France - update 2

All good things French

A week into France and I've seen Round 1 of the Quiksilver Pro France completed and the first three heats of Round 2 finish. I've watched Freestyle MotoX in Hossegor Square, I've saved a child from a stampede. I've gone two days without tea and drank coffee while eating Sucre Au Lemoen Crepes. I spent Euros and not cared while drinking beer from Bali.

I am making proper blog entries about the contest on theBOMBsurf website. Be sure to give it a visit.

France - update 1

All the good things it takes to get here

My passport received its last international stamp when I departed Australia in March. Many things have happened since that ink hit the paper. I've experienced many personal trials and tribulations in the six months since then so it was both happiness and sadness when I departed home shores on Wednesday afternoon for France. It took one and a half days to get that fresh stamp in the passport. A one hour flight from Durban to JHB, a 6 hour layover in JHB, a 10 hour flight from JHB to London, another 6 hour layover which included a 1 hour bus journey from Heathrow to Gatwick, a 2 hour flight from Gatwick to Bordeaux, a 2 hour wait for my colleague to arrive thanks to the strikes by Air France staff and a 1.5 hour drive from Bordeaux to Hossegor.

Never has a shower felt so good. Being clean felt so fine that I nearly took another shower.

Hipstamatic Clayton

Hipstamatic Clayton

The hipstamatic session is viewable in slideshow on theBOMBsurf website.

With permission I took a stroll around the Clayton Surfboards factory after promises of zero secrets revealed.

Today I am off to France.

Brothers Wedding

Flowers - Check

My brother Calvin got married on 18 Sept 2010 to Heidi. I can only describe the day as magical, who gets married in the bush with Rhinos, Giraffes and Oxen as extra guests. The morning started off overcast with the wind picking up as the clock ticked on. After getting ready and driving to the ceremony the skies were peppered by spots of rain. Soft enough to cause concern yet light enough to hold hope. As guests gathered in the open veld sitting on hay-bails it really started to rain and the wind intensified. I could only close my eyes talk to mom and the powers that be and ask for some intervention. The rain stopped and the wind subsided but came back and my beliefs began to fail. I will forever hold onto my faith for what happened after that. Heidi and her Bridesmaids arrived in an Ox-wagon pulled by six very well behaved bulls. The rain stopped, the wind departed and the Rhinos arrived. At times the large male and female were within 20 meters of the guests. The Pastor noted that if they get any closer he is first up the tree under which we were standing. As the vows were recited the clouds parted and a brilliant golden light emanated with a perfect beam shining right down the middle of the isle encasing Calvin and Heidi in a beautiful halo. I smiled, closed my eyes and thanked mom. She was with us, there was never any doubt about that.

At a wedding a lot of concentration is placed on the bride and this is fair as it is usually the girls childhood dream day. But why forget the groom? As my wedding gift I photographed my brother getting ready for his big day.

The smile that says "I do"

All suited up -lets get married

Schotia Safaris

White Rhino

King of the Jungle

The past weekend was my brothers wedding. It was a magical day which took place on a game farm owned by his wifes parents, Schotia. We were treated to numerous sightings while driving around doing this and that. Being a photographer my camera went almost everywhere and now I feel like joining the wildlife photographers club.

Wildebeest

Giraffe

Hipstamatic Hutchinson

Hipstamatic Jono Hutchinson

A few weeks back I took a stroll through the garden of Jono Hutchinson while with theBOMBsurf guys who were shooting an ad photo.

The slideshow can be seen on their website.

Cover : theBOMBsurf Issue 8

theBOMBsurf Spring 2010 cover

As the release of the Spring 2010 issue of theBOMBsurf, the last issue for 2010, came within sight I started to become a little ansey as I hadn't claimed a cover of the magazine the whole year. I was getting worried I would not have my name printed on at least one of their landscape format issues and thanks to Sean Holmes and the South Coast a few months back I get the final cover of the year.

Thanks Sean, thanks John, thanks Iain. Now to plot the next . . .

A hit of Hipstamatic

Hipstamatic yes I am

It has been a while since I set out armed with the trusty Hipstamatic iPhone app and a purpose. It was fun.

No light? Go Black & White!

The Mound showing what it is capable of

Many alarm clocks were set to crow before the rooster on the morning of Tuesday, 7 September 2010. The days preceding had been wind swept with not a vast amount of surfing taking place. Afternoon sessions the day before took place in 2 foot mush thus with favorable gifts from the ocean looking set for the morning many a surfer kissed their loved ones on the cheek, cashed in their morning pass and tucked themselves into bed as if it were a school night. The Quiksilver Goodwave, an event with a one year waiting period, had been placed on alert only to have that power disconnected by the municipal powers that be because the shark nets had still not been placed back in the water after a history setting sardine run.

And so the early birds arrived in their numbers but it was only the motorised early birds that ate. A combination of high tide and big surf had washed sand up onto the World Cup promenade but not with enough veracity as to put the Wimpy staff in any danger. The swell had arrived but it was not clean. It was not friendly. It was not for those who only had their arms. A jump off the New Pier if poorly timed saw you washed into the Far Bowl in five minutes. I witnessed a crazied water photographer attempt this, what he was hoping to photograph I'm not quite sure. The shark pod attached to ankle was overkill.

Three tow teams were in the water, one being Twiggy and Ryan Butcher. Everyone had their fill. One team hit the throttle out to The Mound. They looked like lint particles. The Mound didn't produce enough of a thrill to keep them there but the mind surfing was monumental.

A slideshow is viewable on theBOMBsurf website.

The ocean is their stadium