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in near to the shore and then approach your fi sh with your net or grasp the fi sh with wet or gloved hands and lift it from the water. Make sure the fi sh is secured in your hands as you disengage the hook by backing it out in the direction it went in to the fi sh's fl esh. Releasing fi sh The best way to release a fi sh without causing damage to it is to release it in the water. Try to handle the fi sh minimally. The more a fi sh is handled, the more its protective slime coat is compromised. Without that slime, fi sh are exposed to disease and parasites that may eventually kill them. ● Use a quality camera (thanks to current technology, most smartphones take excellent photos!) and make sure the lens is clean. ● Position the subjects with light coming from the front or side, but not behind. ● Use the lake or an attractive shoreline as the background. ● Use the background or props (fi shing pole, boat, etc.) to help tell the story. ● Include others involved in the fi shing event. ● Take the photograph at, or below the subject's eye level. ● Hold a fi sh in front of the angler but not blocking the angler's face. ● Help squeamish children hold the fi sh by keeping it on the line or having another person hold it with their help. ● Take several photographs and pick the best. ● Print, frame and present the photograph before you forget! PHOTOGRAPHS AND MEMORIES The memory of a day fi shing and fi sh caught will be reinforced by a photograph. A framed photograph of a fi rst fi sh, trip with a special friend or a beautiful location will be a cherished lifetime memento. The following are a few suggestions on taking a quality fi sh photograph. g n ks or If a hook has been swallowed by a fi sh, it is usually best to cut the line, leaving the hook lodged in the fi sh's gills or gut. Sometimes a deep hook can be dislodged using needle-nosed pliers, but if it does not come free without tugging, this method should be abandoned. Tugging on the hook to free it will only tear up the fi sh's internal organs. Remarkably, many fi sh can extrude foreign objects like hooks from their bodies given suffi cient recovery time, so a fi sh is much more likely to survive if the hook is simply freed from your line and left inside the fi sh. If you would like to photograph your fi sh prior to releasing it, keep the fi sh in the water until just before you shoot the picture and then return the fi sh to the water. Remember that fi sh will suffocate without water fl ow past their gills. Be careful not to play your fi sh so long during the retrieve that you have completely exhausted it by the time it is set free. It may be unable to swim away. Avoid making any contact with a fi sh's gills if you plan to release it. They are very vital but delicate organs and easily damaged. ARTWORK BY TIM REIGERT MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 CHAPTER 4 ● FISHING TIPS AND TECHNIQUES