Behind the Photo: Dec/Jan Photo Annual

The Dec/Jan issue of Alliance Wake features Wesley Jacobsen on the cover from the bumper rail at Valdosta Wake Compound.

Wesley called me when he first put this rail in amping about trying to get a shot on it. At this point the only issue left for the year was Photo Annual and he really wanted to get a photo in the issue. With everything going on I wasn’t able to go shoot with Wes till after Surf Expo. I finally made the three hour trek up to VWC from Orlando and was pumped to see the rail in person. Wes had just planted some yellow flowers to compliment the red bumpers since he knew I was coming to shoot. The weather was overcast all day, so we waited till the evening to shoot hoping for a small break in the clouds. Going into this we already knew what trick and angle we wanted to shoot it from.

Here is one of the first shots we took. The sun was still higher and I was still trying to dial in the angle. It was important that the shot had Wes on the second to last bumper. This way he wasn’t too far away from the camera (small), but also didn’t have part of his board off the bumpers yet.

A couple tries later Wes decided to mix it up by holding the handle in his back hand. I also wanted to see what it would look like shooting a little more head on with the rail and higher. While it looks cool, it was getting busy with the trees, the cable, and the cement rail that is behind the bumper rail.

I went back to the low angle and the sun was setting fast. With every shot the sky had a different look, which helped bring diversity to every photo.

This shot was a solid keeper, but the flash is a bit distracting in the background with how bright it is.

This photo was a contender but I didn’t like how his hand was starting to get hidden by the spray and his board.  Most people would probably never notice that his hand is getting cut off but I got Wes to go for one more.

This is the photo that we ended up liking the most. It happened to be the last one from the session as well.

Wes ended up sessioning this rail for almost two hours this night. I sent it to everyone back at the office and they were into this photo as a cover option. It was sick to have something so unique run on the cover of Photo Annual and show just how far rail riding has come.

Camera: Canon 1D Mark IV

Lens: Canon EF 11-24mm F/4L

ISO: 200

Shutter: 1/1600

F-Stop: F/4

Flashes: 2 AlienBees B1600

Stands: Kupo C Stands