This place is called Washington Fly Fishing. I don't understand the mentality of anyone posted a picture of a fish they caught on anything other than a fly. That is contrary to logic. I would no more post a picture of a steelhead I caught on bait or lure than I would post a picture of a steelhead I caught in a gillnet, not that I have any photos of either type.
There's a place for everything, and everything in its place.
Jason (HBW) is young and therefor has a short memory, but he sees the clear distinction between fly fishing and bait and lure fishing for steelhead. It's the difference in being satisfied with a lower catch rate in order to achieve that satisfaction under the self-imposed handicap of fly fishing for them. This of course is limited to fishing unweighted flies without bobbers or indicators, since these modifications attain much of the significant advantage of gear fishing.
Anyone who needs to catch a steelhead doesn't go about it by fly fishing unless their need is all about catching it on a fly, rather than by whatever method is likely to be most effective. I know a lot of bait and gear steelhead fishermen, including Stam who is referred to in posts above. Every last one of them "needs" to catch fish. Because they need to, they use gear and techniques and their own highly developed skill to catch a lot of steelhead.
If I "needed" to catch a steelhead, I'd do exactly what they do. Instead it's more important, and more satisfying, to me to catch whatever steelhead I do catch, and it ain't been many lately, by fly fishing. This begets the question of what makes fly fishing for steelhead more satisfying. There are two parts for me. One is that the act of fly fishing is more art-like than the mechanical approach of spin fishing, so I enjoy the time I spend fly casting and fishing. The second part flows from the first. I've used spinning and bait casting gear to angle for steelhead, and it's a lot of fun - - as long as I'm hooking up every 20 minutes or so. But gear fishing all day and getting skunked or having very little action is very dis-satisfying to me. Since most of a steelheading day, regardless of method, is spent "not catching steelhead," but searching and hunting for them, I'd rather spend all that time that is "not catching steelhead" by fly fishing for them.
Getting back to the photo gallery, I think I have exactly zero steelhead photos posted. I used to take photos of the steelhead I caught, but they were mostly dead fish. And the photos are ugly. It rarely occurred to me to take pictures of live fish being released, especially since it's a pain in the ass when fishing alone. Until digital, I didn't often have a camera with me when I fished. Even then I usually release fish without taking any photos. Count me among those who remain unimpressed with what the afficianados call "grip n grin" shots, but I've long known them as "hero shots." I never saw anything heroic in hoisting a fish out of the water for a picture that silently says, "look at me and what I caught!" Yet, some of the gear guys on that other forum have a saying that, "pics, or it didn't happen." To that claim I have only one logical answer, "who's problem is that? Not mine."
Sg