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Surf photographers lucky to be alive after huge wipeout at Teahupoo Polynesia

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It can be gnarly out there, especially if you’re a pro-surf photographer. This week a boat full of professional photographers, cameramen and pro surfers got more than they bargained for when they got hit by a true monster of a wave in Teahupoo, Tahiti.

The video above shows the camera boat first being it by a wave which it rides with relative ease, but then a massive wave sneaks in from the opposite direction, seemingly out of nowhere, sending the boat into an almost verticle position. Almost all of the passengers fall into the churning surf.

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Photographer captures abstract portraits of bodysurfers as they hit the ocean waves

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Do you like unusual, abstract portraits? Underwater photography? Or black and white images? Australian photographer Trent Mitchell brings these genres together in a magnificent series titled Inner Atlas. They show bodysurfers beneath the ocean waves, and they’ll take your breath away. DIYP chatted with Trent a bit about the project and all the challenges he faced while shooting. And this definitely was a challenging project to create!

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A Love Affair With Water: Photographer Spotlight Q&A With Sarah Lee

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Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series is Sarah Lee.

Sarah is a Hawaii/San Diego based commercial photographer, best known for working in and around the ocean and her instantly recognizable style. Sarah’s work has been featured by National Geographic, Instagram, CNN, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Pelican, H&M and many other international brands.

Full disclosure: I am a big fan of Sarah and her work. Her work is absolutely breathtaking and I love that she’s been able to build a successful career around such a niche subject that she clearly has a profound passion for. I find her approach to photography and the industry very inspiring – I hope you do too!

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5 surf & underwater photography hacks and tricks in under a minute

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If you’ve ever taken a camera near water, whether it be a DSLR or a GoPro, you know it can be a hassle. Even when you’ve got all the underwater housings and other bits, it can still be a pain. In this video, surf photographer Dylan Brayshaw gives us 5 great tips for shooting in and around water.

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Drone captures incredible footage of 70ft big wave surfer crashing and subsequent rescue

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Within just a few short years, drone footage has already become something of a cliché. Sometimes, though, sequences come up that just make you go “wow!”, and this is one of them. At least, it made me go wow. It’s like a scene out of a horror movie, trying to escape the bad guy. He initially catches up and makes a grab, then the rest of it plays out with our heroes running just out of reach, with the villain making close chase.

The footage shot by Maquina Voadora and posted to YouTube by World Surf League shows surfer Pedro “Scooby” Vianna at Nazaré in Portugal. After being knocked off his board by a ridiculously huge wave, a jet ski comes into grab him. It then speeds off, trying to stay ahead of the wave, but then it too takes a tumble.

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This surfer photographed under Norway’s northen lights is spectacular

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Surfing has become wildly popular since it started to see a major revival in the 1960s. Along with the sport, came photographers. Things have come a long way since the days of photographers like LeRoy Grannis. But, we get to a point where styles and ideas become recycled. It happens with most genres of photography, though. Once it becomes saturated, it’s often difficult to innovate.

Some photographers, however, want to push the boundaries and try something genuinely new. Such is the case with photographers Emil Sollie & Mats Grimsæth. Their mission was to photograph Australian surfing champ, Mick Fanning performing under Norway’s Northern Lights.

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A Surf Photographer’s Personal Crusade Against The Mundane

Working as surf photographer that specializes in shooting some of the most frigid and icy waters on the planet is a mentally and physically demanding career. It’s the kind where you’re putting your life on the line on a regular basis and while it might be difficult and dangerous at times, it’s also incredibly alluring to those who accept it. That’s because, to see something all the way through to these sorts of extremes, you really, really have to love it–and love can make the soul do crazy things.

Take for example, Chris Burkard. A photographer who once dreamed of a thrilling life travelling to warm, tropical paradises to photograph the surf. That is until he caught a taste for the adrenaline brought about by paddling into the wicked, freezing waters of Iceland. Pushing himself to the brink of hypothermia, becoming disoriented in overhead surf, getting lost on a wave as a light snowfall suddenly turned into a full on blizzard–these are the kinds of things Burkard lives for.[Read More…]

“Shoot Loose And Edit Tight” Words Of Wisdom From One Of The World’s Leading Surf Photographers

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Growing up in Hawaii, it’s hard not to have an appreciation and love for the ocean. It literally surrounds us and is an integral aspect of life on an island. For Zac Noyle, acclaimed surf photographer and Hawaiian native, being in the water was ingrained in him at a very young age. Growing up the son of a professional photographer, taking photos, however, wasn’t something that initially caught Noyle’s eye. It wasn’t until he took a camera out into the surf on a whim, that he was inspired to take great photos.

Since that moment, Noyle’s fearlessness and natural talent has led him on countless adventures and eventually earned him the title of Senior Staff Photographer for Surfer Magazine. An accomplishment that didn’t come easy and remains a labor of love everyday as he risks his life swimming in some of the world’s biggest waves to get the shot. His skills as a waterman also afforded him the privilege of being the only photographer allowed to swim into the line up of the prestigious Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational.[Read More…]

Photographer Brings $140,000 Camera Into The Ocean To Capture This Jaw Dropping Surf Film

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I have to admit, I get nervous enough just bringing my DSLR into the ocean even when I’m using a waterproof housing which cost more than my camera itself. Needless to say, it would be really difficult for me to slip into my wetsuit and take a $140,000 Phantom 4K Flex out for a little swim. In a housing I made myself, to boot.

Then again, I’m not Chris Bryan. Bryan, an Australian based sports cinematographer, has recently spent time in New York training to become a Phantom technician while also working closely with the camera makers to develop “his own unique custom light weight self contained underwater housing for the new state of the art Phantom Flex 4K, complete with Directors underwater video split.”  [Read More…]

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