Tenkara Tuesday: Quick Hits From Social Media

Welcome to Tenkara Tuesday...

Going to try and make this a more regular Tuesday thing again, some weeks it will be extended "features"... other weeks it'll probably be some quick hits. This is one of those weeks.


Tanuki Golden Trout Rod

So if you follow Luong Tam and his Tanuki rod company on Facebook at all, you might have noticed that he's been all about golden trout recently, and he's developed a rod to go chase them. Check out the paint job on this thing...

Photo: Luong Tam

My only hope is that it's more suited for chasing golden trout than the "Appalachian Brook Trout" rod was for chasing brookies a few years back. Looks good so far...


Yonah Tenkara Fanny Pack

Ok, not gonna lie, I totally feel like I'm cheating on Zimmerbuilt by writing this, but a new tenkara/fly fishing fanny/sling pack from Yonah Packs was released recently.

Photo: Yonah Packs

I did purchase the original Yonah "simple" pack a while back just to check out the build quality and materials, and I will say that if that was any indication, anglers should be very pleased with this new edition. (Use coupon code YONAH5OFF for a $5 discount & free shipping)


Discover Tenkara Hirata-San Bundle

John & Paul at Discover Tenkara... half the time I can't keep straight whether they're asking me to sign up for free stuff, buy downloads, watch YouTube videos, or support through Patreon. Whatever. It's probably my fault, their informational content is so good, I tend to oversubscribe to their offerings.


Right now they've got a new bundle of content consisting of videos, e-books, and audiobooks on sale featuring tenkara master Hisanobu Hirata. I downloaded it the other night and have gone through the audiobooks in my drives in the car - they're excellent. And for a few more days the bundle is available for $45, rather than the regular price of $109. I think that price is good until the 19th, so don't sleep on it if you've got any interest.


Tenkara Cast 2.0

Daniel Galhardo is back from Japan and changing things up a bit with his popular "Tenkara Cast" podcast. Per his latest entry:

"I'm doing a soft "relaunch" of the Tenkara Cast, where I will be focusing on sharing more practical advice for your next outing. In addition, every episode will now feature a conversation with a different Trout Unlimited chapter around the US to find out more about their projects and how you can get involved." 

Sounds good to me... well not literally, I haven't listened to it yet. But if you'd like to, check out the embed below, or punch it up on your favorite podcast app.



Instagram: @tenkara.babaa

While not necessarily a new IG account (over 1,000 followers at the time of writing this), this really has to be one of my favorite Instagrams to just scroll down and get lost traveling through all the photos. Aside from the fact that the photography is great... the settings are absolutely phenomenal! This is real mountain fishing (and on-stream eating). Have to be careful though, too much of this account will get you stir crazy, wishing you were on the water!

Photo: tenkara.babaa Instagram

So I guess that's about it for today. I'm headed out on vacation this week so maybe I'll be doing some blogging from the road... or airport... or if wi-fi allows... boat. We'll see.

In the meantime (and in closing)... here's a random video from a Vimeo "tenkara" search for no good reason except FUN. Enjoy!

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ATTENTION TENKARA FISHERFOLK
Are you a tenkara angler? Do you have a story, pictures, video, fly recipe, or simply a fishing report from one of your recent tenkara adventures? If so, I'd really enjoy hearing from you for an upcoming Tenkara Tuesday post! Feel free to send an email HERE, I'd love to publish your original contribution.

Video: Cadeau Nives 2017

I'd love to get out trout fishing right about now. But it's just not the time. I've got stuff to do, and the water is a bit out of reach. Instagram and the Prisma app's been a nice diversion, but just isn't getting it done.

However, French guide Brice Sylvain recently dropped this little video to Vimeo. The beginning is a quick slide show, but then it goes into some nice footage of brown trouting. So let's spend some time watching that today. I mean even if you can't get to the water (like me) who doesn't love to daydream? Enjoy!

Six Waters Co. Fishing Apparel

I like gear, you like gear, we all like gear.

In reviewing the world of Instagram the other day, I stumbled across Six Waters, a relative new entry to the fishing apparel scene. Their stuff is pretty cool.

So who is Six Waters? Well, their website explains that it's the dynamic duo of Dave Blackhurst & Sam Parkinson, "...just a couple of Utah dudes with a passion (ok maybe an addiction) for Fly Fishing and the Outdoors."

