Behind the Lens: Session, Chuck Patterson

It all started simple enough. Go to Eric’s in Camarillo and meet up with him and Chuck for some tow shoots the next couple of days. Well, the swell did not exactly pan out and I got the pleasure of spending a day along the Ventura Coast with Chuck shooting on the last day of summer. It was an amazing, Santa Ana day, clear and glassy through the afternoon. I honestly have known Chuck as more of a racer, but he is a shredding surfer. But what is so cool about the footage is that all though Chuck is ripping – with the sun behind him, the water glistening – it all looks so peaceful. It is moments like that where I really appreciate what I get to do. I hope that we can continue to make these videos and that you get as much from watching them as I do making them.

We drove from Break to Break looking for a new wave to surf, each one was a bit different and with the swell dropping off, time was a bit critical.

Some of these breaks are a bit famous for being less then friendly to cameras- and at C Street – a place where the parking lot is full, you can see it breaking from the freeway – one guy came up to me and said “great day for shooting” -

“yes” I replied”really nice day”

“Great, be sure to burn it when you are done shooting” he said back with a smile.

Could not believe it – was he under the delusion that no one knew where or how to get to C Street. There were five other photogs on the beach, one with a surfer magazine shirt on.

Chuck and I’s next shoot was his idea. Meet at dawn and shoot at the Dana Point harbor. Dana Point is a solid hour away from me. So I woke up at four, showered and headed to Dana Point to meet Chuck. He was right. Another dry, Santa Ana morning, the sun peeking over the mountains and we scored some of the most amazing sunrise footage I have ever shot.

The struggle on the shooting part was the voice in my head saying “don’t screw this up” and the large amounts of coffee in me struggling to keep the camera still for each pass Chuck did. The air was about 45 degrees outside and Chuck was cruising around in trunks and a rash guard.

These two shoots were really powerful to me. Here is this icon in the stand up paddle world, and in both shoots we capture something really simple. Just Chuck paddling and surfing with the sun creating the most amazing lighting ever. Nothing was really planned, all of it unfolded in the moment. In all honesty, we hoped on both shoots for big surf to really capture Chuck just charging it – and in both instances the big waves never really showed. But what did show up were really beautiful, simple moments. People make a big deal about how fit and powerful Chuck is, and let me tell you – he is. But in this session video, we capture a whole other side of Chuck that comes out in the simple act of him paddling across the glassy surface of Dana Point Harbor creating a solo wake. It is smooth, graceful, and powerful all at the same time. Anyways, I cannot wait to get this video out on the site. I think you all are going to really dig it (especially as storms move into So Cal and we all honker down for winter).