During a recent visit from my mother (who was keen to look after our three boys) my wife (Sue) & I decided to grab our fishing rods and spend a few hours down by the lake together. This is something we once did a lot however, since starting a family, we have never really had the chance (or inclination) to relive some of those wonderful times.

It really was a wonderful few hours we had - just as it was over 14 years ago. We had a great time and I hope I have managed to capture the carefree feeling of being together in such a serene and tranquil setting. We continue to have wonderful times together, but always with our boys - which we love. Though I think we may arrange a babysitter a bit more often in the future.

I wanted to include Sue in the film, to capture some of fun and laughter however, she felt a bit uncomfortable being on film. Regardless, I am quite happy with the outcome and hope you enjoy it too.

what a sweet film and a sweet back story, this was lovely...and your wife must be learning a bit about shooting--or at least how to push a few buttons! since you're the primary subject here.

i bet you didn't drag along a giant bag of camera gear when you did this 14 years ago...it is amazing how the kids shift everything in your life all around, eh?

beautiful magic hour shooting, david, i always enjoy your films--almost as much as i enjoy knowing how much you seem to enjoy making them...(did that make sense??)

David, nice and relaxing piece you got there! It's strange looking at that summer calm river you where standing, while it's winter time at my place!
Tell Sue she did a great job filming you!

And your fishing luck is about like what I get when I'm out fishing!

David, that was a beautiful film!

You captured everything a fly fisherman dreams of, well except for maybe a bigger fish. :)

It was tranquil, serene and moving. Beautiful colors fantastic light.

Sue did a great job with the framing of her shots of you. Moving the camera a little to the right in the shot of you selecting a fly would have taken the dark tree out of the background and given you a little bit better separation.

The shot of the pelican, the competing fisherman, making a strike was awesome.

Having Sue in the film would have made the complete package.

I can see why you have such fond memories. Glad to know you'll be creating some new ones there!

Great job!!

Dang....my wife and I used to fish all the time....
We might have to get back to it. You certainly summed up what is good about the experiance....

As was said before, it would have been great to see the two of you fishing together....

On my end, the music over ran your voiceover a little....I could still hear it, but took some effort.

Still nice, very nice!

Bob

Hi David:

Lovely piece of work! This is a very different kind of adventure.... it's called "life" and what is important in the end, time spent with loved ones as we embrace our past, present and future. Music was a perfect choice. Thanks for the dip back into summer as we are all cold, windy, snowy and gray up here!

Cat

Nice job David… a beautiful film. The music was a bit strong during VO. You got a good mix of wildlife and fisherman in this film, really good.

Markus

Well done to you and Susan on a very well filmed and edited video as we all have come to expect from you.When you have a place like this that brings back memories,well then life cant be too bad...BTW the kids will grow up very fast and the wheel will turn 180 and the 2 of you will be back sitting fishing and making new memories

David,

you have some great shots in this short!! the transitions throughout were very nice.

My only suggestion would be to not make the establishing shot end so sharp.

Very nice!! I enjoyed it very much.

David, you sure create fantastic films! Makes me really want to visit Australia sometime, and experience the awesome nature you have.
Loved the opening picture in this film.

Too bad both you and Sue weren't in the film together. That would have been perfect.

Thank you for sharing your part of the world.
Keep up the good work you do. I'm looking forward to watch more of your films.

Hi David


You got a nice entery her,fly-fishing is great thing.
The silence and peacse whid, it is special.


Nice Work.


VJV.

____________

Whilst not much effort went into my entry, I did like it because it reminded me of such great times with Sue. Thanks to all of you for your wonderful feedback.

Meryem: Yes, the magic hour did work out ok - especially given the completely overcast sky about 2 hours prior to us arriving - and yes, it was a lot of fun shooting the film with Sue.

Per: I gave Sue your feedback and she's feeling pretty pleased with herself.

Kevin: Thanks for your very positive feedback - always very constructive and helpful. I've given Sue your feedback (and others) and she may include herself in a future UWOL. Always nice to include family in the things we do.

Bob: Yes, I agree the music volume should have been lower when I was talking. Thanks for your kind words.

Cat: The hot weather is all we get these days in the southern parts of Australia (up north, they are getting significant rain). This drought has dried up almost all our lakes and rivers! Glad I could remind you of what you will be experiencing soon - although it looked like beautiful weather you were getting during that crazy mountain climb of yours:)

Markus: Thanks and yes, I should have picked up on the music, VO side of things. I certainly need to be a bit more critical at the editing stage - as I tend to loose a bit of interest when I get in front of the computer.

John: I really appreciate your comments. This feedback really inspires me to always try and raise the bar. I certainly agree with your comments about life going so fast - live for the day I say!

Dale (the falconer): Thanks for your positive feedback. I also enjoyed watching your entry VERY much.

Trond: I'm glad you like my attempts at capturing particular moments and next time, I'm gonna get Sue in there (assuming Meryem announces the right sort of theme). hey Meryem, what about the theme "Family"?

