Henry Gilbey - Blog - Big new "Bass Angler" section coming in the new issue of Sea Angler

Search

Have a look at these blogs

Bass fishing blogs

Categories

Big new "Bass Angler" section coming in the new issue of Sea Angler

Posted 08:25, 7 May 2010
- It's been so hard to keep quiet and not shout from the rooftops about this, because it excites the hell out of me - the new issue of Sea Angler comes out on May 13th, and from now on there is going to be a huge new section within the magazine that is called "Bass Angler". A whole 35 page section on all things bass fishing. I can not tell you how much I respect the Sea Angler crew for having the guts to go with this and essentially dedicate a complete section within the mag to bass fishing. After some "gentle persuasion" I have managed to coerce a few screen grabs of some of the forthcoming pages to put up on this blog.........
- I'll tell you a true story about how this came to be - I was walking my dog early one morning around October or November last year I think it was, obviously thinking about all things fishing, and I was trying to work out different ways to write and photograph about bass fishing for Sea Angler, a mag that I have worked for on a freelance basis now for a number of years. You know how sometimes you get those "eureka" moments in life ? Well it hit me about 6.30am that particular morning - how about putting the idea of a whole new "mag within a mag" idea to the editor of Sea Angler, and then call it "Bass Angler" ? The general interest in going light tackle bass fishing in the UK and Ireland just seems to be exploding year on year. I go bass fishing myself (obviously), but I also simply love being around it for photography and writing purposes. And I was utterly convinced that the interest was at a large enough level that the UK's most important and most respected sea fishing magazine should be looking at majoring in it - that was my proposal anyway......
- So I rush back home from my dog walk and email my proposal to the editor - all the pros and cons that I could see, with arguments for and against various ideas etc. I hit the Send/Receive button and then sat back to wait for a reply. Now bearing in mind that I usually get a pretty quick response from the editor, it freaked me out a bit to hear nothing back for a week !! But I found out that he was on holiday - yes, even editors of fishing magazines are allowed to take the odd break. But there's me initially thinking that no swift reply had to mean that my carefully thought out plans and ideas had gone down like the proverbial lead balloon........
- Gotta say that I was massively pleased to eventually get a reply saying that they thought my ideas were really good and that the whole "Bass Angler" concept should be explored and planned a whole lot more. What a fantastic result if you ask me, and I am sure you can understand now why I have such respect for these guys for listening to a freelancer like me, doing a load of their own research, and then coming back to say yes, let's go for it. Cue a lot of frantic work on my part to do what I needed to do, and all the while having to keep quiet about these plans. So it's fairly obvious I am sure why this new issue of Sea Angler that comes out next week is going to be such an exciting one to see - check out a bunch of previews on the Sea Angler site as well, look here.
- I have not seen the magazine yet, but from the contents list of the new "Bass Angler" section, I reckon that there is going to be something for all anglers. The key here is to really make the information accessible, very approachable, forward-thinking and comprehensive so that anglers of all abilities can find useful stuff to take away and incorporate into their own fishing. And I really hope that some non bass fishing readers of Sea Angler will sit up and take note that "their" fishing magazine is into bass fishing so much that it has to be worth checking out all this light tackle, sporting stuff for themselves (check out the editors words here for proof of how much they have got into it). The guys who run Sea Angler have gone out on a limb here, and I really hope that this very impressive, future-thinking move works out for them. Over the years I have met all kinds of "experts" who tell me that they never read the fishing magazines (although they do sometimes "miraculously" pick me up on certain things from time to time, even though they don't read the mags !!), but personally I have always been into all kinds of magazines for all my interests. I have always loved reading about and looking at photos of my chosen interests, and I have always believed that every time there will be bits and pieces within the pages that helps to increase my knowledge and awareness - however much we think we know about certain subjects..........
- I think it's awesome that the Sea Angler crew have managed to persuade the bass guru Dr. Mike Ladle to write some articles for this new section. Some guys have been pushing the whole bass fishing thing for many years now, and I count Mike Ladle as one of those pioneers. If you didn't know, he runs a busy fishing diary here that catalogues his saltwater fishing exploits. One thing that Sea Angler and I talked about from the start was to ask B.A.S.S. to get involved as well, so it's great to see that there is going to be a regular column from these guys. Bass fishing needs all sorts to make its world go round. Give Sea Angler due credit here - when they do something, they do it properly. It's impossible to please every single person all of the time, but hopefully this new "Bass Angler" section will really cause a decent ripple.
- News, reviews, technical pieces, "how to" stuff, inspirational stories and photos, it's all going to be in there, and I am just really proud to be so involved. Check it all out in Sea Angler from May 13th.
- Note that it's "Bass Angler", and not "all we do is go lure fishing from the shore with expensive rods and reels and bags of high-end Japanese lures" - it's about bass fishing, however it's done, wherever it goes on from both shore and boat, and with whatever gear is required. Lots of cutting-edge modern stuff, lots of down to earth, "everyday" bass fishing, and hopefully just a huge load of fun and inspiration. I am probably the person who is most looking forward to seeing it actually on the shelves, and that's coming from a bloke who came up with the idea !! That's how much I love this kind of thing...........please give me or Sea Angler some feedback when you get hold of a copy of the new issue.
Comments

