The 15 Minute Rule
He can drop a pickled egg and take an award-winning picture faster than a gar can skin a minnow.
A lot of you have seen the incredible pictures that Bassmaster photographer James Overstreet takes every day. I’ve spent a lot of time in the boat with J.O., and the most amazing thing about his work is how nonchalant he seems en route to getting those world-class shots. He can be telling you a story about his grandfather, eating a pickled egg, adjusting his sunglasses and facing the wrong way, but when the action goes down he picks up his Canon, swivels around, and gets the killer shot.
Meanwhile, other photographers who’ve developed arm cramps focusing intently on the angler in question for hours, can’t match his pics.
Why is he so consistently able to get better shots than everyone else, while seeming so haphazard about it?
Part of it is his natural talent. Part of it is the years and years he’s spent refining his skills. But another big part is the fact that it’s not accidental or lucky at all. The part you don’t see about Overstreet is that he spends hours upon hours at home, and then each night in his hotel room preparing equipment, setting up filters, and generally creating a scenario where all he has to do is use those highly-developed talents. His gear is never an issue.
It’s a good lesson for traveling anglers to take to heart. Before you are out on the water you have plenty of time to get things right and maximize your chances of success. Once you’re out there, each moment you spend fiddling with gear is a moment that you can’t use directly on what you want to achieve.
I see it all the time when we go to El Salto. We fish until dark and then head back to the lodge, where most anglers stop off at the bar before dinner. They want to share their stories of successes and failure and hear how others did. Often, they get so engaged in those conversations that they never make it back to the room. Typically, those are the guys who can’t find a certain bait the next day, or they fail to have fresh line on their reels, or their GoPros don’t fire when they finally get that coveted 10-pounder on the line.
It’s ok to be cordial when you first get back, but then head back to your room for at least 15 minutes. Reorganize your tackle, respool your reels, make sure that all of your memory cards and batteries are going to be ready to go the next day.
Don’t worry -- the barflies will still be there when you get back and the beer will still be cold when you finish your chores. Make sure that the simple stuff gets done, so that you’re not scrambling to do it at oh-dark-thirty or, worse yet, in the boat. I don’t care which cliché you buy into – “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” or “be prepared” – they’ve become clichés because they’re true. The guys who go straight to the bar and never leave, they tend to be the ones who break off key fish, can’t find their best popper during a crazy topwater morning bite, forget their sunglasses back in the room or run out of juice for their cameras.
Your time on the water is limited, and key bite windows are even more limited. Yes, it’s a vacation, so you don’t have to be over-serious about everything, but you’ll be surprised how much better 15 minutes a night will make the overall experience.
