Social influencers/bloggers/utubers and the effect they have on our sports

Now I realize this is a huge can of worms,but due to recent happenings I have decided its time to put down my thoughts.
a few years ago while watching a duckshooting DVD it suddenly struck me how different what was being shown was to anything I had seen in person over 40 years of waterfowling...and I pondered why.
The biggest difference was the amount of shots fired per bird....3-4-5 shooters all with semi automatic guns all firing 4-5 shots EACH,to drop 3-4-5 birds
gangbanging its been called....
so who wins from this behaviour/way of doing it...simple the folks who make and sell ammunition..so how do they promote it??? they gift ammunition to folks who make videos etc and because its free..woohoo keep shooting.
vastly different to the folks who pay for their own ammunition out of the already tight family budget. not to mention the whole trailer load of decoys..then flocked decoys,then mechanical decoys,then electronic callers...it goes on and on...
I do know of a number of folks who have seen the light and gone back to using the old U/O or SxS and still bagging just as many birds.
I got a pump when steel first came out here as finishing off woundies was hard yakka...now its not so bad,with much fewer finishing shots needed.
right thats duckshooting.
troutfishing has always had a degree of snobbery.... discount or sponsered rods and line ..yip its there too
Back when semi automatic rifles were legal here I recall seeing magdumping used to cook bacon on a suppressor......again only fellas making or selling stuff benifit from that sort of tom foolery.
now in big game hunting the influence is more subtle but its still there,in order to show what I mean I will need to go back a little bit in history.
1940-1950 we had a huge number of deer,MOST people were using open sighted 303brits usually SMLE or a commercially suoped up one...or a post WW2 mauser that had also had a trip through gunsmith..or not.....
then we got better optics but for 20 years it was pretty much the same. the meat hunting days saw the introduction of some really neat cartridges and awesome rifles,lighter and more accurate.... the 4" at hundred that was normal.....changed to a lot of rifles now capable of 1" at hundred,handloading improved a huge amount and became more commonplace,rangefinders and dial up scopes changed the picture more again
fast forward to this century and we now have a huge selection of accurate rifles,a vast amount of great optics,huge pool of knowledge,thermal and night vision is now common place too in advertising,last 2 magazines have more adds for night vision/thermal than anything else....
so what does it have to do with influencers????
well just like duck shooting above..the folks making videos etc are using the stuff a lot..are being ifted or loaned it to try out/use and be seen to do so

what this leads to is a new to sport person THINKING this is how its done..this is normal... watching the Duleys put novice shooter behind rifle and cleanly snot bull thar/tahr at 3-4-500 yards with single round is a pretty thing BUT it doesnt tell half of,let alone the full story..... those rifles and loads have been worked on and worked out to the tenth degree and with known range and dialable optics its doable BUT when you stop and do an add up even roughly..the amount of $$$$$ tied up in gear is absolutely gobsmacking.
to give the Duleys credit less anyone think Im picking on them..which Im not (huge fan) they did a duckshooting episode a year or two back with one crew using old school gear Vs new gear on other crew...and young Willie has done a couple of retro hunts..sako vixen 222 and 4x scope on one and open sighted 303 on another couple.... just showing it can still be done on a budget..using older gear.
I would hazard a guess to say that 60-75% of all deer filmed being shot are now in excess of 300 yards ......slightly different to what I believe is the normal range an animal is taken this disconect works in favour of people selling new flash rifles/scopes/rangefinders/thermals/custom hot ammunition etc

to all you young fellas/new hunters out there..if you take nothing else from this rant,remember this YOU DONT NEED THE FLASHEST NEW EXPENSIVE GEAR to fill your freezer and enjoy your time in the out doors..recently did two polls..one shows that something like 75% of deer are shot under 300 yards and a similar % are shoulder/chest shot....... both of those figure would SUGGEST a rifle capable of 2"/50mm at hundred (yards or meters) will keep your freezer full...if animal is further away,just like Granddad did,you will have to stalk closer.
I sincerly hope this helps someone make up mind or be happy with 2nd hand gear

The 40/50's bit before your time bro. Always laugh taking dudes out with latest rifle and latest scope. Bowl a deer and they bring out some new knife they were told to buy along with their new kit. 2 hours later still hacking at the deer. Use this and watch your fingers. Hell thats sharp. LOL.

