What Do Fish Actually See?

Mad Scientist Tackle taps experienced PR team to educate the fishing masses about the science of light and what fish actually see. 

Anyone whos been on the water long enough knows that when it comes to catching fish, the devil is in the details. Like a sound understanding of weather, water, fish species, forage, and all the intricacies each presents to the total equation. And, as the Lindner family published years ago: F (Fish) + L (Location) + P (Presentation) = S (Success).

Speaking to the P part of the historical fishing equation, the industry is rife with tackle to meet every application an angler could possibly encounter. There are racks, pegs, and aisles of the stuff in every tackle shop and big box across the country. And its been that way for decades. 

So, what makes a standout fish-catching bait like the Daredevle or first Rapalas or Mepps? Action, sure. It behaves like something fish want to eat. The proof is in the pudding when it comes to lures.

Something like a Bassmaster Classic Win can propel a start-up tackle tinkerer into a multi-million-dollar enterprise. And there are cults of anglers who discover something and try to keep it tight to the vest. Of course, the secrecy never lasts long.

Such is the situation with Traditions Media discovering a small Minnesota-based tackle manufacturer based out of the old municipal liquor store and firehall in Finlayson, Minnesota. Aptly named Mad Scientist Tackle, its the brainchild of Navy veteran and optics engineer, Norm Kester, a passionate angler and hunter.

What Kester has developed are novel bait coatings unlike the fishing industry has ever seen. Formed through extensive research in eyewear and optics within the field of fish physiology and behavior, Kester and crew created a process for optimizing what fish see not only in the Ultra-Violet spectrum but infrared as well.

An industry professional we trust came to us and showed us what Mad Scientist Tackle was up to and started sharing stories of angler successes with Mad Scientist Tackles innovative bait patterns, and we were instantly intrigued, said Traditions Media CEO and cofounder, Noel Vick.

After all, weve been writing and communicating about glow and UV since they first appeared in ice fishing and open water some 20 years ago, so our interest has always been in innovations that put more fish top-side. I immediately saw Mad Scientist's light science as a potential paradigm shifter in fishing and wanted to learn more. 

Meetings commenced and Traditions met with Mad Scientist, learning about the science and the elaborate manufacturing process that goes into coating everything from ice baits to jigs to jerkbaits, rattlebaits, crankbaits, topwaters, and more.

Weve been looking for a communications partner to help us bring our proprietary bait coating science to the industry and everyday anglers, said company founder, Norm Kester.

We met with Traditions Media several times, even on the water where they experienced first-hand how our designs can outperform whats currently available and they instantly became believersjust like us, continued Kester. 

What we do is quantum leaps beyond custom paintjobs. Mad Scientist Tackle is based on science and developing baits that mimic forage as closely as possible from the visual sense in all spectrums. Look at our bait from one angle and youll notice colors; rotate it and other colors will appear. Go even further exposing it to infrared and youll see exactly what fish see and we can offer these coatings in a variety of patterns to get the bites any angler is looking for, from walleye to bass to salmon and saltwater species.

Both companies built of passionate anglers, the union of Traditions Media was a solid fit and they are proud to report that they will begin working together as of May 1, 2025.

Mad Scientist Tackle Sales Director, Patrick Kalmerton said, From the original baits we offer to opportunities for other manufacturers to create unique runs of SKUs with our proprietary coatings, the sky is really the limit with this new technology. We think its really going to take off and Traditions will be there to make that happen.