Sunset Foam

Your positioning in the water will inevitably vary from spot to spot, depending on the waves, the surfer you are filming, your focal length, and the look you are aiming for. Generally, you will want to position yourself lower down the wave face than the surfer to capture the most interesting action—right where the wave breaks—between the take-off and the end of the ride. If the wave is short and fast and you are filming a shortboarder, you should position yourself fairly close to the surfer, as the action unfolds quickly after the take-off. If the wave is long and steady and you are shooting a longboarder, it is better to drop down a bit; longboarders paddle earlier and for longer, so if you are too close, they might take off behind you. Observe whether the waves are breaking left or right, then shift your position accordingly based on the angle you want to shoot and whether the surfer is riding backside or frontside. Once I feel I’ve captured some well-framed action, I usually move around to get different perspectives: I might get closer for tight shots of the feet (for longboarding) or shift to the side to capture the surfer from behind while they ride. Then there is the time spent waiting in the lineup, the take-off, the paddling, the duck dives… all the elements that allow you to tell the story of the session.