Photographer CODY SPINADEL

Cody has been on the North Shore this past winter and just sent us this gem. I knew Cody thru the Advertising world and I remember when he said “im gonna get a camera and start shooting”. Since then he has captured some amazing images from above and below the sea. Having been trained as an Art Director he truly has an eye for composition.

TPJ

http://www.froglickimages.com/

Photographer Robert Bemus

 2484 and 2548: Both shots of the Huntington Beach wonder kid, 12/28/12. I know his name but won’t use it because I’ve never met him…just a neurosis of mine. When I shoot surfers I try to use an ISO that will give me shutter speeds around 1/1000th and aperture at f8…usually ISO400 but in shot 2484 I was using ISO640. When the light starts to fade, I switch to ISO100 and shoot at about 1/60th like here in shot 2548— the ‘speed blur’ as some call it. Speed blurs look a lot better if you’re shooting, say, Pipeline…but I live behind the Orange Curtain and have to deal with usually crappy conditions and hideous light. Probably won’t make the cover of the Surfer’s Journal but I like my speed blurs…amd lots of clone stamping to blot out the dust spots from the ol’ image sensor.

3571: Early morning 1/5/13, south side HB pier…air and water cold enough to grow Polar Bears. Swell had dropped some from the day before, but still some head-high to slightly overhead waves south of the pier. This is about a 3-4’ island scale wave. Barely light so I used the highest ISO my Canon 5D has, ISO3200…super grainy shot but sort of cool. I rarely take morning shots because I’m a night owl. I drank so much coffee the night before I could not sleep.

3717: Right before the sun came up, same day, ISO100, 1/25th.

3744: Same day (as are the rest), ISO100, 1/50th…I was shooting in aperture priority f8…wish the waves had been at least twice as big. And I wish I looked like Ryan Gosling but this is winter down Newport way. Actually surfed the day before at 17th street (HB) and there were a couple of DOHsets but mostly close-outs. I caught 3 waves in 3 hours and surfed like the old kook that I am. Lost about 25 lbs just paddling against the current. And what’s up with this 53 degree water? Weeks now…Newport Lifeguards recorded 49 degree water the other day…

3784: Just after the sun came up. Had to do some work on the over-exposed areas under the lip.

3979: Didn’t recognize this guy but he was really good.

4189: I think I’ve photographed this guy before but don’t know who he is…really good surfer as well. I usually just shoot until my CF card fills up and then vamoose, not much of a social butterfly which is probably not good for selling images.

I apologize in advance at how garish some of my images are…I do all my editing on a little Dell 1420 so sometimes when I look at my shots on a higher resolution screen I just want to vomit. I’m in the process of migrating all my stuff over to better desktop— hopefully my shots will improve.

Robert Bemus 1/17/13

http://www.bemuscapes.com