Being friendly with Dave from some other online endeavors, I popped him a quick note to get a little more backstory on who they are, what they're up to, and what their plans might be for Six Waters.

We wanted to give another spin on the lifestyle fishing apparel world. We know we are a small fish in a very big river but we love what we do. Sam and I have been fly fishing together for 20 years and thought it was time to get in the industry a bit more.

Sam and I come up with a bunch of great ideas and then I will head to the computer and start designing. I have been a graphic design for 20 years and I love what I do. Sam is such an awesome photographer and Instagram guru that we thought our designs and marketing team could get the word out about the new company.

We loving living in Utah with our families and any chance we can to get out and fish. We both love every aspect of fly fishing from Tenkara to getting out in the middle of the night with a mouse pattern.

So far our best selling item has been the "trout" shirt and hat. This simple design has been great for us. We are looking to release much more designs in the coming days. Eventually, we would like to get much more feedback from everyone on Instagram on the designs we want to release. We are also looking forward to doing collaboration work with other fly fishing companies to get some more awesome t-shirt designs.

So there you go. Just two regular guys like you and me giving fly fishing apparel a shot. Did they hook you? I think they're going to get me to bite at the Roadtrip tee...

Seneca Inc.: Pennsylvania Handcrafted

Just thought I'd share a t-shirt I decided to take the plunge on last night.

It's not my typical style, but based on my Keystone State upbringing, the graphic on the back was far too appropriate to pass...

I've been following Seneca Inc. on Instagram for a little bit now. In addition to this shirt, there is also headwear that borrows from the same Jake Beaver design, as well as some other great gear that might fall right in your wheelhouse.

5 People That Instagram Tenkara Right

Over the past two years, I've really had fun tooling around Instagram looking at photos of the topics I enjoy. While my contributions to the social media platform have been less than stellar, digging into fly fishing, Star Wars, roller derby, and Florida lifestyle hashtags have opened my eyes to a ton of different people that I don't typically interact with via the blog, Facebook, or Twitter.

As I've immersed myself in the tenkara content via the Tenkaragram project, I've noticed there are a handful of folks that really cover the subject well. Here are five of my favorites; some may be familiar, others new, but either way I think they're worthy of your "follow."

In no particular order...

tenkararodco

The official Instagram account of Tenkara Rod Co., these guys absolutely slay it on Instagram. I'm not sure if they do this themselves, or have an ad agency or what, but lots of great photos, a nice amount of videos mixed in, and a huge follower base...seems like their posts receive about 400-500 likes on average, a staggering number.

tenkaraholic

The user types descriptions in Japanese, but the pictures speak for themselves. Tons of beautiful fish and landscape photos...you can't go wrong with any of posts this account pushes out to the world.

5ive3hree

This Instagram account posts wonderful photos with fishing, camping, and handmade goods
as the subject. Sort of a hipster aesthetic, but I still dig it a lot.
A Japanese user, but the posts are in English.

jasonsparks25

Yes, you probably know Jason Sparks as the tenkara evangelist and have encountered him first elsewhere - Facebook, the Appalachian Tenkara Jam, or perhaps one of the clinics he puts on locally in the North Carolina area.  And yes, these photos usually get cross-posted to Facebook...so you can view them there too...but I have to give credit where it's due. Jason has a great eye for photography, especially macro shots, and he's consistently one of the top creators of tenkara content on Instagram.

tenkarautah

I've been a big fan of Dave Blackhurst's tenkarautah account for a while. All of the pictures of fish, scenery, or the random tenkara doo-dad are all bright, colorful, and full of life. If you've been following him for a while, you may have once known his account as 10karafish, this is the current destination.
Photos like his make me want to get out and fish Utah again.

Honorable Mentions that are also worth a follow:

apnaples, mikeadamstattoo, creeksidekebari, tenkarachick, tenkarausa, & johnjmcmullen.

Have a favorite Tenkara Instagram account? 

Feel free to share in the comments below...

Tenkara Tuesday - Interview With Robb Chunco of Creekside Kebari + Fly Co.

Welcome to Tenkara Tuesday.