On 7th May 10 Ben Field said: Yesssss! At last! Almost lost for words mate! Definitely kept that one quiet ;-)

On 7th May 10 Graham said: Henry, Breathtaking !!what a advert and a compliment to our sport from sea angler and all involved,, cant wait to get my copy,, and well done to you mate i know its your job but praise indeed

On 7th May 10 Dave B said: I'll second that Graham, top job Henry! I'll be buying a copy for sure when it comes out...

On 7th May 10 James Davis said: Bravo, Henry! Exactly what is needed. Helpful info for ALL lure fisherman. Whether that have just started and have fifty quid to spend or a lure fanatic with deep pockets. Brilliant stuff.

On 7th May 10 mike said: Sounds amazing, I will bug a copy and read with interest. I opening admit to not being a Sea Angler (or TSF for that matter) fan although I apprecicate the role magazines serve. I hope this is quality and objective content and not a 35 page "advertorial"

On 7th May 10 Barry Howlin said: Certainly looks the buisness Henry might have to check it out in person when its out

On 7th May 10 Nigel said: Very well done Henry or is it going to be Sir Henry (for services to fishing) watch this space... All you need to do now is tell us you have a new TV series coming up on Bass fishing round the world!!!!!!!! I am sure we would all think Christmas has come early!!! Well done again.

On 7th May 10 Gary said: I can't wait for my copy to drop through the door. Thanks again for your enthusiasm Henry, our sport is definitely benefitting from it. Well done Sea Angler for running with it.

On 7th May 10 Ralph said: Great stuff! The more we can get like the Americans with out Sportfishing the better I reckon, more pressure to protect our dwindling bass stocks!(Has anyone caught anything yet?)

On 7th May 10 kev said: we'll have to wait and see if it's going to full of info or just adverts..... as for bass, yes we've had a few up to just under 8lb. www.jerseybassguides.com

On 7th May 10 Keith White said: Looks good. Hopefully it might raise the profile of the sport side of Bass fishing. Trouble with mags is they cycle and recycle. Note: cover shot is recycled (if that is what they are going with). Great picture but seen before. Henry must have some cracking shots by now. That is not a dig, just an observation. I've not purchased a SA or TSF for some years due to the lack of inspiration they offer to intermediate or more experienced anglers. Hopefully... This will be the start of change. We'll see I guess.

On 7th May 10 Steve P said: Fantastic news, well done Henry, cant wait to get my hands on a copy, being fairly new to this type of fishing, it's going to be extremley helpful in my pursuit of this exciting sport.

On 7th May 10 Steve Mullins said: Great stuff Henry.Have always enjoyed reading what Mike Ladle has to say, a true inspiration to me,he helped me to many good Bass catches going as far back as the late 70s.The B.A.S.S guys input should be interesting too. As Keith says lets hope we don't get to many dated photo's,always enjoy seeing your pics,if Mike was an inspiration to my lure fishing,you are who i aspire to in photography.

On 7th May 10 Graham said: Henry,, If That is the cover shot on the Sea Angler it has never been in the Mag as far as i am aware the striking jacket has in similar articles in sea angler,,, that jacket was 5 euros on the cheap rack from pennys in waterford city ,,worth every penny!! I love sea angler and have done for over 30 yrs great mag and nothing in the UK can come close in my view and to get a seperate Bass Mag well is pure magic for our sport an we all should be proud and embrace what henry has done working on this mag,, the opening we have got here is tremendous for the Bass world in general and should all pull together and get new anglers coming to the world of Bass fishing

On 7th May 10 Mark Pad said: great stuff henry as always (hope your blog is not being used like a forum )who cares what the cover shot is , old photos are really cool , thats why we take photos in the 1st place . keep up the great work , pushing this great sport forward , bringing it to the masses . NO bass cover shot , could have a better bloke on the front , you and graham , were the main reason half the plugers in this country are so keen , as another chap said , make DVD 2 , and make our xmas faces people can relate the sport to , worn my dvd out , we need a new one

On 7th May 10 Richard said: This is it! What I would say a lot of bass anglers, lure anglers have been waiting for. An up take and recognition by a great magazine to promote bass fishing. Henry, Graham, Mike and B.A.S.S itself all being in one place for every angler to read and view. Mike's diary is a great place to visit and read (being local to where I live and fish), along with Grahams and your blog Henry. Thank you Sea Angler for taking this on and Henry for the input. Great photos as always and Graham great bass cover. Graham, Henry and Mike are the gents that got me into lure fishing, thank you for the addiction!

