Cameras Off / Outdoors

Bill is back. In honor of the annual Striped Bass season and your favorite ambassador, Guide Bill Wetzel, his popular episode is here to share again. Bill goes his own way - and it’s usually towards the water (Bill's website: Surfratsball.com). We first met him when filming Running the Coast. Today, on the point of Montauk, he’s one of one. A year-round shore, fishing guide and tournament winner on the beaches and rocks of Montauk, New York. While many anglers have quit, passed on or moved - he remains. He’s first out in nor’easters to find the Striped Bass pushed in by the wind and following bait. To get to his dream water required adjusting to a sudden move from the Midwest to the inner city and finding his way back to the shore no matter the obstacle. Surviving on as little as three hours of sleep, breaking two ribs, and hit by rogue waves, he’s still on the beaches and walking through the sand and rocks at all hours. And has learned lessons to keep it all intact at home. At the end of the day, if the fish aren’t sleeping, neither is he. All episodesummaries: Howardfilms.com

Captain Paul Dixon is back. Live from Key West. The perfect place to discuss Tarpon, bonefish, and perhaps look back with some perspective at what's happening in the northeast. It's an opportunity to tell stories inspired by the flats out Dixon's back door. The guide, conservationist, naturalist, and salt hound has some unexpected discoveries and techniques that emerge from a discussion on how he got here, and what he's found. (and a classic tarpon tourney/moon story reprised by popular demand) Paul's place in fishing history was forged alongside the striped bass in Montauk in many ways. A winning tourney angler and in-demand guide, but a conservationist and naturalist perhaps above all. His explorations of the Northeast evolved to explorations of the flats of the Florida Keys, that became a new place for him to become one with a fishery. Once again, becoming a highly sought after guide in warm salt waters.Part history, part fishing lesson, and part reunion with an old friend who was there for some remarkable eras in the sport. Full episode summaries: Howardfilms.com

Hold on. There he goes. This week on Camera’s Off /Tarpon Diaries South African guide Scot de Bruyn takes us from South to North to East Africa, on a chase for giant bonefish, tarpon, parrotfish and yellowfish (and Cobras).We travel with from Socotra, Yemen to Gabon and dangerous grounds for Yellowfish inland. Scot has guided in the Seychelles and Norway and countless destinations with a fly rod - and off the grid with a tent as needed.  Raised in South Africa, Scot was part of a generation of guides who pushed deep into the outer islands of the Seychelles, exploring some of the most remote and extraordinary fisheries on the planet. Since then, his travels have taken him from Africa to Mongolia, Norway and beyond. Along the way, he’s collected the kind of stories that come from spending a life in wild places. This week, we hear about very big fish—and somebig snakes. From the flats to the rivers and coastlines of Africa, doing more living than dying (though he came close) so we can share it all. All episode information at HowardFilms.com

Hop on. This week we hitch a ride with Captain David Blinken on his flats skiff on a foggy Fall Long Island morning. David was among the first to explore Long Island's shallow water fishing by skiff. He has seen it all, from the explosion after the moratorium, to a decline in populations today. What he saw over three decades ago, changed his life. He is committed to seeing the fishery return to that healthy state.  After tracking striped bass, bluefish and false albacore and sight fishing the shallows - he has collaborated with conservation organizations like the American Saltwater Guide Association and lent his voice to the Striped Bass and the False Albacore populations and their need for management. His interest in saltwater sport fishing from Long Island to the Caribbean has salted and not only a life mission, but a love of fly creation for each mission - and led him to co-found Masters of the Fly, as a forum for anglers, tiers and conservation voices.Learn more and all season episode info at: HowardFilms.comProtect your passion in the outdoors with Cross Current Insurance. And start your angling journey with the pros pros at Madison River Fishing Company.

Carlos “Kechu” Marin Jr. has spent more than 30 years guiding the flats of Belize, and learning its secrets. .But his connection to the fishery goes back even further. From the grand history of the Mayans to Grand Slams on fly rods, the region has seen it all. He shares the wisdom of a life on the water, and trying to achieve the impossible for every anger, and the secrets of a fishery filled with expectations.His father was one of the first guides at El Pescador, his four brothers followed into guiding, and Kechu became one of the country’s premier fly-fishing guides—earning a nomination for Orvis Saltwater Fly-Fishing Guide of the Year.In this episode, we trace the story of Ambergris Caye from coconuts, lobster and conch to a world-renowned destination for bonefish, tarpon and permit. Kechu shares the family history behind that transformation, lessons learned from decades on the flats, memorable anglers, permit wisdom, and his concerns about protecting the fishery for the generation now following him.It’s a story about fly fishing—but also about an island, a family and a way of life that changed together.Full episode guide: HowardFilms.com

