Bodysurfing is not only just as exciting as surfing, but actually enables me to place myself inside more tubes than if I were been on a board. It was the perfect collision of hobbies, the ability to take my camera out onto – and into – the water without feeling I was missing out on the surf. ![]() Sitting out in perfect barrelling waves and surfing down the line-up as the sun set, turning sea and sky to gold, was something that needed to be shared. It was an exhilarating moment, the first time I strode into the water camera and housing in-hand. Photography offered me the opportunity to do exactly that. But what if I could place them there – right there, within the wave itself – without having to utter a single word? Conveying these feelings to those who have never experienced life within a barrel, or even atop bubbling white-water, is a near impossible task. Surfing offers a sense of thrilling connectedness, a moment in time filled with energy and texture. There’s a saying: ‘Only a surfer knows the feeling.’ It is true. What I didn’t realise throughout those 15 years of sitting out beyond the breakers from sunrise to sunset was that I was laying the foundations for another moment that would change my life: the discovery of photography. The intoxicating combination of both focus and freedom experienced during long summer days on the water was like nothing I had ever experienced. Learning those key surfing skills of placement and timing connected me with the ocean. Surfing has been an addiction throughout my life, a natural step for a young Aussie boy enraptured by the sea. In many ways he is still very much alive within me, that sense of joy when hitting the water barely diluted after all these years. In the years since that first fateful dip, I have spent more time in the sea than I could possibly have ever imagined. I was mesmerised by those beautiful barrels, the inexplicable uniformity of tumbling waves, that beguiling mix of power and grace. The ocean has always felt like home to me, ever since I first jumped into the crystal clear waters of Byron Bay as a kid. You have to feel the rhythm of those rollers, refrain from fighting the forces around you. Immersing yourself in the environment is key. You can only hold your breath for so long. Unlike on land, where you have endless amounts of time for framing that perfect shot, underwater – and particularly when photographing waves – your time is limited. Surf photography is about immersion, literally and metaphorically.
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