When i go fishing and when it comes to taking pictures, i always let the carp, tench, chub ect... suck on my thumb to calm them down and it works, but how do you calm down a massive carp?
not sure about letting them suck things, well not fish anyway, basically just hold them in a relaxed manner, they are usually a bit lively when you`ve had then sacked up all night, try gently blowing in their face, but not if you`ve had a strong curry the night before./forum/smilies/smile_smiley.gif
Ive had a good few VERY large Gudgeon in my time I can tell you, they certainly are hard to handle, sometimes nearly wriggling out of my hand before I take a stunning trophy shot!
Felix - I bet you are gald you have asked that now!
The actual answer is that most big fat carp are caught by big fat carpers who fall asleep on a bank swilling larger all the time, therefore its easy for them to lift them up.