Surfing Shoot and Behind the Scenes Video

GeneralBenson · Nov 5, 2010

Hey there, TPF'ers!

I just got back from a big tour de force trip of NYC and the surrounding areas. I was shooting some surfing, stan-up paddling, slacklining, and yoga on the coast. Then I was off to Manhattan for the PDN PhotoPlus Expo. Then it was upstate a few hours for some climbing photography at the world class climbing spot, the Gunks.

I was putting together a behind the scenes video while I was on the shore, and it ended up taking a slightly different angle than I was planning on when I got too far out on a jetty, and got wiped out by a big rogue wave. Drenched me and my camera. Watch the video here. I think y'all will enjoy it.

I also wrote a post on my blog while in the city for the last night, about some of the less awesome parts of being a professional adventure photographer. If any of you are looking for a glance into wht the life of a pro is like, I tried to capture the feeling as best as I could in the post. Adventure photography has many awesome parts to it, but it also has many parts that try to level things out. Like, long days, heavy packs, excessive traveling, 100+ hour weeks an the like. Still a great way to make a living (depending on how you define 'make a living'), but it's not all fun and games. Read all about it on the blog post, Professional Adventure Photography Is Lame.

Images from the trip are both in the video, and on the blog. But here are a few to whet your whistles, and for those who don't feel like jumping over.

Cheers!
Ben

Derrel · Nov 5, 2010

Four really solid images! Good work.

kundalini · Nov 5, 2010

Very cool video. Some excellent shots to boot. :thumbsup:

The ending of the video made me :biglaugh:

GeneralBenson · Nov 5, 2010

kundalini said:
Very cool video. Some excellent shots to boot. :thumbsup:

The ending of the video made me

Was it the pile of dishes...? We were rolling surf bum style. :mrgreen:

GeneralBenson · Nov 5, 2010

Thanks, D!

GeneralBenson · Nov 6, 2010

Yikes! This got buried quick. Fast moving forum!

Bizzump.

Darkhunter139 · Nov 6, 2010

I wish I could just pour water on my camera like that :lol:

Nice shots man.

c.cloudwalker · Nov 6, 2010

Neat reading your blog post while having my morning coffee.

Having spent some time in the adventure world myself once upon a time I think I know how you feel. Especially the idea of making a living from it. As an adventurer or an adventure photographer. And few people realize that the photographer is in as much danger as the adventurers because he/she has to be right in the middle of it.

At least, you only got soaked. But watch yourself. I lost a lot of friends to this "business." When I first got involved it wasn't that bad but, little by little, there's a tendency to get into crazier and crazier stuff because you need to keep getting more and more interesting stuff to sell or you just don't sell. At the end I was losing at least a friend a month and that's why I got out.

So, enjoy, but watch yourself.

eccs19 · Nov 7, 2010

You should have just taken that K7 for a shower. Just wouldn't want to see that part in the video. :lmao:

GeneralBenson · Nov 7, 2010

Darkhunter139 said:
I wish I could just pour water on my camera like that

Nice shots man.

Thanks, Darkhunter! You can certainly pour water on your camera just like I did. You just might have a less favorable turnout.

sam_justice · Nov 7, 2010

awesome! well done

dumpweed · Nov 7, 2010

you picked the right week to come to NY, It's been flat almost the whole month, we just got some good waves this weekend. Nice video, cheers

GeneralBenson · Nov 7, 2010

c.cloudwalker said:
Neat reading your blog post while having my morning coffee.

Having spent some time in the adventure world myself once upon a time I think I know how you feel. Especially the idea of making a living from it. As an adventurer or an adventure photographer. And few people realize that the photographer is in as much danger as the adventurers because he/she has to be right in the middle of it.

At least, you only got soaked. But watch yourself. I lost a lot of friends to this "business." When I first got involved it wasn't that bad but, little by little, there's a tendency to get into crazier and crazier stuff because you need to keep getting more and more interesting stuff to sell or you just don't sell. At the end I was losing at least a friend a month and that's why I got out.

So, enjoy, but watch yourself.

Truer words couldn't be said, cloudwalker! It's something i wrestle with often. In the last two years, vie come much closer to dying than i want to ever be, three times. I've yet to have someone close to me, but the have been a few people in the last few years, some that vie photographed, and some that I've just climbed with have passed. And even that is pretty intense.

Now with my first kid on the way, I've got to reflect even more and decide where my line of acceptable risk lies. It's a decision that is never done being made, but should always be present in one's mind. There is definitely a lot of pressure to keep pushing the envelope, just to bring more impactful, more exhilarating images. But I'm not about taking unnecessary risks or putting my athletes in danger. But even so, just having a camera around, tends to make people's risk tolerance go up, and want to "do something sick".

Thanks for you concern and perspective. I hope to never get too callous to the dangers of what I do. There's nothing cool, badass or honorable about going off and getting myself killed, and leaving my wife and daughter without a husband/father, just to get some dumb 'great shot'.

Peace!

GeneralBenson · Nov 7, 2010

eccs19 said:
You should have just taken that K7 for a shower. Just wouldn't want to see that part in the video. :lmao:

You want to see me in the shower...? Alright... I'll post at up later. :lol:

But seriously, I don't think a k-7 would have a problem in the shower. If a sea wave powerful enough to knock me over didn't do anything, then shower water won't. That was my logic with rinsing it of in the sink at least...

GeneralBenson · Nov 8, 2010

dumpweed said:
you picked the right week to come to NY, It's been flat almost the whole month, we just got some good waves this weekend. Nice video, cheers

Yeah, that's what Adi said, who I was staying with. I got super lucky with not only good swells, but nice light, and good sunsets/sunrises. Was on the shor for 36 hours, and got 3 good shoots in. Can really get much better than that...! :mrgreen: