Kayak Surf Contest

[Steve Cavigliano]

Hello All,

After one of the most beautiful days in months, Andy and I headed over to the beach yesterday. Of course, since the Gods knew that we wanted some good shooting light, it was overcast and the light was flat :rolleyes

We drove to the Lighthouse to see if any surfers were out and we ran into a Kayak Surf Contest. The light was so bad, I think Andy only snapped off 3 shots :-( The waves weren't too big, but it was kewl to watch these guys ride, spin and work over the waves in these little boats with no fins or keels.

They'd dig their paddles in to turn.
http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433538-L.jpg

Sometimes they'd completely lose contact with the water

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433536-L.jpg

Or wind up riding the wave backwards

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433530-L.jpg

It got pretty crowded at times

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433523-L.jpg

Which sometimes led to a Kayak wipeout....lol

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433540-L.jpg

Some of the contestants even mugged for the crowd

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/61433532-L.jpg

The story on the pic above is that he had just run over another kayaker and was penalized. His wife and kids were standing next to me alternately giving him grief and urging him on. The burden we men carry.....LOL


Hope you enjoyed looking,

Steve

[saurora]

Pretty good shots, Steve, in spite of the weather not cooperating. You can definitely feel the action!!! What lens were you shooting with? (Ulterior motive, here...I needs sports/action advice!) :D

[Steve Cavigliano]

Pretty good shots, Steve, in spite of the weather not cooperating. You can definitely feel the action!!! What lens were you shooting with? (Ulterior motive, here...I needs sports/action advice!) :D

Thanks Saurora :D

Yeah, we got rained on a few minutes after these shots were taken :cry So the light definitely wasn't good. I was using the 400mm F5.6 and 20D. So you can tell which shots were heavily cropped and which ones were only slightly cropped...lol If the light had been better I would have risked climbing down to shot from the rocks. But, not for shots in this sort of light.

The 400 is a really nice lens for long sports shots. It may be too long on a 1.6X camera for some field sports. But, for surfing, sailing, motorsports and tight shots, it is one of the best in the $1000 price range. Given some better light, these shots would have looked lots better :dunno Oh well, ya works with what you have to work with :D

Thanks for your comments,

Steve

[Nikolai]

Reminds me the old good days of white water rafting..:):

[Dee]

Had kayack races as part of the weekend activities. We went to the beach to watch them. It was interesting that the main struggle was getting out beyond the breakers to begin with! I haven't seen too much followup since 1986, altho we do see the occasional kayacker at that beach.

I think with Santa Cruz being a college town there's a lot more sports and action activities than in our area (except for our brand new skateboarding park).

Plus the weather is warmer in Santa Cruz... sorry the sun disappeared for you and Andy. Welcome to my world! :):

We did get a nice pastel cloud stripped sunset....

Despite the weather it looks like you had a good time taking the photos and I love the one of the man clowning around!

[Frog Lady]

neat shots Steve, I like the way the kayak in the 1st one has left a trough through the wave. Also, the colors of their jerseys came out nice and bright. Was that through the efforts of post processing?

C.

[photodoug]

props to Santa Cruz.....still a way bitchen place

[Steve Cavigliano]

Reminds me the old good days of white water rafting..:):

Thanks Nik :D

I was thinking the exact same thing about white-water rafting :thumb Only no cliffsides to watch out for....lol These guys really worked the waves over and looking through the VF, you could easily imagine they were navigating rapids instead of waves :wink


Thanks for your comments,
Steve

[Steve Cavigliano]

Had kayack races as part of the weekend activities. We went to the beach to watch them. It was interesting that the main struggle was getting out beyond the breakers to begin with! I haven't seen too much followup since 1986, altho we do see the occasional kayacker at that beach.

I think with Santa Cruz being a college town there's a lot more sports and action activities than in our area (except for our brand new skateboarding park).

Plus the weather is warmer in Santa Cruz... sorry the sun disappeared for you and Andy. Welcome to my world! :):

We did get a nice pastel cloud stripped sunset....

Despite the weather it looks like you had a good time taking the photos and I love the one of the man clowning around!

Andy is just as much of a smart-ass as I am and we both live to eat....lol So we always have great times and great meals when we're together, good light or not :eat

LOL @ your sunset comment. We were sitting under a benchtop umbrella, eating chowdah out of a bread bowl and watching the gulls get wet. Yes, it was raining :rolleyes

Yep, the kayak contest was a new one on me too :scratch We were hoping for surfers and Mavericks-sized waves :rofl But, as poor as the light was, the kayakers were a kewl find. Plus, Andy was so bored, he was able to take a nap while I shot :lol3

Thanks for looking Dee :D

Steve

[Steve Cavigliano]

neat shots Steve, I like the way the kayak in the 1st one has left a trough through the wave. Also, the colors of their jerseys came out nice and bright. Was that through the efforts of post processing?

C.

Thanks Colleen :D

The jerseys were all electric colors. I guess they didn't want to lose these guys in case the fog rolled in :dunno Because the light was so bad, once I got the exposure right, most of the jerseys were so bright, they clipped. I tried to tone them down some, but I'm sure there's still a bit of clipping in the jerseys (especially the electric pink ones....lol).


Steve

[Steve Cavigliano]

props to Santa Cruz.....still a way bitchen place

As the bumper stickers say, "Keep Santa Cruz Weird" :uhoh ......lol

It is a nice place and if you can't find something to shoot, you can always find a good place to eat :rofl


Steve

[Nikolai]

Thanks Nik :D

I was thinking the exact same thing about white-water rafting :thumb Only no cliffsides to watch out for....lol These guys really worked the waves over and looking through the VF, you could easily imagine they were navigating rapids instead of waves :wink


Thanks for your comments,
Steve

Well, I guess it depends on what level of WWR you're doing.. After "6" and above, esp. in Himalayas, those canyons walls are no friendlier than them cliffsides of yours :):

Cheers!:1drink

[ian408]

Nicely done Steveo!

