A Quick Word With Scotland's Very Own Surf Photographer - Nick Law

how old are u?  27

where are u from?

The Highlands, Carrbridge.  But now i float about a bit (no pun intended hoho).

how did u get into photography? 

I've always liked cameras, I had an old film SLR which I learnt on when i was at school, I then studied Fine Art - Painting at Uni so I've always had an interest in aesthetics. Before shooting surfing my photos mainly stemmed from the fine art side and I had some photographs in art exhibitions and have some pics in the permanent collection at the Royal Scottish Academy.

how did you get into shooting surfing and how long have you been doing it?

I got into shooting surfing more seriously (at least the water side) when i went to indo the last time. I took a dive style water housing which kind of fitted a small SLR. After arriving I spent all my money on a dirt bike and had to survive for the other 5 months on selling pics to surfers. I got quickly board of cooking in the sun with a long lens from the beach/boat so did almost all from the water. 

So about 5 years now on the surf photo front.

tell me a bit about your water housing?

The housing that I'm currently using is one which I built. Taking the time to design and build a housing adds a whole other element to water photography. At one time that was the only way you could get in the water with a camera. Now it's available to anyone who can scrape together a few bob, however the charm isn't quite the same. The one which I'm using now is the second one i have built and allows complete manual control of the camera while in the water and saves about £2000

tell me about any shots you have had published?

I'm just really been making connections with the Magazines recently. I've had a few shots in surfer magazine from last summer in France and the contents page of wavelength in Dec was one of mine underwater at Bagpipes. I have lots of photos from this winter in Costa Rica which should hopefully be in wavelength shortly.

where is your favourite place to shoot? 

Honestly it's got to be in Scotland, it might not be cooking every day and the sun might not always be out, but when it comes together you have the sickest predictable reefs with crystal clear water.

who is the best surfer you have shot? 

I've not shot with many of the big international names but one water session springs to mind with Cornish Pros; Russell Winter, Alan Stokes and Mitch Corbett at in Scotland.

what do you think of the waves in your home country for shooting surfing? 

Tricky conditions wise, but easy waves to shoot when it all comes together. When it's on it's as good as anywhere in the world.

what ambitions do you have with your surf photography? 

We'll I'd love to do it full time and continue to travel, get well known for what i do and just keeping enjoying it like i do now i suppose.

which wave would you most like to shoot? 

It's scottish and I've shot there recently... but not speaking too much more about that...  I'd say No 10's, I keep missing it! I want to get some solid time up north with the local Scottish boys on local reefs thats what its about really if your from here.

what would be your ideal photo?    

Oooya, thats a hard one! I'd like to get something set up on a reef underwater with a tripod type fixture and remote flashes, I've never seen that kind of thing done before. My housing was built to accommodate a wireless flash trigger so I'm keen to get onto that once i've made the flash housings. 

Thurso Harbour Centre

Check out the plans to develop a facility at Thurso harbour which could be utilised by surfers and other sports clubs, including viewing and changing facilities: http://thursoharbourcentre.org.uk/

EuroSurf 2011

EuroSurf will take place in Bundoran, Ireland from Friday 23rd September to Sunday 2nd October 2011.

Anyone who is interested in participating in the Scotland team please send an email, with subject "EuroSurf" to: markboydsurf@hotmail.com

All participants must be eligible to participate for Scotland as stated in our consititution and those with the highest ranking in their chosen category at the Scottish National Championships will get priority into the team

Categories are:  Open, Ladies, Senior, Masters, Bodyboard, Longboard

Note that there is no Junior category in EuroSurf but we are looking into sending a junior team to The Atlantic Watersport Games, Interceltic watersports competition which will take place in North Devon, from July 23rd to 28th, 2011.