Vidar: Thanks Vidar. yes, fly fishing is a great sport and it was wonderful to give it a go after being away from it for so long. I would have loved to have captured myself on a bright, sunny late afternoon with flies everywhere and trout rising all over the lake. Also some slow mo shots of me casting etc but the weather just didn't allow for this. Anyway, it worked out ok I guess.

We needed a fishing entry and you did a great job of delivering it. Overall, nice bright footage and easy transitions make for a relaxing watch. I liked how you included the tiny fish, that gave me a chuckle.

Hope to see you again in the next challenge.

Hi David.

I'm so happy for you and your wife and your "fond memories".
Up here in Norway the Spring is just around the corner and I cant wait to pick up my flie rod and to catch that "big" trout. I love to fish and as you perfectly show us. You always lose the big fish, eh?
I loved your film and you always come up with crisp and fine images.
Kids are a gift, but to be a good parent you have to get some time by yourself, right? That's why grandparents were made :)
Loved your adventure and wish you all the best
Geir Inge

This film had really beautiful images, and flowed very well. Your style really took us along on your adventure.

I would have brought up the music just after your intro VO and faded it for your ending VO, to make it easier to hear you. But I really like the choice of music, it fit the piece perfectly.

The cutaways of the birds were amazing. I love the pelican especially as it fished alongside you. The closeups of you and the wildlife were a nice contrast to the wider shots. The video had a great balance of shots and action punctuated by peaceful contemplation, just as the actual day must have been for you.

As others have said, Sue did a great job with the filming. Now you just need to encourage her to join you on camera for the next adventure!


Ruth

Wow. Our films are total polar oposites, just shows how one stimulus can inspire people in so many different directions. I love the pelican feeding shot.
Your film warmed me up considerably after all the cold snowy films we have seen from the northern hemisphere and made me want to go fly fishing again too.
I glad your adventure proved to be such a rewarding one (I never did think fishing was about catching fish)

Pete

David, I liked it, I liked it a lot. The opening shots of you getting ready to go fishing, getting the gear, fixing the rod, all that moved so smoothly, then your shots around the lake of the birds, and you with the rod, all told such a nice quiet time. And, the music just fix. Thanks. Bob

David
I really enjoyed your video - actually, I’ve really enjoy watching all your videos. (your ‘Australian Spirit’ was truly outstanding).

You have captured such a lovely atmosphere here. The colours in particular are beautiful.

Like so many here, I missed the inclusion of Susan in this video that set out to be your adventure down memory lane together.

?Perhaps a solution round her (absolutely understandable) reluctance to be in the video could have been overcome by including a brief glimpse of her silhouette, a distant view, or a back view of the two of you doing something side by side - or even by leaving in snippets of your conversation (or muted tones of) or some fun laughter (or muted tones of) - especially where you show your catch (a delightful scene!) and describe its size from the water. Perhaps superimposing some hazy scenes of the two of you over the water like you did so beautifully in the intro of ‘Australia Spirit’ could also have worked.

Not that it is significant here, but maybe for future reference, seems like time flew between the time you got changed and the time you finally got to do your fishing - I found that a bit of an anomaly. The light conditions seemed very different. Maybe a transitional clip between the two would have eased the dramatic change in light conditions.

Hey David

I really nice piece of work and it really too me back to my time shooting The Fisher king, fly fishing is certainly a good looking and artistic activity that can look great on camera. You certainly achieved that, some of your shots were beautiful especially some of the wides with the sun peaking of the horizon and of course that amazing sunset. I did feel the back of the 4x4 was a little long and some of the fishing footage seemed to vary in light in a non-chronological way. I liked your humour with the tiny Perch and this gave it a personal feel as well. Technically the VO was very drowned out by the music track and didn't sound like you really wanted to do it too much either....join the club ;-) !

Nice piece David, distinctly lacking in roo's though, but hey you've treated my twice before so I won't moan too much.......just get one in there next time will you :-) !

Man, David, what a sunset! And a helluva' catch too. That guy feed you BOTH for the night or was there a McDonalds on the way home?

Great job at igniting some fond memories of fishing with my Dad. See you on #8

David,

I enjoy the pelican shot as everyone else seems to as well. ;) Great imagery! Also, the DOF with the shimmering water in the background lent itself to a very magical feel, wonderful! Loved the catch of the day, too. ;)

C

A very nice easy going piece with some beautiful shots. I find the one thing missing is any shots of Sue, but I guess she had to run the camera :). Well done, both on the video and the fishing. Some where I have a picture of me with a fish about the size of yours! Thanks for the memories.

Gordon

Hi David,
Another beautiful film from you. I loved the colours you captured at that very special time of the day. Your wife did very well behind the camera too! Please tell me you set it all up for her, or that she too is an accomplished camera operator, otherwise i will be feeling very inadequate! If i am ever up your way i will make sure i have the long wand with me!

Bryce