What You Can Expect
You want to start with surf photography but you don’t know how? Then read this post. I will share why I started surf photography, it’s amazing sides and how you can actually start yourself.
Why I Enjoy Surf-Photography?
Surf-pictures combine everything an interesting picture needs. Natural lighting, people in their happiest moments and nature. If you do surf-photography, you will have all the prerequisites in order to make amazing pictures. You only have to absorb the situation, point your camera and shoot.
Despite that, here are my top three things, why I enjoy surf photography so much
Flow
If you are a surfer yourself, you probably know the feeling of flow-state. You are fully absorbed in your activity. You are focused on the next wave, the next set, the next ride. While you are on the wave, there is nothing else that exists, except the maneuvers you’re planning ahead. Time flies without you even noticing it. You are thriving at your full potential. That feeling is the feeling of flow. And that is what I do not only get from surfing, but also from surf-photography. If you are taking pictures from within the water, you are as focused on your surroundings as a surfer is on the wave. In order to take a great picture, you basically mind-surf that wave alongside the surfer and freeze all moments with your camera.
Natural Surroundings
This one is self-explanatory. Most surf spots are actually surrounded by beautiful nature. You are either at a beach, cliffs or even in the ocean whilst taking pictures. That’s just amazing. You experience the bliss of nature first hand. Lucky you, if you can call this your part time office (despite the editing time of course). It is also about alignment with nature. So make sure to not only capture the surfer riding a wave. Look around, capture nature.
Shared Moments
This is maybe the most important one. If you are doing surf-photography, you have an amazing opportunity to connect with people and share amazing sessions. The best thing is, that you actually freeze in those moments for everyone. Even now I remember many sessions where I woke up early in the morning, pulled myself into a thick wetsuit and had an amazing session with strangers, now friends. And most importantly, remember this:
When you are taking pictures of people surfing, you capture people at their most happy, most fun, most focused and/or most challenging moments.
Think about how amazing this is. You actually have the ability to capture people when they are at their best, when they are pure.
How Did I Start with Surf-Photography?
Let’s face it. Cameras are super expensive. Often in Hamburg I see people running around with the biggest gear ever, costing a couple thousand euros. But guess what, you actually don’t need this to begin with!
It’s not the camera that creates an outstanding picture, it is the creator that aligns a perfect picture for the camera.
I actually started out by borrowing a camera from my sister. So if you do not own a camera yet and do not have that extra money to purchase one, ask your friends and family. Maybe someone can lend you one occasionally. This way you can ensure that you actually enjoy the process of surf photography on a low budget.
Buy Second-Hand
After trying out my sisters camera I realized, that I am enjoying photography a lot. That’s when I started saving money in order to buy my own camera. You can get very good quality but inexpensive second hand cameras like the Sony α6000. Look out for combined second-hand packages, ideally with a tele-lens and without the standard lens. If you are patient, you can get the camera and the Sony SEL 55-210mm for as little as 300-400€ (at least that’s what I’ve paid).
This is it. Now you’re good to go and it’s time to create and experiment. Take your camera to the beach and shoot as much as you can.
What Is the Easiest Way To Start?
Shoot shoot shoot. If you are at the beginning stages as a surf-photographer, stay outside the water. That way you reduce distractions and you don’t have to multitask between getting ‘the shot’ and avoiding to go over the falls. You can focus completely on your shooting.
Go close to the shoreline and make yourself familiar with your camera settings, the surrounding light, the movement of the surfers and the ocean. Study all of that.
Camera Settings & Composition
The easiest way to start, is to take ‘frozen’ pictures of maneuvers. Set your shutter speed high and let the aperture adjust automatically. Use your automatic focus on APS-C mode, if you have it. This ensures, that the focus follows your subject. As a guideline use the following two points
- Exposure of the surfer
- Composition
One of the most amazing aspects of surfing can be the facial expression of the surfer. You can see every emotion here. Whether it’s fear, commitment, happiness or pure joy. So make sure to expose the surfer correctly. The worst enemy in these situations is the sun. If it’s shining from behind the surfer, you are lost (except for shooting silhouettes). So make sure to go to the beach at the right time.
Play around with the composition. Remember to check your foreground, middle-ground and background.
Experiment and break the rules. It’s the only way to set new standards.
But most importantly, experiment. Try new things. Change the shutter-speed. Use different compositions. Tune the image with different colors in the editing process. That way you can find out what kind of style you enjoy the most.
What To Keep in Mind When You're in the Water
You might wonder: When should I go into the water? Basically, that is on you but keep in mind, that you will be out there in immediate nature. There can be strong currents, and there definitely will be waves. As you probably know, waves can hit hard and sometimes boards hit even harder. So the first thing to keep in mind is safety.
Become a Surfer
If you are not a surfer yet, it will definitely help you a lot before you go out there with your gear.
Becoming a surfer helps you to understand the nature of waves
and the lines of surfer better. Both will boost your safety in the water.
If you do not want to become a surfer, that’s fine as well. But then study the movements and maneuvers of surfer deeply. This will not only keep others and yourself safe but it will also upgrade the pictures you take. If you understand the process of a maneuver, you know exactly when to pull the trigger. You should also make yourself familiar with the trajectories of waves and the currents within the water. For the latter some good flippers will hold you in position. If you are in really serious conditions, wear a helmet. Remember when you dive under a wave your head can be veeeery close to fins. No fun.
How To Keep Your Gear Tumble Dry
If you have taken care of your safety, then you should care about the safety of your gear. This will be a bit more expensive, as you will either need an additional action camera or a water-housing. Again, you can buy both second-hand. Just make sure, that the water-housing actually works and its metal-parts are not full of rust. My first water-housing that I still use is from Sea-Frog. I bought it second-hand for 180€. Watch out though as there are several Chinese duplicates on the market. So better double check them on quality. I probably will upgrade my housing to the Salted-Line with a pistol-grip as it is more handy in the water and it gives you more time to capture a surfer in the barrel.
Five Key Points To Remember
- You capture people at their most happy, most fun, most focused and/or most challenging moments.
- It’s not the camera that creates an outstanding picture, it is the creator that aligns a perfect picture for the camera.
- Experiment and break the rules. It’s the only way to set new standards.
- Becoming a surfer helps you to understand the nature of waves and the lines of surfer better.
- Keep others, yourself and your equipment safe
Related Posts, Books & Discussions
Articles in Progress
- 3 Simple Things to Remember When Buying a Second Hand Camera
- Why You Should Think about Your Composition
- Why You Should Change Your Shutter-Speed
Thank you so much for staying curious of all marvels of the world!
I am so thankful for every single one of you for reading this post. If you have any questions or comments, please share them with me right now. Write me an Email or message me on Instagram. Let me know what you want read more of and make sure to share your best insights and quotes from this post with everyone who could be interested in it. Keep on exploring and remember;
Together we share #allmarvelsoftheworld
Credit To Whom Credit Is Due
Here you will find further resources I was using for this post. If you find none, it’s all self-made.