i was told make sure the cloth is white. i used a "wife beater" "white muscle shirt" i wet it and wrapped it in that. fins tucked close to body as said. pictures are a MUST if you want real colors. ive watched fish turn colors in a matter of minutes. the one i caught and had mounted was wrapped in the wet shirt in minutes, and i kept it wet till i got home. probably 2 hours max. it lost all its color by then. you could tell it had color in some spots but it looked nothing near what it did..good thing i had pics!