How To Q&A With Forbidden Routes

Could you introduce yourself: how old are you, where are you based, and how long have you been fishing?
“I was born and raised in a small village in Sussex, situated in the south east of England in 1993, which now makes me 28-years-old. Angling has been a massive part of my life for over 20 years now.”

Where did your introduction to angling come from?
“I was introduced to fishing by my father back when I was at primary school—he was a keen carp angler back then—and still is to this day. He used to take my brother and I to a private lake set in the beautiful grounds of a golf course where he worked back then. It wasn’t full of specimen species but back then I used to love to catch anything and everything. To be honest, I’m still very much the same angler today, who’s happy to catch many varieties
of species on the simplest of tactics.”

When and how did you get into photography?
“When I was growing up, I always had a sharp eye for anything creative, so I suppose when I was introduced to photography, I would naturally take to it. It was a friend of mine, who was also an angler, who showed me his SLR and let me take a few photos with it. I must admit, from that first encounter I was trying to better the next shot and naturally I took to it. From that point onwards I had to purchase my own camera and my friend taught me the very basics of shooting in manual mode. Fast forward many years to today and I have had plenty of different makes and models of cameras but every time I go out fishing, I still get that same buzz every time I capture a great photo.”

What are your favourite subjects to shoot: scenics, socials, capture shots, wildlife, carp in their natural environment?
“I suppose I’m an all-round photographer. I don’t seem to have a favourite niche; I enjoy shooting all aspects of wildlife. I have definitely enjoyed shooting photos from my drone in recent years, it’s amazing the different types of angles you can capture from the sky. Many times I’ve taken photos of carp’s natural behaviour that you wouldn’t have been able to capture from the bank. I do enjoy seeing wild carp behaving normally on rivers or big wild waters, there’s something quite remarkable about learning a lot about their natural behaviour by just simply observing and waiting to seize that
special photo.”

Do you have a favourite time of year to shoot, for water clarity, for instance, or maybe just for the colours of the environment around you?
“I have a couple of preferred seasons to take photographs when I’m angling. Autumn is a special time of year to be out with your camera, especially with a capture to photograph. It’s the different colours that make it so interesting—the reds, the yellows and the browns make amazing backdrops for special memories with carp. I’ve been lucky enough to photograph a carp just shy of 50lb in the autumn and I couldn’t have picked a more appealing season to capture the moment. I am also a big fan of spring because of the new burst in plant life, shooting daffodils and bluebells amongst our angling scenery has also got something very special about it.”

Could you talk us through your equipment?
“I used to be a Canon user for the first few years of my hobby and I learnt a lot from that camera. But now with my love for filming growing more and more, I have converted over to Sony, as I believe they are one of the leaders in the market for film making. I use a Sony A7iii as my main camera, and I also have a Sony HD camcorder to hand out to any people present at the time of a capture. This way it’s easy for someone who doesn’t know how to film to still capture the whole moment in focus for me. I then use a DJI Mavic Mini 2 for my drone shots and a GO PRO Hero 8 Black for anything action or underwater.”

What is your favourite lens and why?
“As anglers, we all love a bit of bokeh: a shallow depth of field to our photos. My preferred lens would have to be a 50mm or a 35mm with a low aperture. But in more recent times I’ve learnt to love the best of both worlds and use a lens that’s good for photography and vlogging—my preferred lens for this is my 17-85mm f2.8.”

What’s the most bizarre thing you’ve witnessed, but not been able to capture on film?
“This was a shocking moment. When I caught my PB off the surface a few years ago, which was just shy of 50lb, I was admiring just how big it was whilst it was resting in the net. The next thing I know, it’s had a frenzy and managed to smash its way straight through the mesh on my net. As you could probably picture, my face wasn’t very amused that I was watching a near 50lber swim off without letting me have a picture with it. Luckily, I had a second chance and the barbless hook was still holding on, so after I threaded the rod back through the net, I managed to net it for the second time.”

Have you learnt anything from observing carp at close quarters like this that has aided your angling?
"Any one that has followed my films or myself as an angler would know I spend a lot of time observing carp. I would say my strong points to my angling is working out their routines and stalking them. 90% of my biggest carp have come from being patient, working out what the carp likes to do at certain types of the day. So when I’m eventually angling for them, normally in a short time, I’m ready to be in the right location.”

Who are your favourite angling photographers and why?
“Being part of the industry, I have seen some incredible photographs over the years but I wouldn’t say I have a favourite photographer. I get more inspired by material combined by numerous people involved, like magazines from yourselves or books like Subsurface or Monkey Climber.”

Do you have an all-time favourite shot, & if so, why do you love it so much?
“I was on a short campaign last winter whilst fishing a sewer drain whilst filming for Cypography. When I was on the banks of the river, I captured a couple of what I thought were amazing drone shots. One of which was a carp sitting in the flow amongst the weed and the other was of a river carp feeding on my spot whilst I watched from the bank, something you don’t see every day.”

When did you start your YouTube channel, Forbidden Routes, and how much time do you spend working on that?
“I started my channel around four years ago now and I still love creating videos, probably even more so now as the time has gone on. The only problem is that I like to produce videos to the best of my ability, and when I combine that with a full-time job it can be very time consuming. It’s something I would love to do full time, creating content, so I will have to hope that one day it will grow to something bigger enough to allow me to do so.”

You seem to have a big love for rivers and canals—has that always been the case and what is the main attraction?
“My love for rivers and canals has to be because of the mystery they behold, you just never know what that next bite is going to be. A massive attraction for me is also the lack of angling pressure they seem to get. This allows me to bait spots and also allows me the freedom of searching for their whereabouts and fish the way I want to. When you’ve hooked your first wild, hard fighting carp from flowing water and you realise that you may be the only person to capture this fish it certainly gives you a certain feeling that you just don’t seem to get from pressured waters.”

Do you travel far to fish many river systems or just the ones local to you?
“Rivers can be very time consuming, especially if there is a specific fish you have seen or would like to catch. So, a baiting campaign is a must for me to ensure carp are visiting the spot frequently so when I turn up for quick nights, I know I’m in with half a chance. Bearing this in mind, I like to keep things fairly local, up to an hour in travelling time, any more than this and I can’t keep the bait going in as frequently as I would like.”

We did an interview with you way back in issue 165, when you were fishing an old sailing pit. It looked forgotten, overgrown and magical. Do you still angle on there, and are you always on the lookout for waters like that?
“I have very special memories fishing that place, and I caught some incredible carp that had been forgotten about for quite some time. It truly was a magical place that had flooded many times over the years and not allowed the water to return to its natural level. This made the water many acres bigger and as you could probably imagine when this happens the trees and woodlands get submerged and make it almost impossible to fish from the bank. Jurassic Park was something I used to refer to it as and if you can remember what it used to look like I’m sure you’ll agree. Sadly, the sailing club has taken over the water and it doesn’t look like they hand out tickets very often.”

How has your angling evolved over the years? From the kit you use nowadays and your approach, to the venues and carp that attract you?
“I have definitely thinned down what I take with me angling now, especially since being with Nash Tackle. The use of Scope gear has revolutionised my fishing. The reason for this is it suits the way I fish. My approach is minimal, I move onto showing fish, I track carp down and the only way you can do this is to trim everything and be ready to move.”

What does angling mean to you? What are the most important aspects?
“Angling means a lot to me, it’s made me the person I am today. It’s made me respect wildlife and appreciate the beautiful planet that we live on. As anglers we see many interesting things that other people may never see in their lifetime. It also allows me to unwind and get away from the stresses of life; without fishing I wouldn’t like to think where I may have ended up.”