Surfing

Aug

2021

Locked Down

I haven’t written any posts in quite some time now, in fact almost a year. My website has taken a backseat lately. Work as Outer Image had been great this year with many more events. So much so that I left my midweek work at the gallery (it was only 1 or 2 days a week anyway) and had been doing photography full-time. And then…..lockdown.

Halfway through a weekend shooting a couple of races up near Port Macquarie, I was informed that Sydney was going into lockdown for a few days. Since event photography and lockdowns go play well I had to pack up halfway through. My 2 choices were either self-isolate where I was or return home straight away. As much as I enjoy being away, sitting in my van for 2 weeks was not really my idea of fun and excitement so I came back home so I could get organized for the following weekend’s events. It was going to be rather hectic with 3 big events over one weekend.

That was 2 months ago. Sydney is still in lockdown with no signs of improvement. I’m still waiting for the events to restart. Each day, case numbers rise. I hear of more people out in the community while contagious, people protesting their lack of freedom, people going to parties away from Sydney. I am wondering if these people will ever let me get back to work. Having family and friends who live overseas I fully understand the mess this virus plays with people’s livelihoods and lives. We in Australia have been very lucky but Delta has dug its claws in now.

At least…

Thankfully, I live near the beach. We’re allowed to move for exercise within a 10km radius and work, where essential, (not as an event photographer though). Mornings sitting on the beaches watching whales and shooting surfing have kept most of the boredom at bay. I have not shot a lot of mountain biking lately or trail running or adventure racing or been to any great landscapes. I have been shooting a little bit of product for Tyres and Soles and Bicycles Online, plus dabbling with a bit of video and planning world conquest once the lockdown is lifted. Outer Image hasn’t shut shop or such. Gil and I are just looking at it as more of an extended break where we can fine-tune a few details of our business. I’m getting to reorganize my website, shuffling photos, and rebuilding galleries and links where needed. Look, I have even managed a new blog post

Still………I wish I could get back to work.

Surfer in barrel while friend cheers him on

Check the Sessions gallery here for more surf images of late

Jan

2020

Airborne

After taking breaks from the camera I like to get out and shoot for a bit before I pick it up again for a job. It doesn’t have to be anything too complex or challenging. It’s so that while I am shooting, operating the camera controls just become second nature again and I don’t have to think about things too much. I think about composition and exposure, aperture and such but not about which dial do I need to turn in which direction to change my settings, it all just flows automatically.

And with my first job locked in for this coming weekend, so it was I took myself to Maroubra yesterday for a day at the beach shooting the Red Bull Airborne. They may have been small waves but they were still getting some airtime in.

I also got to play around with my 500mm lens. It’s not a lens that sees the light of day too much. It can be a little slow to focus and a little too big for the things I normally shoot. Plus you need a lot of light. It’s perfect for surfing, especially when it’s mounted on a cropped sensor

Aug

2019

APPA’s, product and more

It’s been a quiet couple of weeks for me on the race photography front. There’s been a couple of weeks break from shooting the races but the fun never stops when you have a camera in your hand

Just because it is quiet on the race front doesn’t mean that my photography has come to a standstill. The Australian Professional Photographers Awards (APPA’s) were on in which I entered 4 images. I’m happy to say I came away with 3 silvers this year. I know some of my peers frown upon the APPA’s but I personally have learnt a lot from entering over the years. The need to submit physical prints forces me to print my pictures which is something I rarely do. I also find that it makes me be highly critical of my own work.

Back from holidays now bring on the weekend, its time to go shoot!!! A shot from the Cannonball Whip Wars in Thredbo,
Rocky Trail Entertainment’s Superflow at Mount Stromlo Forest Park in Canberra, 2019
Rocky Trail Entertainment’s Superflow at Mount Stromlo Forest Park in Canberra, 2019
Rocky Trail Entertainment’s Superflow at Mount Stromlo Forest Park in Canberra, 2019

I went out last weekend and shot some great products with the Tyres and Soles crew again. It’s always fun shooting with them and checking out new gear up close. Be sure and keep an eye out on their website for the upcoming gear reviews. There is still a bunch more kit to shoot with them as well such as the new ZenBivy sleeping bag, North Face duffles and more. As much as I love shooting the sports stuff I also love shooting different things. Shooting the gear reviews lets me do both, win win.

