Surfing Photography

Two weeks ago I had the chance to shoot the 2009 Rincon Classic. Luckily Rincon isn't far from me and during that weekend we had a very nice swell. You need a few things in order to get a good surf shot. I'm no pro at this, but these are the things that I found helped when shooting this great sport.

1st) Equipment - Rent a long lens - Preferably a 300mm or longer. For the 2009 Rincon Classic I used a Canon 400mm 5.6L. You can rent a lens like this from Samy's for cheap, so it's good to rent when you need specialized glass rather than buying it for $1000+. If this is going to be your profession, I'd say go 400mm or above.

2nd) Equipment - Tripod - You'll need a solid tripod or monopod to support that big lens you rented. They may not seem very heavy, but after a few hours, you'll be happy you brought the tripod. I like Manfrotto gear, but that's just me. As for tripod vs monopod, I'm glad I brought my tripod. With a monopod you always need to hold on to it. With my tripod, i could take a break and my gear was ready for the next shot. Just get a good ball head for the the tripod and you have the flexibility you'll need for surfing.

3rd) Camera Settings - AI Servo Focus - This focus type tracks your subject as they are moving. Even using this setting, focus on my little Canon Rebel XT was stugglin'. You should be using a 30D,40D,50D or a pro body if you want better focusing and speed.

4th) Camera Settings - Continuous Shooting - Most cameras will have a continuous shooting setting that lets you hold down the shutter and it will fire rapidly. I'd say this is a good option because the action is so fast you just can't react fast enough to catch the action (at least I can't).

5th) Camera Settings - ISO - You need to shoot at 1/1000 sec or faster in order to freeze the action. If you don't do this all your shots will be blurry. I learned this the hard way during the first day of the competition. Depending on the weather, I'd say use ISO 200 or 400 so you can get a faster shutter speed. Use whichever setting that allows you to shoot 1/1000 sec or faster in your lighting conditions.

Lastly, I wouldn't even think about trying to use a point n' shoot for this kind of photography. They just don't have the reach needed and they aren't fast enough to catch the action. I'd say this is one style that you'll need an SLR to get good results. Sorry Point N' Shooters :(

To check out more of my surfing pics, visit my portfolio at www.morganmessina.com