over in Kerry a couple of years ago, and we would not have got anywhere without the expert help and guidance from Kevin. If you are heading that way, make sure to get in touch with him and I assure you that you will catch a truck load more fish and learn a staggering amount from him. Better still, make a proper trip out of it and fish yourself to a standstill !! Bass, mullet, wrasse, rays, codling, pollack, huss, sea trout and salmon, you name it, Kerry has the lot.

• Once again this shows that Ireland offers the best shore fishing for bass that I know of anywhere, and Kevin catches some awesome fish on bait, lures and fly. Words can not describe how pretty the Kerry coastline is, indeed when I first saw it my jaw hit the floor and remained there until I was on the ferry back home. I must get myself back over there soon..............

• My mate Graham Hill also landed a big bass the other day from that magical south east corner of Ireland - weighing over 10lbs, he also returned the fish successfully. I know he lost his Tackle House Feed Shallow lure to a real crocodile of a fish earlier in the session, so he went and put on one of his old favourites, the jointed Storm Thunderstick. These Tackle House lures are really starting to get noticed by keen bass anglers, and so they should - they slay big time. You can get them here. Well done Graham, I will be back over as soon as I can. Bass fishing is an addiction, as Matthew Thomas tells me !! Give in, it ain't worth trying to fight it.............

• What on earth is going on with bass fishing ? Granted, it has always been hugely popular, but there is an explosion in interest going on, as I have continually alluded to in this blog. Why is this happening ? Is it because so many anglers are fed up with staring at rod tips and are looking for a more "involved" way of fishing ? Is it because there is more and more press on going bass fishing ? Is it because the bass is the one species we have that crosses the fishing divides ? I have never met a fisherman who did not want to try and catch a bass. Whatever the reasons, it is making me think hard about what to do in the future, so watch this space and if I come up with any decent ideas you will be the first to know. Perhaps I should start looking into guided/led trips over to various locations in Ireland, or perhaps even think about bass fishing clinics ? Believe me, I am learning all the time, but I am very conscious that there are a load of other people out there who are hungry for information.

• How can I go this long without telling you about another great metal release ? I first got into the Danish band Raunchy around the time of their "Confusion Bay" CD, and you really need to check out their new album, called "Wasteland Discotheque". Check out a few tracks here. I love this kind of insanely catchy extreme metal that gets deep into your head and beats your brain to a submissive pulp !! Give me more.

Catalogue cover

• I got hold of a copy of the new Veals 2008 Bass catalogue today, with a photo of mine on the cover, and plenty more inside. I really like the choice of photo as it works well for the landscape format of the catalogue. And there is a huge amount of bass fishing tackle inside - check out their mail order website here. These are the guys I get my much loved Maria Chase lures from.

• A couple of friends of mine had an incredible catch of 19 small-eyed rays the other night off a rock mark in North Cornwall. The rays may have been of no great size, but that is incredible shore fishing in anybody's book. I have always had a soft spot for small-eyed ray fishing, and one of my favourite marks of all time has to be the well known Skate Rock close to Treyarnon Bay in Cornwall. I used to spend a lot of time up there and we had some awesome fishing over the years. I have sensed a bit of a revival in the numbers of rays around over the last few years, and I hope it continues.

• Check out a plaice fishing feature of mine in the new issue of Sea Angler, on pages 120, 121, 122 and 124. Whilst they are not exactly the most "explosive" of fish to catch, there is something very special about seeing these flatfish.

• With the current explosion in light tackle bass fishing interest, I am really glad to see that Mel Russ (Sea Angler editor) has gone and "discovered" the delights of fishing with surface lures. I note that he was fishing with one of Ireland's top bass anglers, John Hall. Check out some stuff I did with John a few years ago, click here. Little can beat fishing with topwater lures anywhere in the world.

• There are a bunch of my photos in the current issue of Trout Fisherman, check out pages 42, 43, 44, 45 and 46. Words are by Nick Hart.

• Anyway, enough about fishing. How about a bit more metal ? Anybody who has been into metal long enough to witness the "birth" of thrash metal will have several Testament CDs in their collection. And they are back with a stunning new album called The Formation of Damnation, check here for a few samples.

• If you do not have Slayer's historical album Reign in Blood in your thrash metal collection, then please leave the building and close the door. I will never forget listening to that album for the first time, and back then I believe I bought it on vinyl. I would argue that nobody has ever bettered it as a pure thrash metal release. Yes, of course, it's in my top five of all time.

• All we need now is for the (once) mighty Metallica to release an album that can come close to their first three masterpieces. What on earth happened to these guys and their recent output ? Go back and listen to the awesome Master of Puppets to see just how good they once were. I don't own any of their CDs after the Black album, and even that I rate as somewhat suspect.

Front cover

• I just got the new Get Hooked 2008 guide through the post, with my shot of a grayling on the cover. This is a fairly tight crop of a photo I shot with Nick Hart, and it shows just how much can be done with a clean digital file to make it work for a particular client. The Get Hooked guide is an invaluable way to find out about all kinds of fishing, fisheries, tackle shops etc. throughout the south west, and they have a good website here.

• What a weird weekend of weather we seemed to have all over the UK this Easter - down here in the south west we had virtually everything over a three day period, but that did stop my wife and I from wrapping the kids up warm and going to the beach. What on earth would be the point of living down here if we did not take every chance possible to get down to the stunning beaches we have all around here ? Plus the moors of course. My sheepdog Jess just loves chasing sea gulls on the beach.

• Have a look at the new issue of Sea Angler magazine - there is a really good looking feature of mine that I shot on wrasse fishing, a kind of fishing that I still get a huge kick out of. Sitting on quiet rock edges and banging a few of these hard scrapping fish out will always put a smile on the face, especially when the odd one comes along and does you like a kipper !! Look in Sea Angler at pages 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 for the feature. Martin and Kevin, I owe you one for taking me out fishing with you. Thanks guys.

• Well done to Neil Mackellow for becoming the new Sea Consultant at Hardy & Greys Ltd. - I very much look forward to working closely with Neil. I know that this guy will take the company where they need to go in the sea fishing world, and I am really pleased to be a part of it all. Check the link here for the full details.

• It was a sad day in extreme metal when Max left Sepultura all those years ago - I remember when they blasted onto the scene with their classic "Beneath the Remains" album, and I will never forget when Sepultura first toured that album and I saw them rip the famous Marquee Club up with their rabid intensity. So it is great news that the two Cavelera brothers have finally got back together and released an album full of their trademark sounds - check out "Inflikted" by the "Cavalera Conspiracy", and listen to a track or two here. You seriously need this stuff to get your week off to a flying start.

• I did photograph Sepultura a few years ago when they played down at Exeter, but in truth they are a shadow of their former selves. You can see a stack of photos here. Go and listen to their classic Beneath the Remains, Arise, Chaos AD and Roots to see how awesome they once were.