Whistler Performance Lubricants
Oi Bike Bell

Caught up with some friends as they went out on their foil boards. Whenever there is swell these guys head out, they don’t actually need breaking waves. The boards seem almost comically small but they definitely do the trick. I have been seeing the foils pop up more and more in other places too such as paddleboards and kitesurf boards. The crew definitely seems to be growing and I can see this taking off in a big way in the future if people can just keep from getting chopped up by their foils.

Some of the boys took their foils out for a spin today at Long Reef here in Sydney. A few nice waves about for it.

I have also been shooting a lot of fitness and gym stuff of late for my gym, Joe’s Basecamp. They have me shooting all their ambassadors but I will write more about these shoots soon.

This weekend coming it’s back to the mountain bike racing with the next round of Rocky Trail Entertainment’s Shimano GP at Ourimbah followed by the Fox Superflow also at Ourimbah the following weekend.

See you out there!!

Jun

2016

Storms and Waves

The East Coast of Australia received a battering from some big back to back storms over the last week which brought with them wild winds and heavy rain. The storms caused a fair bit of damage, especially around Collaroy/ Narrabeen here on the Northern beaches where they washed away the Collaroy beach and created the new South Narrabeen Headland. They also whipped up one of the best swells Sydney has seen for a while.

I love this type of weather, its just so full of energy, and I spent the weekend running around chasing the weather and playing in the wind. In the days after I went to the beaches around here to try and capture some of the action that was going on down there and there was plenty going on. I spent most of the time at Narrabeen but also swung by Curl Curl and Avalon. Most of the Northern Beaches were in their element.

: Morning of Day 3 of the storm swell at Narrabeen.

: Day 3 of the storm swell at Avalon.

: Day 3 of the swell at Monavale

: Morning of Day 3 of the storm swell at Narrabeen.

: The remains of South Narrabeen beach after the Storm

: Surfing action at Narrabeen during the storm swell

: Sunset hits the storm clouds over South Curl Curl

: Day 1 of the swll at Curl Curl

: Waterfalls falling off North Head being whipped up by the wind

: Waterfalls falling off North Head being whipped up by the wind

: Waterfalls started appearing where there were none before. Here are soome near Akuna Bay,

: Large waves hit the pool at Dee Why

: Large waves throw themselves against Dee Why Headland

: Large waves crash against the rocks at North Curl Curl

Aug

2012

Golden Ride Magazine

Snowboarder Aline Bock crosses over into the surfing world

I was contacted by a friend of mine, Aline Bock, with the request to do a couple of surfing shots for Golden Ride Magazine while she was down here in Sydney. Aline is a world class snowboarder and Golden Ride were looking to do a story on women who have crossed over and do both surfing and snowboarding. We did the shoot early one morning at Sydney’s famous Bondi Beach. The waves were packed even at that early hour in the morning but we managed to find a quiet corner and get a fwe shots done. If you have looked through my blog before you might remember Aline’s name from when I shot with her in Austria and did a profile on her which you can find by clicking here

Snowboarder Aline Bock crosses over into the surfing world

Jun

2012

Surfing Deadmans and Wild Weather

Wild weather has lashed the Sydney coastline these last couple of days. Winds up to 130km/hr have whipped up a huge swell which is throwing itself onto the coast causing damage up and down. Only a brave few have taken themselves out into the water to chase the waves. I spent the day shooting around near Deadmans on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Although the waves were some what infrequent they were big, solid and impressive when they did roll in.

: Sunrise at North Curl Curl

: A watcher at North Curl Curl.