As I started playing around a little bit more on Instagram last winter as a way to fuel the "Tenkaragram" project, I found that it broadened my horizons to what is going on in the world of tenkara, especially when it came to folks that weren't affiliated with any of the rod companies, nor doing the majority of their socializing on Facebook or Twitter. One of the first users to catch my eye was Creekside Kebari + Fly Co...an account that not only appeared to be tying really great flies, but taking stellar photos of them as well.

After a month or so in the making, I'm happy to present this week's installment of Tenkara Tuesday; an interview with Robb Chunco of Creekside Kebari + Fly Co.

T!: I understand that you & Creekside Kebari + Fly Co. are based in Buffalo, NY. What do you consider your home waters? Do you have a favorite creek or fish species, and what do you like most about it? (No need to give up secret spots) 

RC: Being in Western NY, we’re pretty lucky to be smack dab in the middle of some pretty amazing waters. Within an hour’s drive I could be at any one of a half dozen prime creeks. A little further out and another half dozen – that’s what’s cool about the area. If you've got the time to keep looking, you’ll keep finding water to fish. The Upper Cattaraugus, Hosmer Brook and Wiscoy Creek are probably the best known. The Lake Erie and Ontario tribs are legendary steelhead fisheries as well. 

I’ve gotta say that brookies are probably my favorite. They’re also New York’s official state fish, so I got that goin' for me. Which is nice. But I have a big soft spot for warm water fishing. If you've never taken a slab of a bluegill on a tenkara rod, then I kind of feel bad for you – those little SOB’s are a hell of a lot of fun!

But honestly, any fish on the end of your line is pretty hard to beat. Brookies, browns, bluegill or bass – I’ll happily catch them all. 

Brookie

T!: When I think of Buffalo, 3 things come to mind. The Bills, wings, and snow. They’re probably stereotypical associations, like all Philadelphians (where I'm from) are insane for the Eagles and eat a diet of only cheesesteaks. What’s your opinion of the first two, and does it really snow as much as most people think there? 

RC: I’m just not a fan of football. Not even one little bit. But I do sort of admire the dedication of Bills fans. 

I dig wings (thank you for not calling them ‘Buffalo Wings’, by the way). I live about 2 minutes away from the Anchor Bar where they were invented. 

Snow. Oh, snow... Yes, it can get pretty crazy here at times. If conditions are just so, and Lake Erie isn’t totally frozen the Lake Effect snows can be quite intense. This past season the areas just south of the city got 7 feet of snow in 3 days. It was insane. The city proper got nailed pretty badly too. However, the other 3 seasons are known for being pretty glorious around here.

T!: How and when did you come across tenkara? What was/is appealing about it to you? I “found” tenkara not even a year after I started fly fishing...I love the efficiency, but am not one of those guys that has decided to abandon my reels all together. Still love a click & pawl on a 3-weight. Did you fly fish prior?

RC: I think 3 or 4 years ago or so, a good friend told me about it. It seemed really cool – I know the term “simple” gets used a lot, but it’s right on the money. It’s a truly simple way to fish and that simplicity can be pretty liberating. 

I had messed around with fly fishing a little bit before I got into tenkara, but was primarily chasing largemouth bass with a spinning rig and soft plastics. 

If anything, tenkara is almost fueling my interest in conventional fly fishing. The two methods both have their place and a tenkara rod is so portable it’s nice to be able to pack one along in addition to a fly rod. I’ve got a few Eagle Claw Featherlights with Martin clickers and a Cabela's CGR rigged up with an LL Bean Pocket Water reel. They're so buttery smooth.

Takayama Sakasa Kebari

T!: Tenkara tools can be simple, but let’s talk gear for a second...rod, line, fly box. I've got way too much tenkara gear, but am crushing on the Tenkara USA Rhodo, Sunline 3.0 level line, and a Tacky Fly Box to do my bidding at the moment. What do you use, do you have a preference?

RC: I have a Badger Tenkara “Classic” and a “Bad Axe.” I dig Badger because of their relaxed and approachable view on tenkara fishing – a “just get out there and do it” vibe. Their Badger Lite lines are really nice and I've been using 12’ & 14’ furled kevlar lines from Streamside Leaders. I really like the way they cast, but this year I’d like to look into using level line a bit more. Man, those Tacky boxes are nice, aren’t they? I love mine.