Just remember above all else you have no idea how much editing etc goes on with videos, how much is stock footage, recreated etc

The old adage "never let the truth get in the way of a good story" springs to mind on YouTube etc & how much stuff is "given" to people who make videos

"this stuff is the greatest" until someone else "gives" them some thing else to review

Product placements are getting more & more invasive .....turning many videos/shows simply into glorified commercials .....

Hi MD,
Good essay. It's merely progress largely I think. You're right, successful hunting can be done without all the expensive, flash gear but the way the system is geared newbies cannot really be expected to realise that. But over time and with the progress of developed skills they would probably work it out themselves. The great thing about our sport these days is we can set our own levels of gear requirements. We can go with the basic but adequate necessities or conversely the highly technical level requiring substantial investment. In my view, it's all good. One level or the other doesn't make one a better hunter than the other guy, nor does it bear on how one enjoys hunting. The main thing is that guys need to get out there hunting.
Only one thing bothers me a bit which you touched on. That's the use of thermal / night vision equipment. Personally I'm not interested but don't decry those who use that technology so long as their use is within the law. I accept that it has it's place for pest control and wish use would remain for that only. Otherwise I can't help feeling how unsporting it is for simply recreational hunting. Game animals deserve to have some level of sanctity and to deny that is wrong.
Anyway, I know not all will agree and that's fine. I'm just an old guy and my thinking is probably behind these modern times.

Also, speculation, I wonder how those old days hunters, in their day, would have reacted if offered the gear, rifles, ammo available today ? My best guess is they would have thought it better than Christmas and probably couldn't have grabbed the gear quickly enough !

Lots of YouTubers aren't pushing the gear side of things. Some obviously do, but they don't tend to be the ones that make very interesting videos. Anyway, buying crap keeps the economy moving, generates tax revenue, keeps people in jobs etc. I've no problem at all with it Comrade Duck. I spend a lot of time at work, but not actually doing anything, so YouTube is great for me. Far from keeping me on the sofa instead of "out there doing it", I get inspired to get out more.

Where I do think social media could be criticised is that it doesn't present reality. As mentioned, editing makes success look instant which it rarely is in the real world. It comes after a lot of hard work. I think the better content creators show the effort in getting to that point. The "journey" is often more interesting than the end result. That said, we are adults and should have the ability to take everything we see with a pinch of salt.

Having a wife that has worked in the film(editing) industry its an eye opener as to what's actually been done in putting a lot of that type of footage together. She can see stuff a mile away that a lot of us wouldn't even pick up on. How I view that type of thing while It may well not be but its all manipulated until I see it in real life...

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Originally Posted by Micky Duck

Now I realize this is a huge can of worms,but due to recent happenings I have decided its time to put down my thoughts.
a few years ago while watching a duckshooting DVD it suddenly struck me how different what was being shown was to anything I had seen in person over 40 years of waterfowling...and I pondered why.
The biggest difference was the amount of shots fired per bird....3-4-5 shooters all with semi automatic guns all firing 4-5 shots EACH,to drop 3-4-5 birds
gangbanging its been called....
so who wins from this behaviour/way of doing it...simple the folks who make and sell ammunition..so how do they promote it??? they gift ammunition to folks who make videos etc and because its free..woohoo keep shooting.
vastly different to the folks who pay for their own ammunition out of the already tight family budget. not to mention the whole trailer load of decoys..then flocked decoys,then mechanical decoys,then electronic callers...it goes on and on...
I do know of a number of folks who have seen the light and gone back to using the old U/O or SxS and still bagging just as many birds.
I got a pump when steel first came out here as finishing off woundies was hard yakka...now its not so bad,with much fewer finishing shots needed.
right thats duckshooting.
troutfishing has always had a degree of snobbery.... discount or sponsered rods and line ..yip its there too
Back when semi automatic rifles were legal here I recall seeing magdumping used to cook bacon on a suppressor......again only fellas making or selling stuff benifit from that sort of tom foolery.
now in big game hunting the influence is more subtle but its still there,in order to show what I mean I will need to go back a little bit in history.
1940-1950 we had a huge number of deer,MOST people were using open sighted 303brits usually SMLE or a commercially suoped up one...or a post WW2 mauser that had also had a trip through gunsmith..or not.....
then we got better optics but for 20 years it was pretty much the same. the meat hunting days saw the introduction of some really neat cartridges and awesome rifles,lighter and more accurate.... the 4" at hundred that was normal.....changed to a lot of rifles now capable of 1" at hundred,handloading improved a huge amount and became more commonplace,rangefinders and dial up scopes changed the picture more again
fast forward to this century and we now have a huge selection of accurate rifles,a vast amount of great optics,huge pool of knowledge,thermal and night vision is now common place too in advertising,last 2 magazines have more adds for night vision/thermal than anything else....
so what does it have to do with influencers????
well just like duck shooting above..the folks making videos etc are using the stuff a lot..are being ifted or loaned it to try out/use and be seen to do so

