SickShots Blog

In my last post I talked about possibly bringing back some ‘old’ classic sessions and I decided to start with this one- Waimea Bay, February 2006.  This is a huge gallery with over 900 photos of one of the best days I have seen at Waimea in a long time.  There were closeout sets and some great performances.  It is worth a look and especially appropriate as the North Shore season is sneaking up on us.  This photo is of my friend Cole. Dude just charges.  I have seen him take some serious beatings out there and make some incredible drops.  He is definitely one of my favorite ‘unknown’ big wave riders on the North Shore.  Check out the boil just in front of him on this wave.  That is one massive wall.  

This session was the one where Jamie Sterling caught one of the largest Waimea waves of his career that I shot from the cliff and the photo was used in his XXL bid for ‘best performace’.  He deservedly won the award in 2006 and continues to be one of the world’s best big wave hellman and one heck of a nice guy.  

Let’s hope we get some Waimea Bay action this year and maybe even an ‘Eddie’ - that would be epic!

The old Sickshots site is going to be trashed starting tomorrow (it is so large it may take all weekend).  There has been plenty of warning for you to get your SickShots, so please don’t come crying to me about “dude, I forgot to order my photo!”  Sorry, it’s time to move on. You’ve only had 6 months!

Having said that, I have waited so long for all of you because I hate trashing your memories.  Some people come back months or years later and ask about photos.  There have been some epic moments over the years and I thank you for letting me be a part of them.  Waimea, Padang Padang and the Mentawais come to mind right away.  These are my favorite places to shoot and I have fond memories of every single session I have ever shot at these places.  Maybe I will have to reload some of the better sessions on the new site?  Hmm…that’s a good idea.  Now if I just had time.

I was feeling kind of sentimental looking at the old site.  I remember building it during a surf charter aboard the ‘Pelagic‘ in the Mentawais several years ago.  After shooting all day, uploading heaps of photos and then showing the guests a slideshow, I would stay up until the wee hours of the night and listen to Gansta rap and bust it out.  I finished the entire thing in 5 nights.  The new version of Sickshots took 5 weeks with help from two programmers- and it is still not finished!  The truth that no site is ever finished.  There is always something you can do better or want to add.  Completion of websites is an elusive goal for sure. 

Some of you have criticized the new site because it lacks the simplicity of the old site.  I get it.  I guess I got bored with the old look and wanted to bring some new features.  A good example is the automation of the buying process so you can now get your photos right away.  It is also more of a signature site for my work. I decided not to become a free for all site with a lot of photographers contributing.  I just wanted to do my thing and keep it simple.  The old ‘SickShot of the day’ is now on the blog and I haven’t changed it lately because I haven’t shot much surf in the past few weeks.  When I am in Hawaii starting in November, expect that to blow up everyday!

I like the new site and know it can improve, still looking at the old one I can’t help but feel some sort of passing..RIP my old friend.  Here’s to all the epic sessions that you held on your server and here’s to you my loyal fans and supporters and special thanks to all of you that bought photos over the years from that site.

Hey, this is not the end of SickShots, but the start of a new era.  Welcome aboard!

Cheers!

Sixty and still going strong…Dr.Robert Johr is not afraid to admit his age and why should he?  He is in great shape and surfs Malibu like a champion!  Every year he makes the trip from his home in Florida to surf his favorite wave- Malibu.  Today I was lucky enough to shoot him with all the conditions cooperating on his birthday! Pretty good stuff.  This guy is as stoked as the little groms running around in the sand when it comes to long right peelers and he got his fair share for sure. 

If you would like to hire me for a session just contact me through the website.  It is a lot cheaper to hire me than to buy photos off the site.  Dr. Johr received a couple hundred shots in just 2 hours (including a few protraits and scenery photos).  Compare that to $25-$40 per photo and you can see that hiring is the way to go.  Even cheaper if you get a few friends together.  My rate is only $150 per hour (minimum 2 hours) and I will usually do both water and land shots depending on conditions.  

Again, thanks to Dr. Johr and Happy Birthday my friend!