As of lately, I have been looking at lots and lots of surfing photos...usually during class which probably wasn't the smartest of choices. Anyway, I keep getting blown away by the pictures these people are able to produce and some of them aren't even pictures of people surfing, but of empty waves. It makes me wonder what it must be like to be them. Imagine traveling to places like Bali, Fiji, Hawaii, Australia or South Africa to take pictures of people surfing. Imagine the people you would meet, the things you would see. There are photos of the bluest water I have ever seen. Photos of surfers dropping into massive waves. Photos of waves with perfect barrels. I can't get over it.
During the summer, some friends and I went out to La Jolla to go kayaking and met a surfing photographer. He had everything, Canon Rebel XTi, the underwater housing and everything. He told us he's had pictures in Surfer Magazine and had gone to professional competitions all over the world and was going to Bali the next week. What a life! If I had my way, that is exactly what I would want. To this day, I regret not asking for that guy's name, but whereever he is right now, whether he's shooting photos of Kelly Slater in Australia, random waves in Bali or groms down at La Jolla, I think you are living the life.
I sit here wondering if what I would do if I ever had the chance to do that.
At the personal level, I would jump at the chance without a second thought. I would love to photograph surfers all over the world and everything in between.
But at the practical level (AKA the buzzkill level), it just doesn't seem plausible. With no solid salary, I don't think I would be able to keep up with camera maintenance, traveling, lodging and things like that, unless I was hired by some magazine or company or was simply an extremely well known freelance photographer.
So do I take the practical road or follow my bliss? That question seems to come up a lot lately. Do I do what will make me successful or happy? As of right now, I don't even know what I want to major in. I'd like to major in English, but I have a feeling my Mom will think it won't take me anywhere and I should be a bio major or a pharmacist or something. Then I consider what one of my teachers told me: Do what you want, not what your parents what. They have lived their lives already. So do I try to become an English major despite what I think my Mom will think or do I keep trying to find some way of getting a practical major that will make me successful like Biology, Chemistry or Econ? I mean, I'm almost done with my first year of college and I'm still in the dark as to what I want to do.
Practicality or Bliss?
Oh yeah, that picture up there is a picture I submitted to Transworld Surf just on impulse, we'll see if anything comes out of it.
Plus here are some awesome surf photographers I found and think you might want to check out:
http://www.sparkesphoto.com/meniscus/meniscus.htm
http://www.clarklittlephotography.com/main/pages/home (favorite, highly recommend)
http://www.scottaichner.com/
wildwombat
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