surfing
Existing in perhaps the wrong era, Mr Jordan Spee of Perpetual Motion Surfboards accompanied me to Pitstop Hill in the Mentawai for a couple weeks surfing and hanging for a fun project for his major sponsor, Rhythm.
With a quiver of hand-shaped single fins of varying shapes and sizes, the mentawais was the perfect testing grounds to master these shapes and iron out any kinks for future shapes.
National Geographic is currently running their annual global photo competition. And holy moly, the submissions are absolutely breathtaking.
I took a stab in the dark and entered in about 12 images….why not, eh? To my absolute surprise this drone image of a wave breaking over a crystal clear section of reef in the Mentawai Islands I took in April has made the editor’s picks. Fingers crossed for a victory when the winner is announced.
Summer in south-west France! Is there anything better? 16 hours of sunlight, smiling faces, warm water, great food and good vibes.
Being based here for a few weeks armed with my camera gear has been a great opportunity to connect with a photograph some very cool people for various brands. When RVCA Europe hit us up to spend an evening with their local surf team, I jumped at the chance. The waves were horrendous but the smiles were still plastered on all faces and the crew danced on waves until the sun set around 10pm.
Throughout April & May I was based in the Mentawai Islands, a chain located 150 kilometers (93 miles) west of Sumatra, Indonesia, on the edge of the Ring of Fire. This was my fourth time here, and I’m continually taken back by the incredible waves, unspoiled islands, and beautiful culture of the local island people.
My reason for being there was to work as a surf-guide and photographer with a land-based camp called Pitstop Hill on the island of Pulau Masokut. My days revolved around assessing the surf conditions, taking guests to the most appropriate waves, navigating for boat drivers, snorkeling, fishing, and coordinating local village visits to build awareness of the communities in the area.
Visiting the local villages is a beautiful and humbling insight into the people and traditions that are so far removed from what we’re used to in the developed Western world. I remember walking back to our boat in a village called Malilimok while an elderly man was sitting in his doorway soaking up the afternoon sun, watching as a group of Bule (the Indonesian term for “Westerners”) roamed around his village. He had a friendly and welcoming appearance, and he was more than happy to have his photograph taken. To me, the contentment and peaceful nature exuding from this man struck me as though he’d lived a full, happy and healthy life by living closely with nature and reaffirmed that we do not need a lot in order to be happy.
There is a wave, a complete natural phenomenom of moving sand which, as of 10 years ago, created arguably the greatest wave on the planet. Donkey Bay, Namibia.
Two kilometers of unsectioned, below sea-level, grinding barrels which cause even the best surfers on the planet to drop their jaws in awe when in it’s presence. An ever shifting chunk of sand which is predicted to move further north, changing its shape and no longer be the wave that it is today. On a three-week visit, I was lucky enough to coincide with an amazing swell and experience a wave which is on every surfers bucket list.
I've spent my life surfing. So naturally I photograph it fairly often - although it's far from my favourite thing to shoot. On gloomy days, capturing a crisp surf shot is near impossible and the colours are generally flat and uninteresting. I've really enjoyed opening the shutter, on all surf photography but especially on a gloomy day to give the image some well-needed character, being motion and colour. This was a tiny, rainy day at Kingscliff between drinking coffees and progressing onto beers with a bunch of buddies.
A trip to Pitstop Hill in the Mentawai Islands. 10 days, 11 nights of pure paradise. Perched high on a hill over looking possibly the funnest right-hander in the island chain, Pitstops is the most attractive land camp option in the area.
