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Friday, March 29, 2024

From a surfer’s point of view

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Crystal-clear water gives way underneath the surfboard as a palm tree-lined beach comes into view on the horizon and a light blue chandelier of water curls overhead.

Previously, this point of view was only available to surfers on the water.

Now countless videos of a surfer’s point of view are a click away on the Internet largely due to the advent of highly portable, high-quality waterproof cameras like those made by GoPro.

Local photographer, videographer and surfer Jason Keller Hudson said the accessibility of these small waterproof cameras has helped expand the amount of surfing footage from the water due to the camera’s relatively cheap cost, increasing video quality and viewing tendencies.

“Water videography is a whole other expensive setup and it would easily cost $7,000,” Hudson said. “… A lot of these videos are only viewed on the Internet so for quality’s sake it just has to look good on a computer screen. The most fascinating thing for me is the image quality on those cameras because, while the frame rate is not the same, it is pretty much the same resolution as a cinema camera.”

Hudson recently took a surf trip to the Dominican Republic with Wrightsville SUP owner Jarrod Covington, and Wrightsville Beach native and professional surfer Ben Bourgeois. The group documented the entire trip on a few GoPro cameras.

Bourgeois started using a GoPro camera one year ago and said his favorite method for getting a water shot is attaching the camera to a pole and holding it behind him while riding a wave. While the end result may be an interesting video to share, Bourgeois said it is also a good way to improve at the sport.

“You can critique yourself and that is one of the best ways to work on your surfing, just watching yourself,” Bourgeois said. “You have no idea of what you look like out there, but the GoPro is helping people get footage and see what they really look like.”

While he may not like the elimination of the videographer, Hudson said the increasing number of people making their own surf videos and clips actually helps.

“In the world of action sports it is really good not to have to rely on a photographer or videographer — and that is not always good for me — but from the perspective of an athlete they can be their own documentarian,” Hudson said. “It drives the market and makes everyone else work harder. … It is really fun to see what everyone is doing with these cameras.”

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