I ran into a guy today that was shooting up near Davenport. Apparently, one
of the kayak surfer's wanted a few piccies. Unfortunately, he picked Gazos Greek
State Beach to shoot. And while the waves are not as big as say Steamer's,
there are many more of them and this young lady spent a LONG time trying to
get out into the bigger waves before finally giving up. Kayak surfing looks like
a difficult sport. More so than paddling out and riding waves :D

Ian

[Steve Cavigliano]

Nicely done Steveo!

I ran into a guy today that was shooting up near Davenport. Apparently, one
of the kayak surfer's wanted a few piccies. Unfortunately, he picked Gazos Greek
State Beach to shoot. And while the waves are not as big as say Steamer's,
there are many more of them and this young lady spent a LONG time trying to
get out into the bigger waves before finally giving up. Kayak surfing looks like
a difficult sport. More so than paddling out and riding waves :D

Ian

Thanks Ian :D

Yeah, I have a new found respect for these guys and gals. Paddling over a wave that has already broken is tough. At least on a board, you can go upside down under the wave. I sure would have liked to see them out in some good sized surf. The waves were 3-5 ft and mostly rights. Making it tough to get face shots from the cliffs.

I was using my 400mm F5.6 and got a severe case of lens envy. Guys waling around with 300mm and 400mm F2.8's :rolleyes And one guy with a Nikkor 600mm F4. Damn, who says size doesn't matter? :dunno

I'm not sure I am going to like the focal length of the 400 shooting the Lane. If I have to shoot from the roadway, I may just leave the 1.4X TC on it. If I shoot from the cliffs, I'll be too close :scratch

Ahhh well. I've got a couple of months to figure it out. How did your weekend ride go?


Steve

[ian408]

Ahhh well. I've got a couple of months to figure it out. How did your weekend ride go?


It was a great weekend. My mighty steed...

http://ian408.smugmug.com/photos/61662513-M.jpg

I've got a couple of lighthouse shots to process...

[photodoug]

As the bumper stickers say, "Keep Santa Cruz Weird" :uhoh ......lol

It is a nice place and if you can't find something to shoot, you can always find a good place to eat :rofl


Steve

I didn't know about that one....haven't been back since the earthquake. Wierd fit back then very well. But I do have Santa Cruz Skateboards stickers on the back window of all of my vehicles.

[robert mccane]

look's cold good shot :):

[Andy]

http://blogs.smugmug.com/found-on-smugmug/2006/03/27/surfing-and-kayaking/

[Steve Cavigliano]

http://blogs.smugmug.com/found-on-smugmug/2006/03/27/surfing-and-kayaking/

Whoa....recognition :clap

I don't know who's responsible, but my check is in the mail to them :rofl



Thanks for pointing this out Andy. Since I only visit photo forums and porn sites, I'd have missed it fer sure :lol3 :lol

Steve

[Steve Cavigliano]

look's cold good shot :):


Robert,
I'm not sure whether you mean Ian's pic or the kayakers, but thanks for the comment :thumb

Steve

[gus]

Great action mate...tell me that isnt a carbon fibre kayak :huh

[Steve Cavigliano]

Great action mate...tell me that isnt a carbon fibre kayak :huh

Thanks Gus :-)

Those "Intruders" sure looked like they were made using CF cloth. The way these guys were twirling them around when carrying them pretty well convinced me. They seemed to weight around 40 pounds. Which seems pretty light for their size and strength. I believe they use a mix of fiberglass, resin, polyethelene, kevlar and carbon cloth. These babies are stronggggggggg and likely bulletproof......lol

Steve

[ScovoPhoto]

I like that first picture the best. The action is isolated to the one individual and you can see the action in the line that cuts through the wave. The expression in their face and the tension in the body enhances the drama. Well done!

[matthudgens]

Let's see....yes many of the boats are carbon fiber....the rest are primarily fiberglass. The CF ones weigh around 18 to 22 lbs, the glass ones are 25 to 30. They do have fins, everyone you shot does at any rate, the paddle assists in turns but doesn't make it. I'm in the second shot, the other shots are all great friends of mine....the one you thought his wife and kids were watching....definitely not. His wife never comes to these events and his kids are grown and gone! The other in a CF boat lives in the Cruz, he and I have years of professional whitewater experience, The other two (the last CF boater and the first shot in a blue black boat) are primarily board surfers who learned to river kayak and took it back to the ocean. Besides the one in SC we all live down near SLO, and the guy in the blue black boat is a great photographer....search vincentshaymedia ......and also designed that boat. The older guy designed the other two, and I designed and built the one I'm surfing as a very traditional fish shape!

Cheers, and it was great to see those shots even so lwate. That was the last event I entered, since then I've had my own child and time and moola is too tight now.

~matt hudgens


Thanks Gus :-)

Those "Intruders" sure looked like they were made using CF cloth. The way these guys were twirling them around when carrying them pretty well convinced me. They seemed to weight around 40 pounds. Which seems pretty light for their size and strength. I believe they use a mix of fiberglass, resin, polyethelene, kevlar and carbon cloth. These babies are stronggggggggg and likely bulletproof......lol

Steve

[torags]

Good catches Steve.

Hey Matt, any kayak activities up near Mavericks?. I saw a couple of guys tooling around once when I was there.

I don't know about the relationship of kayaks to single operator white water rafts. I used to have a rig and it was like trying to steer a tank. Used to aim for haystacks to help turn... :D

These kayakers can steer those things

Rags