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I INVENT VIDEO FISHING
When a Minnesota inventor created an underwater viewing system (the Aqua-vu) and formed a company (Nature Vision) to mass-market it, I knew my opportunity to video-tape pike strikes was knocking.
Unlike some other systems, the Aqua-vu’s camera housing is great for video fishing. I use a piece of green coathanger wire secured through the holes in the top of the rubber housing. Most of the wire extends at a 45-degree angle, a line release mechanism fastened to the end. I’ve tried several downrigger releases but the line fouled too often so now I have the last inch of wire bent double, with a short piece of plastic tubing (available in hardware stores) jammed over it.
I clip a spitshot sinker on my line and cram it into the tube end to suspend my bait or lure in front of the camera, with several egg sinkers secured to the back end of the camera housing as a counterbalance. (I started out using the weights that come with the Aqua-vu, but Nature Vision’s quality control problems resulted in the electrical wiring separating at the camera housing when I jiggled the cable to shake off weeds.)
For my first experiment, I took my boat out on LIttle Long Lake, one of the clearest lakes in the Twin Cities metro area. I anchored at the south end on the edge of deep weedline, hooked up a sucker on my rig and lowered the contraption to within a couple inches of the bottom. I only had a couple hours of daylight left but I got two pike hits (landed one, about 2 lbs) on tape that evening. I’ve been hooked on video fishing ever since.
IN-FISHERMAN Comes Aboard.
AFAIK, it’s been only me (and a Pioneer Press writer who included my invention in his article) using the phrase I coined -- Video Fishing -- for the last several years, but the 2007 August/September issue of IN-FISHERMAN magazine (p. 38) has a diagram showing an alternate method with the caption -- “Rigging a Camera for Video Fishing.” The illustrated method instructs the angler to drill a hole in the Aqua-vu Back Viewing Fin, attach a downrigger release using a large split ring, and clip the line to it so a floating lure can follow the backward-facing camera.
I see a couple of problems with their method. The line to the release will probably pass distractingly within camera range and live bait rigs will drop from camera range unless floating jigheads or spinners were used.
The Future of Video Fishing
Video fishing is still in its infancy. The future of the sport is bright.
Nature Vision is now selling a $99 Aqua-vu, making underwater viewing (and video fishing) available to more fishermen.
The best mass-market cameras now are black-and-white. When good color units come on the market at a reasonable cost, the boost in picture quality will make video fishing skyrocket. (I hooked my Sony camcorder up to someone’s Atlantis system and blew out his color monitor, then blew out two replacement monitors they sent him.)
Nature Vision sells a motorized unit that lifts and lowers the Aqua-vu camera with the push of a button. For lakes covered by WiFi, it should be possible with some modification for people to fish from the comfort of an office, viewing the underwater action on a computer screen while using a joystick to raise and lower the camera -- video fishing by remote control.
Some day people could fish with tiny remote-controlled submarines, exploring the depths of rivers, lakes and oceans, hooking fish and fighting them with the sub’s engines. Could be a lot of fun.
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