late afternoon summer light at the beach

during the winter and spring, i rarely get to the beach during the sunset hours. In the summer, I seem to spend so much more time at the beach during the twilight hours. The light has such a special quality and the beach takes on a very peaceful feel. i snapped this one of my daughter on our way to check the surf.

late afternoon with my daughter

There is nothing like watching the joy kids' experience at the beach. School's finally out and they are free to roam about the cabin.....

More tests from roll one nikonos v

Another decent weekend of summer waves, nothing special but fun nonetheless. I got to mix it up a bit riding my Hall Long Fish Simmons, 6'6 Liddle Smoothie M3P and my Coop mal foil II. So fun to ride different platforms, keeps it all so fresh. It was great to get the Liddle wet, it is the fastest board I own bar none!! I am pretty sure I snapped a few good water shots over the weekend, however in my haste, i tore the film rewinding it, subsequently exposing the film to the light!!! Live and Learn.

nikonas test roll part three- a search for tonality and contrast

Here are a few more shots from my first roll with the nikonos v. I am still trying to figure out best to frame my water shots and how to present the shots with regards to tonality and contrast. Trying to find the magical combo. I am definitely inspired by early surf photography ala Tom Blake, Doc Ball and Don James, as well as the early pictorial masters (e.i. Strand, Steiglitz, White etc.). I am not interested in creating any more "surf porn" or high action sports style surf photography as I just don't see the world that way. I need to pick up a pair of flippers-any recommendation would be appreciated!!

nikonos v test roll continued

here are is another one from my test roll. again the i underexposed my film somewhat and the light was way to flat. I am happy with the lens quality as edge sharpness is pretty good. Shot some this morning, as the light was a little better- opted to push my tmax 400 to iso 800, allowing for faster shutter speeds and greater depth of feild. we shall see...

Nikonos V- Test roll

I impulsively ran my first roll through my nikonos V camera yesterday during some small log waves. The light was extremely flat (heavily overcast)and and I underexposed the negs, causing a great deal of shadow detail to be lost. These are down and dirty scans with quick adjustments in photoshop. Had the images been better, I take more care in cleaning the image up, nonetheless I was pleased with my first attempts at shooting in the water. Hopefully as time progress, I'll get the camera dialed in more

salt stained diana

I snapped this a week or so ago, as part of my first attempt at bringing the cam in the water. Today i just put my first test roll through my nikonos V- very psyched to process film tonight.

newest addition to the analog quiver- Nikonos V

The new addition is looking to get wet!!! Sorry the blogs been a little flat lately. The combination of poor light, and increased people in the water has kinda got me missing cooler water temps a bit. I havent been feeling the stoke for shoreside shots as of late. Summer takes the mystery out the beach a bit. I looking to get in the water for some shots, i see in my mind. Hopefully the learning curve wont be so steep as this is a new venture for me !! I am still riggin the holga for some freezer bag water housing also. stay tuned!! The Dianas must stay dry!!

a true wavehog...... 10'1 cooperfish nosedevil

Please excuse the lack of posts over the last week or so. I haven't been shooting that much as the light has been very flat lately as a result of the ever present rain and cloudiness. I have been "printing" quite abit, and i am psyched that my negs are holding up when being printed very large (24x24"). It so good to see the work at a much larger scale. Still working out the details of an upcoming show on the east end, but I am really excited about seeing the images move from the computer screen to a tangible medium.
Fun weekend of longboarding. I spend saturday and sunday morning riding very clean yet somewhat mushy waves. Loggin always but me in a good mood. This shot is for my nysurf buddy, wavehog666- he hates beautiful boards and people who takes pictures of them.

a thin black line that divides fish from fowl

Chris from Mollusk turned me on to a SF photog who has been doing some holga water shots.Nick Allen ( http://www.focaldesigns.com) Looking at those images is getting me more stoked to take the camera into the shorey. The above photo is one of my first frames in the water. Hopefully some interesting stuff to follow.

lo-fi water shots to come....hopefully

As the water warms up, I hope to get better acquainted with my freezer-bag water housing!! I am kinda getting tired of shooting pre and post session shots. Hopefully, I will be able to grab some semi interesting lo-fi surfy-action in the months to come.
Still assembling work for my up-coming show out east- details to follow!!

gathering spots.

I'd imagine most surf spots that are in larger towns or cities have certian spots that people gather to check the surf and shoot the breeze. In Long Beach NY, the boardwalk is such a central part of the pre and post-surf experience. It amazes me how much time certian people spend each day at this spot. Pre- dawn patrol, mid- morning, lunch- time, evening or sunset surf checks- same people... same conversation....

sun dial pivot fin

Hope everyone had a nice surf filled weekend. Here, we were granted a little background summer swell. Fun times on the log and quad fish. The water has finally warmed up a bit and its been great just getting out to enjoying sunrises and slides. Here is a shot of my nose devil from last monday- what a small but elegant wave it was, perfect for trimming out on heavy equipment.

on the fringe of both pursuits

This photograph kind of struck me, as both the subject matter (displacement hull) and the photographic medium (pinhole camera and film) are very much on the fringe of both pursuits (photography and surfing). I guess, I always feel a bit out of step with mainstream culture. Somehow if this picture was shot with the latest, greatest digital slr and featured a 6'0 shortboard rather than this bladed out hull, I am certain it would not be nearly as interesting.
Recently, I have been toying with the idea of printing several of my photographs much larger than I typically do. I just did a 24x24inch print that I am quite happy with.

The "Little Man" waiting for his go in the bowl.

My godson, T.J is obsessed with all things related to skateboards, foam, fiberglass and fins, not to mention guitars. He obviously takes after a few people in family. He will be turning two on on the 10th and he is ready to get going with some shreddin' !!

What a fun little weekend!!

Good times this weekend as I was able to surf for three straight days. While the swell was not all that memorable, I managed to smile each time out. Saturday was the best of the lot, as I got a four hour dawn patrol in. During that time I managed to ride four boards for about an hour a clip. Started the day on the 9'8 cooperdesign malibu foil II (love that board), switched up to my 7'6 fineline micro ant II(always so happy when on this), then to my buddies 8'0 fineline micro ant (very different boards from the MAII btw), and then finally finished up on my 6'9 J. Hall long fish simmons quad. Pretty versatile little wave, which is unusual around here with our tight surf windows.

Sunday, I was on the Hall quad but I really should have brought a log to the beach as the wave was small and weak. Got to hang with Nuno from www.fishbrotherhood.blogspot.com and www.glidelines.blogspot.com. The guys so stoke on riding his fish.

This morning I caught a dawn patrol microwave session on my 10'1 cooperfish nosedevil- so fun despite the paultry little lines coming in. Nonetheless a fantastic way to start the week.

I have also been busy editing and printing for an upcoming exhibition of my work--- Details to follow.