Teams will be sent to either of these international competitions subject to there being enough interest from participants

A Quick Word With Our 2011 Scottish Ladies Champion - Dianne Ripoll

how old are you and how long have you been surfing?
I'm 25 and I've been surfing for 4 years

where did you learn? was it difficult at first?
I learnt to surf at Aberdeen beach and it was really hard at first...took me months to be able to stand up and I got really frustrated. I would go out whenever there were waves and used to go visit (my boyfriend) Allyn in Edinburgh so we would go surf down there a lot too and it was down there that I first rode down the line on a wave.

what is your favourite place to surf?
Pipe in Fiji, and also Sandend and Point of Ness in Scotland

how do you cope with the cold in Scotland?
The cold weather in Scotland totally sucks but some of the best surfs I've had have been when it's been snowing and the water is freezing… I've got a really good excel suit, gloves and boots for when it's really cold and of course, couldn't go out without the hood

where do you surf mostly?
I mostly surf Aberdeen because that's where I live but if there's waves on the north coast
then I go up to Sandend and Fraserburgh

do you travel much? Do you think travelling outside Scotland helped progress your surfing?
In 2008, went travelling and surfing for 5 months - surfed in Bali, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Hawaii and California and I think it definitely helped my surfing

why do you think there are a lack of female surfers in Scotland?
I think there is a lack of females in the line up in Scotland because surfing here isn't very glamorous and it is really cold.  You need to be really committed, surfing as much as possible all winter.  . I guess a lot of girls get put off at an early stage with the cold and the snow but if they would just persist they would get hooked like I did!

have you always been interested in competitive surfing?
I used to play tennis competitively so when I started surfing I definitely wanted to try and become Scottish Ladies Champion

how does it feel to be a Scottish Champion?
It feels really good to have won this time as I've entered it a few times now

whats your next ambition with your surfing?
It was definitely an ambition achieved, but like I say I'm not the best in Scotland until I've beaten the best so I still have a few awesome ladies to beat before I can fully achieve that ambition.  I'll keep pushing myself to get better and surf better waves but for now

what would your message to any young girls in Scotland who want to get into surfing?
My message to any girls out there trying surfing out to keep persevering. It's not easy at the start but it is so worth it once you can do it and don't feel intimidated by any guys in the line up - just show them you can surf too!  Any girls in Scotland wanting to get into surfing should get in touch. I'm going off to do my instructor course this week and I'll be doing lessons!

Dee is on Facebook for any girls who want more information

Wave North Beach Day & Scottish Surfing Federation Fundraiser

Our Wave North Beach Day & Scottish Surfing Federation Fundraiser was a great success, with over 30 kids attending for surf lessons and others coming down to enjoy the beach games which involved volleyball, cricket, beach flags and a sandcastle competition.

A huge thank-you to those who gave up their day to come down and help us out in particular the staff at Caithness Horizons, Helen, Marion, Joan and Bethany.  Also a big thank-you to local surfers, their partners and Scottish Surfing Federation members who gave a hand too - Pete Fenwick, Roz MacLeod, Ali Coghill, Chris Clarke, Sheila Findlayson, Phil, Tamara, Laura (im sure I've forgotten someone please let me know)

And finally another thank you to Michael Heddle of Thurso and also to Idris @ Surf Wrath for helping us out with kit for the day - it would not have been possible without your generosity, and hopefully as a result we have some surf stoked kids in Thurso.  Should any of the kids who attended on the day be interested in trying surfing again equipment can be rented from Mike (obtain contact details from Tempest Cafe) and Idris http://www.surfwrath.co.uk/.  And if you do go surfing - be safe! ask advice from other surfers at the beach about conditions, don't go surfing without parental supervision and stay within your depth until a sufficient level of competence has been reached.

Boydie

ColdPro

Our 2010 Scottish National Championships finalists (with Scotty Main taking the place of Georgie Watt) in February were invited to attend the first annual ColdPro surf and music festival in Ireland from the 30th of May - 5th of June.  Follow the progress of the Scots and find out more information about the event by clicking on the link below.

WQS

Well April has been a very busy month for surfing in Scotland. On the back of one of the best winters on the North Coast in recent times, the O'Neill Cold Water Classic once again rolled into town with some of the world's best surfers and this year they scored!  The waves were epic as I'm sure you are well aware by now.  This year we had two SCO competitors in the competition - Scottish Champion Chris Noble, and Mark Boyd filled Scottish #2 Mark Cameron's spot as he was unable to attend due to work commitments. Both Boydie and Chris were astounded by the paddle fitness and heat tacticts in play during the heats at Thurso-East which made even catching a decent set wave a major task in its own, however the boys both got a couple scores on the board and did Scotland proud.