what this leads to is a new to sport person THINKING this is how its done..this is normal... watching the Duleys put novice shooter behind rifle and cleanly snot bull thar/tahr at 3-4-500 yards with single round is a pretty thing BUT it doesnt tell half of,let alone the full story..... those rifles and loads have been worked on and worked out to the tenth degree and with known range and dialable optics its doable BUT when you stop and do an add up even roughly..the amount of $$$$$ tied up in gear is absolutely gobsmacking.
to give the Duleys credit less anyone think Im picking on them..which Im not (huge fan) they did a duckshooting episode a year or two back with one crew using old school gear Vs new gear on other crew...and young Willie has done a couple of retro hunts..sako vixen 222 and 4x scope on one and open sighted 303 on another couple.... just showing it can still be done on a budget..using older gear.
I would hazard a guess to say that 60-75% of all deer filmed being shot are now in excess of 300 yards ......slightly different to what I believe is the normal range an animal is taken this disconect works in favour of people selling new flash rifles/scopes/rangefinders/thermals/custom hot ammunition etc

to all you young fellas/new hunters out there..if you take nothing else from this rant,remember this YOU DONT NEED THE FLASHEST NEW EXPENSIVE GEAR to fill your freezer and enjoy your time in the out doors..recently did two polls..one shows that something like 75% of deer are shot under 300 yards and a similar % are shoulder/chest shot....... both of those figure would SUGGEST a rifle capable of 2"/50mm at hundred (yards or meters) will keep your freezer full...if animal is further away,just like Granddad did,you will have to stalk closer.
I sincerly hope this helps someone make up mind or be happy with 2nd hand gear

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Things move on Mickey you couldn't type this on forum 40 years ago is an example, or drive to the bush at the speed you can now .
I don't even own a rangefinder now so understand what your saying about going back to basics, but do the younger generation really copy what they see on hunting shows ?
As others have said most of its just cunning editing, there is some bloody good footage out there, CraigC, Burtonator, Stagstalker to name a few
But who gets their jollies off watching hunting ? Certainty not my cup of tea.
Just go hunting.
I think one thing we definitely have in common with 40 years ago, is the number off deer about !



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My take on it is. Too much time on the internet.

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Originally Posted by Kiwi Greg

Just remember above all else you have no idea how much editing etc goes on with videos, how much is stock footage, recreated etc

The old adage "never let the truth get in the way of a good story" springs to mind on YouTube etc & how much stuff is "given" to people who make videos

"this stuff is the greatest" until someone else "gives" them some thing else to review

Product placements are getting more & more invasive .....turning many videos/shows simply into glorified commercials .....

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Like hunting programmes.

Influencer, effluencer no difference.

Micky Duck

Wot you said :thumbsup:


And having worked in the Interweb before it was one, I view most of these Social influencers/bloggers/utubers etc as:

...don't want to upset anyone - Attention Whores.

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Originally Posted by Micky Duck

to all you young fellas/new hunters out there..if you take nothing else from this rant,remember this YOU DONT NEED THE FLASHEST NEW EXPENSIVE GEAR to fill your freezer and enjoy your time in the out doors..
I sincerly hope this helps someone make up mind or be happy with 2nd hand gear

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ive posted this pic before but here it is again
Attachment 240857
no flash gear for this youngster when he took his first deer with a dirty old mauser .308 with a dirty old redfield on it his father took a few deer with the same rifle

I guess there is an element of self gratification for some, for others it's about recording memories, certainly there are "professional/sponsored" types and for them it's a job, some are better at it then others. For me reading a blog, watching a YouTube video is no different to picking up a copy of rod and rifle etc, sometimes it's interesting, sometimes it isn't. But like putting down a magazine, I don't have to watch/read.
Where do you draw the line ? There's some great stories on here, reviews etc, in a way they too could be "attention whores"
If you search around often you will find stuff that actually is to your taste but like most things in life you can't please everyone all the time.
I'd rather watch an episode of billy molls mountain man, than 30 seconds of some of the more "commercial" youtubers if I'm stuck indoors.
Just like on this forum some styles of writing appeal to me more than others, levels of reloading that appeal more than others even types of hunting and game that appeal more than others.
I guess what I'm getting at, and trust me it's nothing personal towards anyone each to there own, this place wouldn't be what it is without the stories, youtubers, reviews etc. Just read, watch, practice what appeals to you.
There's something for everyone out there if you seek it, likewise if it doesn't appeal then you won't seek it no one is force feeding anyone.