T!: And more importantly what’s INSIDE your fly box? I’d imagine you’re not a “one fly” guy...but who knows, you might surprise me…

RC: I’m not really a tenkara ‘one fly’ purist. I get it, but fishing different flies is fun, man. I’ve got a few of almost everything in my catalog. I love pheasant tail kebari and I really like killer bugs – both the Frank Sawyer and the Utah version. The traditional kebari with a silk loop for an eye seem to move really nice in the water due to the flexible eye, so I always have a bunch of those on hand. 

So many “Western” patterns work well with a tenkara rod – Adams, a few terrestrials, small poppers for bass and bluegill. Stimulators for a dry & dropper rig. It seems silly to not use them – why limit yourself?

Green Rock Worm

T!: What does your tying bench look like? Mine is always a mess. Do you have favorite tools (vise, bobbin, etc...) or materials to work with? I’ll be honest, those whip finish tools just confuse me.

RC: I always start out pretty organized and then it’s all downhill from there. If I’m tying up a whole bunch of the same pattern I’ll try to stage everything in a kind of mise en place. 

I've got a nice, simple and solid HMH SX pedestal vise and really can’t see myself needing anything else. It’s just rock solid. Zero BS. I like Dr Slick tools – I have their Micro tip scissors, a few ECO bobbins and their bamboo handle whip finisher. It seems like there’s a certain dark magic at play with the whip finisher, doesn’t it? 

Embrace it, dude. Embrace the dark magic.

T!: I've noticed you offer many different kebari patterns for sale. Where do you get your inspiration? 

RC: Well, there are a few “standard” offerings, but there’s usually a lot of daydreaming involved with pattern development. I scratch notes and sketches on scraps of paper all the time and when I sit down to tie, I’ll dig them out and try to make them work. I’ll sometimes try to translate a Western or North Country wet pattern into a tenkara pattern, but after a certain point it can get kind of moot. Why try to fix what isn't broken?

T!: What about the “+ Fly” part of your brand’s name...you also tie English North Country soft hackle flies. While not mutually exclusive, tell us more about that portion of your offering? 

RC: It seemed like a logical second side to the shop. They’re quite similar to kebari in their structure, simplicity, and elegance, and also fish quite well on a tenkara rod. Tying them is a lot of fun and also a huge exercise in restraint. They just don’t look right with too much or too little hackle, and the silk thread has to be wound just so. Their history is incredibly interesting as well.

Snipe and Purple

T!: Have you tied flies for a long time? Your Etsy store is relatively new (November 2014); what made you decide to sell your kebari? Is there a "top selling" pattern yet?

RC: I’m still fairly new to tying, but I kind of hit the ground running. It just sort of clicked. My buddy who initially told me about tenkara had been telling me for years that I would really dig tying, and he was totally right.

I’m not sure when or why I decided to start selling them. I think I just wanted to see if I could actually do it, but then it turned into something a bit bigger. There’s no real top seller per se, but people do seem to dig the Caddis Larva kebari and the Pearly Gates kebari. I move a lot of Killer Bugs too.

Caddis Larva Kebari

T!: What else do you like to do beside fly tying and fishing?

RC: So many things to do, and not enough time to do them. I play guitar, and have a few analog synthesizers that I mess around with in a low key solo electronic music project. I like woodworking. I love photography. I love to cook. I've been a homebrewer since 1994. I snowboard and ride bikes when I can. I really dig camping, and now that my son is getting old enough (5 this year!) to come along with me, we’ll be doing quite a bit of that this summer.

T!: I believe I first noticed your flies on Instagram. It’s a social media platform that I've definitely spent some more time with over the last year. Is that your primary form of marketing, and what do you think of Instagram as a marketing tool?

RC: Instagram has changed everything for me. It is my primary form of marketing – I have a Facebook page and a Tumblr account too, but Instagram is a very powerful platform. It’s essentially a form of free advertising if you want it to be. 

March Brown Flymph

T! Bigfoot. Do you believe?

RC: Hell yeah, dude.

T!: What can we expect from Creekside Kebari + Fly Co. in 2015? Any surprises?

RC: I’d like to keep doing what I’m doing and grow at a comfortable rate. Tying these flies is almost as therapeutic as fishing them. I’ll rotate available patterns in and out and try to keep current with fishable conditions. Not exactly “hatch matching” as much as just being appropriate to the time of year, I guess.

