How to become a professional fly-fishing photographer, with Brian Grossenbacher

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

James Hathaway

Bass, Fishing, Bonefish, Wilderness, Flyfishing, Trout, How To, Steelhead, Bluegill, Fly, Orvis, Sports, Salmon, Panfish, Education, Rosenbauer

4.8 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 9 June 2022

⏱️ 89 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

My guest this week is Brian Grossenbacher [42:45], one of the finest fly-fishing still photographers in the world. You’ve seen his work on the cover of many magazines and in Orvis catalogs. (Brian and I recently collaborated on a book entitled, simply, Trout, with his images and my essays. ) Learn how Brian’s career changed from being a full-time fishing guide to a professional photographer and glean some tips on how to go pro yourself—or at least improve the quality of your own images. Along the way, Brian tells a couple stories that had me in tears of laughter as I was recording this.

In the Fly Box this week, we have some interesting questions and great tips from listeners, including:

What impact does bug spray have on fish and the tackle we use?

My Elk Hair Caddis dry flies land on their sides. How can I prevent this?

Should I grease my leader when fishing with a dry-dropper rig in fast water?

I want to try carp fishing. Should I put my money into a better reel or a better rod?

A tip from a listener on how to keep materials out of the eye of a fly you just tied, and how to keep your hands warm in cold weather.

A tip from a listener on how he greatly improved his casting with all rods when he went from a 4-weight rod to a 9-weight rod.

What would you do if faced with three days of 25 mph winds and dirty water when on a saltwater trip?

Does cold weather make fly rods brittle?

I came up with a killer fly pattern that is unlike anything out there. Should I share the pattern on social media?

I am having trouble with carp. What fly patterns do you recommend, and how can I tell when they take the fly?

What tips do you have for making those quick deliveries when sight fishing in salt water?

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi and welcome to the Orvis Fly Fishing Podcast. This is your host Tom Rosenbauer and
0:16.6	my guest this week is photographer Brian Grossenbacher. Brian is one of the, the few people
0:24.5	in the world really that's, that's able to make a living as a fly fishing photographer. It's a
0:31.3	hard way to make a living. And so the, the discussion is about, you know, how Brian was able to achieve
0:39.5	his dream, the dream job that lots of us would, would like to have. And also how to go pro if you want
0:49.8	to, what, what do you need to do to become a professional fly fishing photographer. And then some
0:55.9	tips on, on, on taking great fly fishing pictures as to, as opposed to just, okay, fly fishing
1:04.0	pictures. And pro tip here, it doesn't involve buying an expensive camera. You do need a decent camera,
1:13.1	but there are, there are other things that are, they're far more important than having the
1:19.9	latest and greatest in camera gear. And Brian and I recently collaborated on a book called
1:26.4	Trout, just came out in April. It's kind of what you'd call a coffee table book. Brian did
1:32.5	the beautiful images and I wrote some essays and it's a book that I'm personally very proud of.
1:37.8	I don't get a chance to, I don't get a chance to write essays that much. Most of the stuff I do
1:43.9	is kind of nuts and bolts. So it was a delightful project and working with Brian and, and watching him
1:51.3	work is, is was a real education for me. So I hope you enjoy this. I, and there are some, just a warning,
2:00.9	there are a couple stories that Brian tells in the podcast and one of them involves a little bit
2:09.3	of mild potty humor. So in case that, in case you think that might offend you, you maybe shouldn't
2:17.7	shouldn't listen to the podcast or fast forward through that part, but it is, it is a very funny
2:24.0	story that had me in tears. So anyway, I don't mind a little potty humor. It involves a practical
2:33.1	joke. So anyway, let's get on to the fly box. I'll answer some questions or I'll try to answer
2:40.5	some questions. And if you have some questions for me, you can send them to podcast at orvis.com.
2:49.0	You can either just put your question in your email, type it in or you can attach a voice file
	...

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