I’ve been working a lot with our Garmin units, trying to dig deeper and deeper into each “fish-finding” screen. (These screens include Traditional, ClearVu, SideVu, Panoptix, etc.) People may think that guys like Angelo and me instantly turn our units on and start seeing fish in every direction. The truth is we turn the units on, and then we take on a learning curve just like everyone else. Yes, we get more time on the water than the average angler, but that simply means if we take the proper time to study, we will shorten the learning curve. This is important in our business.
When something new and innovative like Panoptix (click on the Panoptix Forward and Down buttons) comes along, the entire fishing world must go into learning mode. For me, that’s where the fun begins.
Garmin LiveScope
Now that LiveScope has been around for a bit, I’ve had some time to study the screen and come up with a daily game plan as to when and where to use it. It’s something that you really have to work with to become efficient with—but let me tell you, it’s one of those fishing aids that builds extreme confidence. Plus, it’s a ton of fun!
To expand upon the LiveScope learning curve, I believe that one needs to break it down by species of fish. Smallmouth are different than Largemouth; Walleye are different than Muskie, etc. Trust me, you really notice this with LiveScope.
With so much to learn and a plethora of modern-day technology, there never seems to be enough time.
My New Buddy: Chesty-Cam
To get another angle or view of what goes on when not shooting TV (just out learning and enjoying), I decided to strap on the chest-mounted GoPro and just go ahead and shoot tons of footage. At first, I thought this would be great for my records and for reference down the road (in other words, I’m getting older and older). Then I also heard from a bunch of Fish’n Canada fans and buddies that they would like to see stuff like this, too. They said they would love to see “non-TV-style” filming.
Let us know if you like this type of video and if you want to see more.
The following video is a sequence I shot of a gorgeous Smallmouth Bass. I attribute this catch 100% to the use of Garmin’s LiveScope—from start to finish. Although I was throwing a creature bait for Largemouth or Smallmouth, I really feel that pretty much any slower moving bait like a weedless tube jig, a wacky-rigged soft stick worm, etc. would have also worked.
Where to Go from Here
Next up on my LiveScope learning curve: different fish species and the latest and greatest from Garmin, Perspective Mode. Back to school again. Hopefully, I’ll have a report to follow.