As far as surprises go, well – everybody loves a surprise, and if I do have any it wouldn't be a surprise if I told anybody, right?

Pheasant Tail Kebari

T!: Is there anything else you’d like to say about fly tying, fly fishing, or Creekside? Feel free to say whatever comes to mind.

RC: I really appreciate your taking the time to notice my work, and giving me the opportunity to answer these questions. 

It seems like there can be a little bit of animosity in both fly fishing camps (tenkara and conventional) toward one another, and there really shouldn't be. The techniques each have their merits and limitations – what works well with one method may not necessarily work with the other, but they can cover each other’s backs. I've seen some downright nasty chatter toward tenkara online that sounded like it could have been happening in a middle school locker room. Lighten up! It’s all a means to an end, and who the hell cares how you do it?

A big thanks go out to Rob for taking the time to provide my readers a peek behind the scenes of the Creekside Kebari + Fly Co.  Hopefully we'll get to hook up on a stream together someday!

Robb Chunco is a husband, a father and a dude that likes to make little bug puppets and try to catch fish with them. If you’d like to see his work you can check it out on Etsy or Instagram.
All images used in this post are copyright of Creekside Kebari + Fly Co.

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ATTENTION TENKARA FISHERFOLK
Are you a tenkara angler? Do you have a story, pictures, video, fly recipe, or simply a fishing report from one of your recent tenkara adventures? If so, I'd really enjoy hearing from you for an upcoming Tenkara Tuesday post! Feel free to send an email HERE, I'd love to publish your original contribution.

A Look Back On 2014, Instagram Style

I was never really one to embrace Instagram.  Sure I've had an account for a few years, but seldom posted to it.  At some point this year I decided to jump in and give it a legitimate "go," both expanding my posts and seeking out great content from others...I think it was a few weeks before the Tenkara Summit.

Anyway, it's been a fun year posting there, making (and connecting with) many new friends along the way.  I even found some hacks to make it integrate better with the Mothership...and created a spin-off blog of just tenkara-based Instagram posts.

As such, I thought I'd share the 5 most popular Troutrageous! Instagram posts of the year...as determined by number of likes (which is definitely skewed toward the back 1/3rd of the year).  It's fun to look back at the year that was, especially when it's in pictures.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all of my Instagram buddies! #buddytheelf #fishing #spaghettiandsyrup

A photo posted by Michael Agneta (@troutrageous1) on Dec 12, 2014 at 5:04am PST

#kebariface #tenkara #bass #florida

A photo posted by Michael Agneta (@troutrageous1) on Nov 11, 2014 at 1:42pm PST

Fingers full of brownie... #tenkara #tenkaracatch #flyfishing #Iwana11 #pennsylvania

A photo posted by Michael Agneta (@troutrageous1) on Oct 10, 2014 at 7:34pm PDT

Muddy water butter belly... #tenkara #tenkaracatch #flyfishing #pennsylvania #browntrout

A photo posted by Michael Agneta (@troutrageous1) on Oct 10, 2014 at 4:24pm PDT

Brookie #tenkara #tenkarasummit #tenkaracatch

A photo posted by Michael Agneta (@troutrageous1) on Sep 9, 2014 at 9:33pm PDT

If you're not on Instagram yet, check it out.  

If you do, you can find me HERE, I'd be happy to say hello.

Tenkaragram

I soft launched a new blog/website yesterday called Tenkaragram.

So what's the purpose of Tenkaragram?  Really, nothing.  It's basically a blog that aggregates all of the Instagram posts that use the hashtag #tenkara.  It doesn't update instantaneously, but automatically sweeps Instagram from time to time and picks up and embeds the latest.

But T!, can't I just click on the hashtag #tenkara within Instagram and do the same thing?  Yeah, I suppose...different strokes for different folks.  Oh, I also have it set up to search Vimeo for new "tenkara" videos and embed them as well...although none have been posted since the launch.  We'll see how that goes.  I'm sure it'll blow things up.  Either way, Tenkaragram is meant to be visual in nature, so no scraping Twitter or Facebook.  Sorry.

I'm not really looking control the content.  So somebody could Instagram a photo of a money riding on a pig, tag it #tenkara, and it'd show up...which could actually be fun.

