Thought I'd take Jason's advice and follow along with this year's challenge of drawing a different fish/fly combination each week. Can't promise I'll do every week, but we'll see what happens. (By the way I'm rubbish with colour so expect to see lots of pen and pencil).

DF&F52_07 Lake Trout

Sad to say, I have never clapped eyes on a lake trout in my life. They do look mean (in a good way). I think it'd be cool to try and get one, but I worry I'd be distracted by pike which seem to regularly live in the same places.

I'm chuffed with the coloured paper by the way. Interesting to see the texture you get from the rougher paper. Alas I got too absorbed in the fish drawing to make any time for the bunny leech. Think I'll have to go more sketchy to get both in within the 30 mins. [late edit - should've said even more sketchy!]

Jason and Jeff's lakers and bunnies should be up on Sunday, make sure you check them out.

Clouser

After the trauma of the deceiver (below) I decided (a) to get some coloured paper and (b) start simple with a Clouser Minnow. I really like the fish's eye view - might do some more like this.

 

Deceiver

I dunno. I thought I'd have a go at the deceiver I missed out from the striped bass drawing. Really hard. I quite like bits of the feathers that I've done, but mostly it looks over-worked and too static. I think choosing white feathers on a white background may have been asking too much as well. Also I totally misdrew the bottom tail feather and it looks like it's dropped off the fly. I'm off to practise some more.

 

DF&F52_06 Striped Bass

I love stripers. I spent a week on Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard for several years in succession in the late '90s. Stripers are fantastic fly rod fish. You can catch them in so many different ways. I must find a way of getting back there again.

No way was I going to have enough time for the deceiver this week (ran out of time for the nostrils again!).

I'm looking forward to checking out Jason and Jeff's and John's stripers/deceivers on Sunday.

DF&F52_05 Crazy Charlie and Bonefish

Flippin' heck Jason and Jeff, this was a hard one. I spent the last two days practising bonefish noses! It's so hard learning to see colours properly. I'm OK at seeing shapes, but colours are hard, especially when the subjects are highly reflective like this week's subject.

As you can see I didn't have time to do any eyes (or nostrils!) on the fish, and I quite like the result as it makes you focus onthe fly and the lips.

I've drawn what I believe is the original Crazy Charlie which has hackle feathers for a wing. Like Clousers, Deceivers, and Woolly Buggers, there are endless variations.

Lurker

Not part of the DF&F52 thing, but I had fun doing this. I was interested in trying to get that strange monotone you get when looking at fish through the water. I think I should have had the confidence to put a ripple right across its back.

I love that feeling of indifferent aggression you get from watching even a small pike lurking in a quiet corner.

DF&F52_04 Brook Trout and X Caddis

Phew those 30 minutes go quickly. I was determined to get the fly in this week, so I really had to motor. Makes you realise how good Jeff and Jason really are at this stuff.

As you can see I'm struggling a wee bit with my technique but I learn something every time I pick up the pastels, which is a great result for me. Maybe not for you though eh?

It must have been written before, but when you start looking at the patterns and colours of a brook trout it really does feel like you're looking into a weird night sky, just after sunset.

DF&F52_03 Cutthroat Trout

Blimey. Jeff and Jason picked a tough one for me. Couldn't really do a cutthroat without colour, so I had to be brave and dig out the never-used box of pastels.

I fished in Montana years ago and managed to catch some small cutts in small streams, mostly on stimulators. I've never seen so many grasshoppers in my life. I remember walking through the field and down to the stream with a bow-wave of 'hoppers leading the way, probably helping to chum up a few cutts at the same time.

My 30 mins were up before I could get to the Chernobyl Ant which was a shame, and the drawing isn't spectacular. But I did enjoy using the pastels, so maybe I'll use more colour in the future.

Here are Jason's and Jeff's images.

Late edit: I went back and tried for one with a chernobyl in there as well. I also tried a more interesting angle. This one took me an hour to get this far (although you wouldn't know it) so it doesn't really count. Sorry about the dirty paper!

 

DF&F52_02 Black Stonefly Nymph and Brown Trout.

I went for a good old Montana Nymph. This was a massively popular UK stillwater nymph in the '80s but you don't see it so much nowadays. I used to tie it with cock hackle fibre tails as illustrated. Nowadays marabou seems popular.

The scan isn't brilliant I'm afraid; looks a bit blurred to me...

Here's Jason's and Jeff's much better efforts.