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Originally Posted by turtleSO

My take on it is. Too much time on the internet.

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Thanks for writing this on the internet!

I guess the true story is.....you create your own reality.

You watch hunting on youtube = more hunting on youtube.

You dont watch hunting on youtube = more time for actual hunting [emoji106]

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Originally Posted by MB

Thanks for writing this on the internet!

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I agree with what your saying, but I feel the internet has turned us into attention whores. Like do we really need to know how many people liked what we said.

Direct correlation between teenage( female) suicide and use of social media
This is closest I get
I don't twwwter orfacebook or any of that sheit

all my gear is second hand budget ,but animals birds that have fallen to it have never complained -altho im now the proud owner of NEW double hearing aids which could have spme impact on it!
I watch the hunting /spearfishing series on TV and enjoy them for what they are warts and allare more my preference though Peter Peeti of hunting aotearoa is a very good host in that he interacts with folk ,speaks and teaches te reo -related to the activity but in such a way as to keep you involved.

personally Ive taken a few photos of my adventures over the years and my memory has many tales to tell(inevitably against myself) but unless i feel inclined im not prone to spraying across social media.

Maybe the young ones can see what's a load of shit and its just us old farts that get our knickers in a twist over it. I have to say tho I haven't seen any duck shooting or fuk all hunting stuff on youtube etc I find it pretty boring, If I feel that way inclined I go for a shoot....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Micky Duck

Now I realize this is a huge can of worms,but due to recent happenings I have decided its time to put down my thoughts.
a few years ago while watching a duckshooting DVD it suddenly struck me how different what was being shown was to anything I had seen in person over 40 years of waterfowling...and I pondered why.
The biggest difference was the amount of shots fired per bird....3-4-5 shooters all with semi automatic guns all firing 4-5 shots EACH,to drop 3-4-5 birds
gangbanging its been called....
so who wins from this behaviour/way of doing it...simple the folks who make and sell ammunition..so how do they promote it??? they gift ammunition to folks who make videos etc and because its free..woohoo keep shooting.
vastly different to the folks who pay for their own ammunition out of the already tight family budget. not to mention the whole trailer load of decoys..then flocked decoys,then mechanical decoys,then electronic callers...it goes on and on...
I do know of a number of folks who have seen the light and gone back to using the old U/O or SxS and still bagging just as many birds.
I got a pump when steel first came out here as finishing off woundies was hard yakka...now its not so bad,with much fewer finishing shots needed.
right thats duckshooting.
troutfishing has always had a degree of snobbery.... discount or sponsered rods and line ..yip its there too
Back when semi automatic rifles were legal here I recall seeing magdumping used to cook bacon on a suppressor......again only fellas making or selling stuff benifit from that sort of tom foolery.
now in big game hunting the influence is more subtle but its still there,in order to show what I mean I will need to go back a little bit in history.
1940-1950 we had a huge number of deer,MOST people were using open sighted 303brits usually SMLE or a commercially suoped up one...or a post WW2 mauser that had also had a trip through gunsmith..or not.....
then we got better optics but for 20 years it was pretty much the same. the meat hunting days saw the introduction of some really neat cartridges and awesome rifles,lighter and more accurate.... the 4" at hundred that was normal.....changed to a lot of rifles now capable of 1" at hundred,handloading improved a huge amount and became more commonplace,rangefinders and dial up scopes changed the picture more again
fast forward to this century and we now have a huge selection of accurate rifles,a vast amount of great optics,huge pool of knowledge,thermal and night vision is now common place too in advertising,last 2 magazines have more adds for night vision/thermal than anything else....
so what does it have to do with influencers????
well just like duck shooting above..the folks making videos etc are using the stuff a lot..are being ifted or loaned it to try out/use and be seen to do so