On 8th May 10 Henry Gilbey said: Thanks for the positive comments guys, let's hope that this new section of Sea Angler helps to further the sport. Keith - I wanted to reply to your comment - I hear what you say and I often hear various complaints from anglers that magazines all have a degree of repetition. But how can they not ? What you guys are doing is fantastic, forward thinking and is obviously producing some cracking catches/fish, but this kind of thing takes time to filter into magazines etc. - and then you must bear in mind that a lot of anglers out there never want what they are doing to appear in a publication (credit to you guys though, I love the fact that you are so open and forthcoming with your fishing, it's how it should be). So what does the magazine do then ? Mags simply have to be a mix of information that appeals to anglers of all abilities. It so happens that you guys are damned good at what you do, but it is not what most UK sea anglers are doing themselves at this time - and a magazine such as Sea Angler must concentrate on "popular" fishing. They are a business, plain and simple. So that is whay I give them huge credit here, for actually doing something about this explosion of interest in bass fishing. This is a start. It's up to freelancers like me to continue pushing ideas to them. But you are wrong with the cover - that shot has not been used on their cover before, and that exact photo has not appeared in Sea Angler before. Yes, I have a huge amount of bass photos, and plenty are more recent. I proably have one of the largest (sea) bass fishing photo libraries that exists. But there is only one point to a cover - IMPACT, current or otherwise. A cover is designed to help the magazine stand out on the shelves. I have some very cool, more recent bass shots that would work on a cover, but not on this particular issue - you need to look at the design layout and then think about how so many photos simply can not work around the other stuff on there. It is never as simple as the best photo naturally being the one to go on there. The best photo to fit the page and give instant impact is the one they are always going to choose. I never have a say in the cover, and there are numerous shots I have taken over the years that I would have killed to see on the cover. But that's life. Sea Angler want to push their new "Bass Angler", and naturally they looked around for an "angler with a big bass" shot to go on there - and it so happens that they asked me for some sample shots. I sent them in, and the powers that be picked that one, because for them it worked to layout. Looks good to me, and it helps say bass fishing to current and prospective readers - big fish, smiling angler, good light, fun fishing. Great comments guys, it means a huge amount that people take the time to post them on here.

On 8th May 10 Danny Parkins said: Nice one Henry.... is this going to be a summer long fixture? when Nick told me that there was a Bass bit in this months didnt realise it was a whole mini mag!!

On 8th May 10 Mike Symons said: Great idea Henry looking forward to reading it next week.

On 8th May 10 Lee Jones said: Keith Sea Angler has a section for beginners intermediate and experts they have been doing this for approx 1 year might be worth another look.

On 8th May 10 Keith White said: Henry: I'm just really making comparisons to some of the newer 'internet' magazines when i talk about fresh content. some of which you have blogged on here are simply stunning in imagery and content. Yes, ok, lure fishing isn't yet 'mainstream' but it never will be if people don't get it out there. The cover shot is a good one no doubt and if it raises the profile of British lure fishing then I'm fine with it. I really thought I'd seen it already. If my comment was seen in a negative light i assure you it wasn't intended. Personally, I would have loved to see that photo comp winner on the front end. That was simply awesome wasn't it.

On 9th May 10 Henry Gilbey said: Keith - you have hit the nail on the head - internet "magazines". They are the places if writers/photographers want to publish the absolute up to the last minute stuff that is going on. Self-publishing and all that as well, so easy these days. But making it pay is another matter entirely. No worries, your comments were absolutely fine, always good to read all angles. Photo comp winner was a fantastic photo, but it is not a magazine cover shot. Sea Angler have taken a big gamble here, and I really do give them huge credit for it - we all know what is going on, but for a business (magazines are just this) to listen to a freelancer like me and take my ideas on board like that is a gamble. But it's a gamble they feel is worth taking because they have a good idea what is going on. Nothing is ever perfect, but at least they are trying to do something about bass and lure fishing. Danny - it's a permanent thing.

On 9th May 10 John Moynihan said: I have a question for you Henry about the 15 bass rods you must try, how many were tested to arrive at a final 15? Would be interesting to see which ones to avoid. Nice idea for a Bass section and I look forward to reading it.

On 10th May 10 Henry Gilbey said: John - please don't make the mistake of thinking this is "my new section". It might have been my idea, but what I do now after firing the concept at Sea Angler is to come up with ideas and then contribute articles, photos etc. I have neither the time nor the inclination to go and test 15 bass rods !!

Post a comment