Arno Matthee : Gone + Fishing.Before Africa's Seychelles became one of the world's great fly-fishing nations, Arno Matthee was exploring it further. An unexpected opportunity out of South Africa gave him a start. And, he never looked back. From early days exploring the legendary flats of the Seychelles—where he stalked Giant Trevally and Bonefish, on the outer islands, and cracked the code for Milkfish. Then, he turned his attention west, exploring the remote rivers, estuaries, and coastlines of Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and beyond in search of giant tarpon, tigerfish, and waters few anglers had ever fished.There were no guidebooks. No established lodges. No skiffs waiting at the dock.So, Arno started with what he had: a kayak, a fly rod, a machete, a pack of food- and the curiosity to paddle beyond the next bend. Over time, those early expeditions evolved into pioneering explorations that helped establish a giant tarpon fishery, while navigating isolation, difficult logistics, and even the threat of piracy. It's a conversation about far more than catching fish; but the psychological give-and-take rewards, when looking for something off the grid. All episodes: Howardfilms.com #FlyFishing #AfricanFishing #Tarpon #Bonefish #GiantTrevally #Tigerfish #FishingPodcast #Adventure #Outdoors

There are few people who understand the world of bonefish, tarpon and permit from as many angles as Dr. Aaron Adams.Aaron is the Director of Science and Conservation at Bonefish & Tarpon Trust and a Senior Scientist at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. But long before the Ph.D. and the research papers, he was an angler — fishing since he was five and developing an early fascination with not just where fish were, but why they were there and what they needed to survive.For more than 25 years, Aaron has worked throughout the U.S. and Caribbean studying fish, their movements and the habitats that sustain them. He has authored or co-authored more than 70 peer-reviewed scientific papers and three books, while helping turn that science into real-world conservation. Perhaps most importantly for anglers, he has a gift for taking complicated fisheries science and explaining what it actually means when we're standing on a flat with a fly rod in our hands. We covered a lot, and Aaron was ready!All episode summaries at HowardFilms.com

Today on CAMERAS OFF (link in bio), Award-winning National Geographic photographer, filmmaker, and conservation storyteller Ami Vitale has spent her career documenting the fragile relationship between people and the natural world. Photograph the last living pair of northern white rhinos, orphaned, elephants, and pandas being introduced to the wild, as well as the rescue of Rothschild Giraffes trapped on an island. The stories go on and on…Named among the creators of Photography's 21 Most Important Photographs of the 21st Century, her work has helped bring global attention to some of Earth's most vulnerable species—from the last northern white rhinos and orphaned elephants to giant pandas—and the remarkable people fighting to save them. Through powerful visual storytelling, Ami reminds us that the greatest photographs don't simply document history; they have the power to change its course. To see all of the amazing photos and for a chance to make an impact go to AMIVITALE.COM All episode guests bios at HowardFilms.comThanks to our partners, including: Madison River Fishing Co. Being a dependable source for fly fisherman in the know for over 40 years and to Cross mrfc.com Current Insurance for insuring those who want to protect their passion in the outdoors. crosscurrentinsurance.com#nationalgeographic #photography #endangeredspecies #outdoors #conservation

“The Kid” - Keys guide Shawn McKay joins us this week. Trusting the process has yielded some impressive results and the salt life he wished for.  I first met Shawn in Highland Park, Idaho while fishing The Henry’s Fork- his love of  fishing started early in TN., and wound its way through the American West, until he found his calling: Keys Fishing (with an emphasis on Permit). It’s been fun watching his journey unfold. Trout and bass first fueled his passion for fishing at home, and today, he’s testing himself in new ways—including the 2024 IGFA Permit Invitational Championship with his Angler Alejandro “Sand Flea” Vega—(and 2023 IGFA Permit Invitational Runner-ups) while doing whatever it takes to make a life on the flats. This conversation isn’t about trophies though. It’s about the need to explore, learn and discover. Finding Mojo on the water —trusting your instincts, and making the most of a Saltwater education. Where the next chapter of this journey may lead. And a couple of stories worth repeating. #permit #floridakeys #flyfishing #tarpon

I've known Tom a long time. He was an enthusiastic first participant in my experiment of fishing films and believed in the mission. Mini may not realize that he was a well respected fishing guide in the Florida Keys on before he was TV host. He went on to create his own TV series, Saltwater Experience, and he's been in media and angling ever since. We begin our story back in the 1980s as he set find his way on the water, with no playbook. It's been a productive journey with many highlights, including his competitive fishing days, along the way. He even co-founded his own streaming service, Waypoint TV. This is the story of how he got here, and what keeps him going.