what this leads to is a new to sport person THINKING this is how its done..this is normal... watching the Duleys put novice shooter behind rifle and cleanly snot bull thar/tahr at 3-4-500 yards with single round is a pretty thing BUT it doesnt tell half of,let alone the full story..... those rifles and loads have been worked on and worked out to the tenth degree and with known range and dialable optics its doable BUT when you stop and do an add up even roughly..the amount of $$$$$ tied up in gear is absolutely gobsmacking.
to give the Duleys credit less anyone think Im picking on them..which Im not (huge fan) they did a duckshooting episode a year or two back with one crew using old school gear Vs new gear on other crew...and young Willie has done a couple of retro hunts..sako vixen 222 and 4x scope on one and open sighted 303 on another couple.... just showing it can still be done on a budget..using older gear.
I would hazard a guess to say that 60-75% of all deer filmed being shot are now in excess of 300 yards ......slightly different to what I believe is the normal range an animal is taken this disconect works in favour of people selling new flash rifles/scopes/rangefinders/thermals/custom hot ammunition etc

to all you young fellas/new hunters out there..if you take nothing else from this rant,remember this YOU DONT NEED THE FLASHEST NEW EXPENSIVE GEAR to fill your freezer and enjoy your time in the out doors..recently did two polls..one shows that something like 75% of deer are shot under 300 yards and a similar % are shoulder/chest shot....... both of those figure would SUGGEST a rifle capable of 2"/50mm at hundred (yards or meters) will keep your freezer full...if animal is further away,just like Granddad did,you will have to stalk closer.
I sincerly hope this helps someone make up mind or be happy with 2nd hand gear

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I reckon you’ve thrashed this subject to death and most members will be sick of hearing about it.

Perhaps if you spent less time online and more time out hunting, the whole social influencer thing wouldn’t bother you so much.

It is what it is. It’s not going anywhere. Let it go man. You will feel much better about life:)

Let it go.... Yip great movie scene that one.....Kenny I think was called.as for thrashed to death.... Nah never mentioned it before...you must be confused.

At the end of the day, it's only money. Nothing to get your knickers in a twist over unless you don't have any. Time, that is the real commodity for me!

There is bullshit and advertising everywhere, it comes down to individual reputation as to who you want to watch on YT

Re the extra ammo used on duck videos, I note that in all toothpaste commercials they lay a whole line along the brush but you only need about a quarter of what they use, if that

The video influencers are just the latest version of that mate that we all had growing up who wanted to tell us how to hunt/ fish/ build a fire - you know the type

Sometimes that mate was right and stayed a friend, sometimes that mate was full of it so you just let him go cos he talked too much shit

A lot of kids these days have pretty good bullshit meters

This is why the NZDA HUNTS program is so useful. Grounded, no bullshit, applicable, practical.

The worse UTubers to me are not the sponsored flash Harry's but the ones on the other end. Unedited, alcohol, fowl mouthed, unethical. So called "real" but actually no more than louts. There's a couple of them.

Sooo ive made a couple Videos on yt, i like to think of them as a new version of a photo album, so when im older or if something happens to me there will be someway for my kids to still see me, there is possibly some attention whore in there as well but im not sure.
alot can happen in editing, i have edited out misses and changed the order of things as they happened in hunts to make things flow better and i have removed things that might cause embarrassment to others.

the flash gear thing is an interesting topic, i like nice things, always have, and it makes it easier when a company comes to you and says ill give you 50% off to use this expensive gear, or would you like to try some of this and just post about it if you like it.... i have a very small channel and it happens to me so i hate to think what the bigger guys get offered.

anyway im rambling, if ya like it watch it, if ya dont, its all good, just be nice :thumbsup:

Im just a wannabe

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Originally Posted by Tahr

This is why the NZDA HUNTS program is so useful. Grounded, no bullshit, applicable, practical.

The worse UTubers to me are not the sponsored flash Harry's but the ones on the other end. Unedited, alcohol, fowl mouthed, unethical. So called "real" but actually no more than louts. There's a couple of them.

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There's a lot of them that are exactly as you have described in reality also but on their best behavior for the camera

*a lot like a lot of nzda members...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tahr

This is why the NZDA HUNTS program is so useful. Grounded, no bullshit, applicable, practical.

The worse UTubers to me are not the sponsored flash Harry's but the ones on the other end. Unedited, alcohol, fowl mouthed, unethical. So called "real" but actually no more than louts. There's a couple of them.

