Surfing: Balinese waves in the crosshairs of photographer Alexey Yezhelov

Every photo is a work of art, every action photo is the art of the moment. In our new rubric “In Detail” iconic extreme photographers continue to reveal the magic of non-random shots. Our guest today is Alexey Yezhelov, a surf photographer from the island of Bali. In a few years Alexey has managed to take his passion for photography to a new level and become one of the most sought-after photographers on the water.

Of course, in addition to talent and diligence in achieving their goals, photographers are helped by the uniqueness of the location they have chosen for their life and work. The gentle island of Bali provides perfect waves almost 365 days a year, which is why the best surfers from all over the world train there. The tropical backdrop and positive people make the island a great place to practice your photography skills.

Category: classic surfing, “Short Board” category
Photographer: Alexey Yezhelov, surf photographer from Bali.

Alexey Yezhelov. Portrait

Location: the photo was taken at the world famous surf spot Padang-Padang, which is located in Indonesia on the southernmost part of Bali island – Bukit peninsula. The spot became famous for its perfect, fast, left-handed, trumpeting wave. Such a powerful “pipe”, as on the photo, is due to the sharp reef bottom and the direction of “swells” (waves), which come here only two months a year – in August and September. World and local competitions of professional surfers were repeatedly held on this spot.

Patrick Jans. Photo in detail

In the photo: the surfer’s name is Patrick Jans – a simple guy from Holland, came to Bali on vacation and randomly chose Padang Padang for his evening ride.

When were the photos taken?

The photo was taken in the middle of April 2017. It’s actually a rare, unique “swell” that came in April because the seasonality for this spot is only a couple months a year and the peak falls in August-September.

I guess that’s why I have two other photographers in front of me, Everton Luiz (Brazil) and Ivan Gonzalo (Portugal), they always know when a good wave is coming here. I often cross paths with them in the water, but we have a rule: whoever swims to the line-up first is closer to the tube.

The technical side of things

I have several cameras in my arsenal for different tasks, but for water a peculiar kit is a Sony RX100 mark4 camera, an underwater shooting box from SeaFrogs and short flippers to get to the wave. My gear is inexpensive, so maybe not the highest quality and most durable: camera + box = $1500. The choice is due to the fact that I only have a couple years of experience and I don’t print cameras(smile), I wouldn’t want to ruin an expensive camera because of an accident.

Photo trick

The photo shows the classic Tube Riding water tube ride and photographers in the moment hunting for the surfer. Yes, definitely the surf photo depends not only on the beautiful wave and the nature of the place, but also on the professionalism of the surfer and his willingness to do tricks in front of you. Most of all I like to shoot people in “tubes” and tricks, such as flying out over the wave, such shots are a great luck.

How to make a photo perfect?

I would like to advise beginner surf photographers to pay attention to safety on the water: use a safety helmet, wetsuit, vest. Learn as much information as possible about the place and the wave from the locals, observe. Use the rules of etiquette and culture on the water. And, of course, proportion the size of the waves and your physical well-being. Surf photography is an extreme activity, which means there is an increased threat to life, so be careful.