With the increasing availability of good quality (and relatively cheap) waterproof cameras on the market and the growing popularity of catch and release fishing, a photo (or video) of your catch is often all you’ll take home at the end of a day’s fishing. There’s nothing worse than a shot of a fish flapping around on the deck or hung up grey and stiff at the end of the trip and it’s far more interesting if the angler is in the shot and the fish is fresh.
I also fish from a kayak, so getting a decent shot of my catch was proving difficult and I had more than enough shots of Snapper laying across my legs.
The main problem in a yak is that there isn’t often anyone nearby who can stop what they’re doing and get a shot at a moment’s notice, so the solution I had in mind involved a mounting system that could be operated by myself at arm’s length (while trying to control a live and slippery fish).
The other problem in my kayak (a Hobie Revolution) is the confined space – the camera bracket would be competing for space with 2 rod holders, a fishfinder and the Mirage Drive pedals. So the solution would have to position the camera above all the clutter and give me a clear shot.
Enter the Scotty Portable Camera Mount. I already have several Scotty accessories on my yak – they’re a well designed, rugged piece of kit and a natural choice when it comes to ‘pimping’ any watercraft.
Specifically designed to be used with a GoPro, they also accommodate pretty much any standard compact camera. They are fully twistable, turnable and rotatable allowing for just about any angle you can think of. They can be mounted on the supplied base or coupled with all of Scotty post-mount systems which makes them instantly portable and an ideal way to mount your camera to a kayak or boat.
In my case however, I needed to be creative with the mounting solution so that the camera (a Panasonics Lumix) is at arm’s length where the timer can be activated easily. I ended up attaching it to one of my existing Scotty rod holders with the supplied base and a couple of 3/8th stainless bolts and nyloc nuts – a simple ½ hour job once I’d decided on the location.
I can now position the camera at any angle and shoot 360 degrees in any direction and I’m pretty happy with the finished result. With any luck, you might see some shots in future editions of this mag!
Tim Haynes
