About the Artist
I will never forget the moment that I was introduced to my very first digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera. It forever changed my life. I was on the Little Truckee River about to land a beautiful brown trout when my fishing buddy approached me and asked if I would like him to snap a photo or two. He then pulled an older Canon 350D out of his pack, and my attention immediately switched from the trout in my net to this amazing piece of equipment in his hands. Shortly after I had released the trout and I had stopped asking questions about the camera, he said to me, “Do you want the camera?” He also said that instead of paying him cash for the DSLR, I could simply tie him a few dozen flies. Needless to say, I was elated and couldn’t get home fast enough to begin tying flies to earn my new toy. I had always carried a small point-and-shoot camera with me on the water, and I knew I had the eye for photography, but I’d never given a whole lot of thought to taking photography to the next level until that moment.
When I was finally presented with this camera, I had absolutely no idea what to do with it. I remember how overwhelmed I was with all of the buttons, switches, and settings this camera had. So I did the only thing I could: I dove in head-first and began shooting. Needless to say, the first few images were nothing short of miserable, but I refused to put the camera on auto, and I forced myself to learn all about the manual settings and truly learn the capabilities of my camera. After a month or so of trial and error, lots of reading, and the blessings of YouTube tutorial videos, things finally started making sense to me, and my photos slowly began to show signs of improvement.
That was over three years ago, and my passion for photography continues to grow with each passing day. My camera is never far away. Whether I’m spending a day on the local water pursuing trout, shooting a wedding or family portrait session, or photographing the stars and the heavens, photography will be a passion of mine until I take my last breath, just as fly fishing has been.
One of the many wonders of both photography and fly fishing is the fact that you never get to the point where you’ve learned everything there is to know. Whether I’m fishing or taking photos, I find myself constantly learning new tricks and techniques to become a better, more efficient, and more versatile photographer and fly angler. I consider myself to be extremely fortunate to have these two passions in my life, and it all boils down to that one fateful day on the river when I was introduced to photography. I’m extremely fortunate to be able to earn a living combining my two passions in life. Visit my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stefan-Mcleods-BlueWater-Photography/10479669637446.
Stefan McLeod
