In some ways, fishing is like photography. Most fishermen and photographers are gear nuts. It's as exciting to add a new crank bait to my collection as it is a new flash modifier. Also, both fishing and photography require a level of patience not normally seen in everyday life. Unless you're shooting a portrait (or a grip-and-grin), you don't know when the next picture will present itself. Same with that skittish bass.
The hardest thing for me to deal with about both is that no matter how much you prepare, whether it's charging batteries and going over shot lists or oiling your reels and checking the boat's electronics, there's absolutely no guarantee for success when you leave the house in the morning. Sometimes it rains, sometimes you drop and shatter a lens, sometimes the fish are fasting, and sometimes you realize you've left the keys to the boat at home after you're in the water. The possibility of all this stuff keeps you on your toes. Even when you're not catching good pictures.
The stakes are lower in fishing, though. Much lower. Any day on the water, and away from a computer monitor, is a win. My father and I recently spent the day on Dale Hollow Lake, looking for net-bending bass. Instead, we caught mostly tiny sunfish. Still a win.
