Belligerent Bandits

Although way above my comfort level, I jumped in a shot some photos at a sketchy spot on a big day. It's been 10 years since this wave broke, and it probably won't again for a long time. There were still some pretty big sets rolling through this shallow reef break, so I hung back where it was a little more safe and took some wide shots that captured more of the environment, and focused less on the surfers. Guys who fell were getting held under for 25 seconds, pretty gnarly.

Since it was cloudy, the colors and highlights in general came out a little flat. I decided to go with this black and white film grain treatment.

Finally, Good Light

These are from Donkey Beach at sunset. It's a great beach during the evening because it's at the beginning of a big valley, so the soft sunlight keeps the beach lit until just before the sun goes down. Most of the other beaches on the east side fall into the shadow of the mountains before things get really pretty - like this:

Abstract Distractions

Went for an underwater session yesterday at Kiddys (by the rockpile at Kealia). This time I brought a mask, and it made all the difference in the world - I'm going to use one from now on when shooting the underwater stuff. There were a lot of hopeful shots that didn't turn out as good as I thought they would. The problem: I am still shooting too close. My 17mm lens just isn't wide enough, so I need to be more mindful and quit sticking the camera so close to the action.

Below are some of the good ones. You can peep the rest here.