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yea i agree, i have made some with too much swearing for sure, but there are some creatures out there, wish i could find the one of the guy wo]ho stabbed is barrel full of dirt then showed his trick to clear it by firing a pulling a projectile and firing it....

and agree the hunts program is great, we are just starting it here in taranaki

I just feel sad for the social media hunters. I've met one or 2 and it comes across to me as a ego stroking exercise like; look at me this great fearless amazing hunter who seeks self gratification.

The other side to it to is alot of the social media types all show very obvious landmarks which gives away where they've been and I'm pretty sure there's a few of us who've had some of possies ruined by this( I have).

For the above 2 points I don't watch much social media hunting. I'd rather be out there actually hunting than reading or watching it and I feel a heap better for it too!

I watch a bit of NZ-based YouTube hunting and put myself in the still young (but probably too cynical) category. I am well aware that all the flash gear being used is nice-to-have rather than must-have. Every single game animal I've ever taken was with a second-hand rifle that cost under $800, paired with scopes ranging between $250 and $500 new.

I think young people are very aware of social media marketing and can spot a paid partnership from a mile off. Having grown up with the internet I'd say we are less prone to online foolery than the oldies.

I'd say that only now after a few years of actively hunting and shooting on the cheap, I may have reached the point where spending a bit of money on a nicer scope, quality binos and a range finder might benefit me. As for my cheap rifles, they shoot perfectly well and don't see why they would need replacement. For a brand new shooter, I agree with your point that it's unnecessary to spend big money.

I haven't got passed the early twenties female gym/exercise influencers, why the hell would I want to watch some dude using gear I can't afford, in places I can't afford access to, shoot deer/that/chamois?
Nice looking women in skintight next to nothing clothing has much more appeal.

I like watching of all things dancing. Probably because I cant do it and how some people move is amazing. The ones that amaze me are les twins, i just sit there and think how the fuk do they do that without falling over...

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Originally Posted by Steve123

I haven't got passed the early twenties female gym/exercise influencers, why the hell would I want to watch some dude using gear I can't afford, in places I can't afford access to, shoot deer/that/chamois?
Nice looking women in skintight next to nothing clothing has much more appeal.

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The hunting gear is cheaper

And it wont take half half your shit when it leaves

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Originally Posted by blip

And it wont take half half your shit when it leaves

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I'm just talking about looking at them. They are rentable by the hour but I'd lose half my shit if I broke my promise not to root anyone else.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by turtleSO

I agree with what your saying, but I feel the internet has turned us into attention whores. Like do we really need to know how many people liked what we said.

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liked that for you........LOL

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Steve123

I'm just talking about looking at them. They are rentable by the hour but I'd lose half my shit if I broke my promise not to root anyone else.

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swingers and roundabouts.......err swings and roundabouts:XD:

and just in case one of you fine folks who do create utube videos think Im taking a stab at you....IM NOT .... most of them are great fun to watch.some are rather educational too.its been going on forever in other sports,heck they recently made a movie about the Nike thing..ever movie forest gump brushed on it...everyone knows I dont but mama says man will give us $$$ if I say I like the flexolight paddle......
its just...well,really had to dig deep and think hard as to why this bothered me so much in hunting and fishing sports..but last night while out working I think realised why.
growing up without any spare cash,hunting and fishing were a safe place,away from all the shit going on around me(farming in early 80s wasnt a picnic) there was no need to try to "keep up with the Jones's" sure saw enough of that shit at high school but those of us who hunted or flung flies or spinners, at trout had common ground to yak about....about the only even semi snobbery was fly rods...and when those of us with elcheapho fibreglass rods were catching fish...it was silenced quick enough. I would hate to think someone didnt go out and have a go,get into the sports because they felt they wouldnt measure up without all the flash harry gear...and thats the bottom line and why I wrote the above in first place,to encourage those starting out,or thinking of starting out to just go and have a go with what they have got or can afford,they should still do ok.

It's tough. I've found a few channels that are no nonsense and their gear recs have always steered me right, same as advice from this forum.
And when I was starting out I had no clue, so watching videos to see where people were setting up to glass, the environment the deer were in, it was all a big help.

Just like gym training advice, there a mountain of crap to wade through on the way.

I have a channel but I'm not look at me look at me type of person.

I watched too many of Tasman's vids and my last hunting trip pretty much broke me after I took a mincer, large wok, an assortment of herbs and spices, some tinned tomatoes and a largish bench table as I was camping out and needed somewhere to set up my cooking extravaganza. Put me right off youtube hunting videos.

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