You can't handle the amount of awesome in this photo

So if you're out tenkara-ing, or at the upcoming Summit or Jam, and happen to be Instagramming too... tag your photo with #tenkara.  Odds are, it'll show up HERE.

Note:  If the Instagram user is private, it will still display the posts, you just will not be able to see their picture if they have not already granted permission for you to follow them.  Privacy is a good thing.  :)

Tying Some Fly Swap Flies

via Instagram http://ift.tt/1qOm3YN

The Art Of Peter Perch

Peter Perch is probably one of my favorite artists (not named Owl Jones) at the moment.  I stumbled across his work on Instagram a few months ago, and I just think it's rad.  I don't know much about him, as his Instagram profile simply states, "Fish, fishing and wildlife illustrator based in the Netherlands."

Whatever the case, I dig the style.

If you like it too, do the right thing and check out his website and give him a follow on Instagram...

Do You Yonder?

Probably not.  You're likely thinking, "dude, knock it off with that jibber-jabber..."

If you've noticed in the last few posts, I've been playing around with Instagram quite a bit.  I've been a member for quite some time, but never really got "into" it, as most of the people I follow on Instagram I also follow on Facebook (or to a lesser extent, Twitter), and I end up seeing the same exact pictures twice.

During some downtime at night during my recent vacation I was playing around in the Google Play app store and happened upon Yonder, an Instagram-like app that's targeted at the outdoors crowd.

"Yonder is a community of explorers and wanderers, of climbers and bikers, of skiers and hikers, sharing their love for the outdoors every day."

So why Yonder...especially if I already Instagram?  Honestly, I'm still pretty new at it, so I don't have a definitive answer for you...but I'll list some clear Pros & Cons that I've noticed after about 48 hours of use.

Pros:

• Outdoor Focused - Pictures are of outdoor pursuits only...no other noise...including ads
• Not A Lot of Crossover - The people I'm connecting to on Yonder are clearly different than my other social networks
• Categorization - When you upload a picture, you can categorize it into one of 22 categories - Biking, Hiking, Camping, Paddlesports, Outdoor Photography, Fishing, etc... Hashtags work for collating too, but are not necessary
• Social Sharing - If so inclined, you can also share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, or Message
• Google Maps Integration - You can tag your posts with your location.  While not always the best thing to do for fishing, for those that enjoy other outdoor activities, this can be great

Cons:

• Not a Large Community of Users - Google Play quotes "1,000+ Downloads" for Yonder, whereas it quotes "1,000,000,000+ Downloads" for Instagram
• Social Sharing - A "pro" above, it's worth nothing that the in-app sharing is not as robust as Instagram, can't share to IG, Flickr, Tumblr, Facebook Pages, etc...
• A Little Buggy - The navigation needs a little work.  I'm using Android, it's not always intuitive on how to get around, especially to go back after clicking into something
• Who Needs Another Social Network? - Self explanatory

In any event, I like it enough to keep it on my phone for the time being and give it a longer-term trial.  If you want to give it a try, you can check out the Yonder website, and then download either for iPhone or Android accordingly.  If you do, check me out once you get there under troutrageous1.

DISCLAIMER:
This post is simply the result of me being a tech-dork, one that likes to try new things on for size.  Yonder in no way solicited me to write this post.  If they did, they'd have to send me free stuff before I'd write anything, at the very least a coupon for free fro-yo.  Because nothing hits the spot better after hiking, fishing, climbing, or whatever than fro-yo.  Mmmmmm....

Auto Share From Instagram To Your Blogger Blog

Blogger blogs don't get a lot of love from the widget, or plug-in community.  It's probably rightfully so, considering WordPress is really what most would consider the "world class" open-source blogging platform...and well...Blogger works mostly within Google's gated walls.  That noted, I still run a Blogger blog, and I know many of you do as well.

I recently decided to try using Instagram a little bit more.  Many of you who do use Instagram (far more than I do) passively integrate your Instagram photos into your blog by embedding a widget in your blog's sidebar, creating a "slideshow" or "filmstrip," but there's no true way within the Instagram social sharing interface to get your pictures to publish as a Blogger blog post.  You can share/post them to Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Flickr, etc...just not Blogger.

