Having a rod made or refurbished provides that extra special feeling when catching fish.

Your photos might please you more if you were to use manual focus and be mindful of your cameras minimum distance it has to be away from the subject. If the picture at minimum focal length is too small just use a computer to enlarge the image and crop the image to what you like after the good focus and sharp image is captured.

Another change you could do is to select the flash to off on the camera, and make the lighting in the room or area strong enough that the camera doesn't want a flash. Daylight is the best, but even then you may seek some slight shade to stop glare.

I have only made one rod, a butterworth 6144 low mount. Did it the non tech way and no special raps, its not very special as far as custom rods go. Just wanted to try my hand. I still fish with it today, 20 years later. I have caught and lost many fine fish over the years, it has fished 20lb maxima all of its life. Cooky how things pan out a certain way for so many years. I would die a happy man if my son fished on with it after I'm fishing else where.

I am the prowd owner of my grandfathers BSA .22, the rifle I learnt to hunt with, and a Bowie knife my father made from a kit 60yrs ago.

 when I take a photo of a rod up close change your setting to micro ( the flower icon)  so it focus on the rod and not the back ground, also i put some coloured material under the rod or white paper when still in the rod lathe to hide the mess of a rod build, also natural sunlight is great I hate using a flash on rod pics 

thanks for the tips. I will try again and post some (hopefully Better) pics tomorrow.

thanks again for the photo tips.

is that my stick mate, bugger me dead its come up a cracker.
Talented craft you have mate.
Catch you on weekend

Wait until you see it in the flesh. Sexy as!!