The Wild Initiative - Is It Time To Cancel The Grip N’ Grin?
written by staff writer
What does the face of the hunting community look like vs. how we want it to look and how are we contributing to that? That’s the question that Sam Ayres, host of The Wild Initiative podcast on Waypoint, asks in his latest blog post titled “Is it Time to Cancel the Grip N’ Grin?”
In the article, Ayres analyzes the infamous grip n’ grin photo that we’ve all taken at one time or another and suggests that maybe there’s a better way to show off your harvest that shines a different light on the hunting community, something that we desperately need in the age of social media and outrage.
“documenting our successes is essential to many outdoorsmen...HOW we document these moments can be critical to the longevity of the pastimes we love.”
the tradition
The author, Sam Ayres
Ayres makes an interesting point that the hunting “trophy pic” is about as old as mankind. He writes:
“From the earliest of times, cave drawings depicted stories of brave hunters pursuing elusive animals. As centuries passed, we turned to other means of sharing our trophies. The advent of photography has allowed us to look back on our great-great-grandparents with animals the likes of which we'll never see. To this day, you can find anglers talking up a sun-faded polaroid in the local bait and tackle shop, sharing exaggerated stories with anyone who will listen.”
Until recently, these weathered trophy photos haven’t been that easy to share unless you physically showed it to someone. But, as Ayres writes, that all changed with the advent of social media.
the issue
Now that we can share our hunting and fishing pictures with anybody on Instagram or Facebook, it makes it so much easier to share these memories with friends or family who may not live near us. “However,” writes Ayres, “the dilemma is that social media has also opened up hunting and fishing to increased scrutiny. Despite our intentions, pictures and videos are often pushed directly in the path of those who may not have a full understanding of the tradition.”
So why is that a problem? Ayres outlines the dilemma:
The controversial “trophy photo” from Scotland. Images like this are a disgrace and paint an awful picture of the hunting community.
“In the United States, only about 5% of the population, or less, are hunters, with about 15% of the population being anglers. On the inverse, only about 5% of the people vehemently oppose hunting. That leaves anywhere between 70-90% of the population undecided in the middle. That's a rather large pendulum that can either swing to the benefit or detriment of our outdoor passions. As hunters and anglers, we rely on this middle ground of the population for the continuation of our lifestyle. Hunters will vote hunting, anglers will vote fishing and the anti-hunters will vote for whatever misinformed foolishness seems to go against those. In most cases, the opinions of those people can't and won't ever be changed. But, how will those in the middle vote when new legislation rears its head?”
“The anti-hunters,” he continues, “do an incredible job of using emotion and our own media to portray us as a cruel, bloodthirsty, trashy group of people. What's worse is that we so often play right into their hands. Take, for example, the "Shoot Selfies Not Animals" Facebook frame campaign run by PETA. By the hundreds, if not thousands, hunters posted their most gruesome hunting selfies using the frame. As a community, we flooded public social media with kill shots in an unfortunate attempt to troll the organization.”
This may sound like a pretty funny prank at first, but the consequences were, as Ayres writes, that “all anyone could see was a bunch of bloodthirsty killers who think the death of an animal is a joke.” Not quite the message we want to send to non-hunters.
Ayres goes on to detail another reprehensible act from a “well-known hunting personality” who held up a bloodied sex-toy next to her kill in a trophy photo from an international hunt in Scotland. “Combined with this hunter’s other trophy photos,” writes Ayres, “this incident spurred the Scottish government to reevaluate their hunting laws. A quick scroll through some hashtags on Instagram will show countless other tasteless and tactless trends such as the fish-bra, duckbill biting, straddling animals and many other inappropriate photos.”
the solution
Ayres is not calling for us to do away with the trophy photo. “However,” he writes, “I feel that, as we share our passions for hunting and fishing, we must be careful of the line we walk. We can most certainly find a balance between posting anything and everything, damn the consequences and caving to the antis' misinformed, emotional sentiments.”
Ayres lists the following guidelines to help us walk that line a little better.
The Grip N’ Grin 2.0 from Sam Ayres
Show your admiration for the animal you’ve harvested.
BE RESPECTFUL
“If you take one thing from this entire article,” writes Ayres, “it's that you should look at everything you do through the lens of showing respect for this animal and its sacrifice. What is the focus of the photo? Is it meant to bring honor to the animal or attention to you?”
TELL THE WHOLE STORY
Take photos of the whole journey and more than just the antlers. Try the “Grip N’ Grin 2.0” as Ayres calls it and pose holding the backstraps or another cut of meat that you plan on taking home and cooking. Ayres asks, “Will someone looking at your photos understand the hours of hard work you've put in to harvest that animal?” Do they recognize that you're not just there for the antlers or self-glorification? Have you shared the joy that comes from sharing a wild game meal with friends and family?”
CLEAN UP
“There's no need to cover your hands and arms in blood,” writes Ayres, “Do your best to pose the animal naturally. Make sure the tongue is placed back in the mouth or removed. Either wash off or rub in some dirt to cover the excess blood around the wound.”
REDUCE THE STRESS
On the topic of fishing, Ayres writes, “Unless you're planning on cooking it up later, you want to be as low-impact on the animal as possible. In general, keep 'em wet! Keep the fish in the water as much as possible, try not to handle them dry-handed, be gentle and take your photo as quickly as possible so you can return them to their habitat.”
CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE
“In truth,” writes Ayres, “we don't know who will access our hunting and fishing media. As such, we need to acknowledge a fundamental truth: perception is everything. Before you post that photo, take a moment to step out of yourself and consider how someone without your context may perceive this image.”
Ayres concludes his article with a quote from the great Fred Bear, “If you are not working to protect hunting, then you are working to destroy it.” We all represent these sports. And if we do not actively do our best to represent them well, we represent them poorly.
Listen to The Wild Initiative anytime for free on the new Waypoint mobile app and follow @thewildinitiative and @waypointhunt on Instagram. You can also check out @honorthehunt on Instagram for good examples of what Ayres discussed here.
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