I happened to find a workaround yesterday that I thought I'd share that is run through a service called IFTTT.com.  It will share your Instagram pictures directly to your Blogger blog, creating an individual blog post through a simple "recipe."  A recipe is simply a command that outlines how when you post something on one app, it will take certain attributes from it, and post them on another app.  In this case, it pulls the Instagram photo, caption, and URL and automatically creates a Blogger blog post of it.

You can actually use IFTTT recipes for many other apps as well - for example, you could set one up to save every PayPal payment you make to a single Google Docs spreadsheet...or have your Weather app send your Gmail account an email every time it's supposed to rain.

I've set up Instagram/Blogger recipes that take your Instagram pic and create a Blogger photo post by either using the hashtag #blog in the caption of the photo, or it will embed the Instagram post into your blog by using the hashtag #embed.

You can set up the recipes to automatically blog post all of your Instagram posts without the use of hashtags, but I thought using the hashtags was a little bit more convenient as it would allow you to be more selective in what you choose to post from Instagram to your Blogger blog.

The cool thing is once you get it to run, if you have a service (such as Networked Blogs) that automatically shares your regular blog posts on Twitter or Facebook, you no longer have to share them on those social networks via Instagram (if you don't want to).  Just post your Instagram pic with one of the hashtags...it will create a Blogger post...and from there gets sent downstream to the other social networks...with all of the traffic pointing back to your blog.

I tested both yesterday and they seemed to both work okay.  I tend to prefer #photo to #embed, only because when it shows up on other social networks later, namely Facebook, their systems can pick up the actual photo to use as a thumbnail image.  That doesn't seem to work with an #embed.

Example of a #Photo Post

Example of an #Embed Post

Confused yet?

If you happen to be interested, you'll simply need to sign up for an IFTTT account either on your desktop, or download the app.  (I'd recommend the app).  From there you can use one of my pre-made recipes below, or try to create your own.  It's not that difficult once you get the hang of it;  far, far easier than I probably make it sound above.  (One note, you may want to change the blog tag on your versions of the recipes.  Mine are set up to tag all of the Blogger posts as "Instagram," which may or may not work for you).

Again, I probably won't use this all the time (if at all), I just thought it might be useful for those of you that are power-Instagram users and also run Blogger blogs.  I'm pretty sure you could use IFTTT to auto-publish to Wordpress too, but I'd imagine there's already a plug-in for that.

  

Shake n' Bake Test

via Instagram http://ift.tt/UC7iv1

The Instagram Fiasco of December 18, 2012

This is not necessarily a fishing post, rather it's somewhat of a social media post, as I tend to do here from time to time.  See in addition to being fisherfolk, most of my readers also partake in some form of social media, be it through blogging, Facebook, Twitter, whatever...

There was an interesting revelation regarding the updated terms of service of a popular photo sharing app/social network (that also happens to be owned by THE omnipresent social network) yesterday.  For those of you who weren't following along, here's a summary of the general reaction that took place in Instagramland...

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGHolycrapTermsofserviceWTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#boycott#boycott#boycott#boycottOMGOMGThey'regonnasellthepictureItookofmy3leggeddogtosomecompanytosellcameratripodsOMGOMGOMGelfontheshelfWTF!!!!#freeowljonesOMGOMGOMGI'msoouttahereI'mgonnatakemykelvinfilteredphotostoFlickrYEAHTHAT'LLGETEM@instagramyousuckBITEMEI'msooveryou.........Oh...wait...they're reconsidering.  Maybe I should too.  #sorry???

First off...Flickr...really?

Second, and more importantly...  Your pictures aren't that good and your kids aren't as cute as mine, so chill out.  Even after you cross processed your mini masterpieces (the photos, not the kids) with both X-Pro II and Hefe filters.  Don't worry, Kimberly-Clark ain't buying them for a national ad campaign...although honestly, if they did, you should be honored.  

When it comes to any form of social media, or internet stuff in general, if you don't want people to see it, don't write or post it.  Remember, every time someone searches cure for genital warts on Google, a person in Mountain View, California starts laughing...hysterically...

Third, and finally...it's all Cameron's fault.  He's the one who got the fishing scene into Instagram in the first place...I blame him for this mess.

See you on Pinterest...that's where all the chicks are anyway...