ISLE OF WIGHT SURF PHOTOGRAPHY WITH SOUL
Welcome to the Isle of Wight Surf Photography blog and website of West Wight photographer Jason Swain. As well as occasional ramblings on all things surf related, the website is designed to be a showcase of my surf photography & promote the beauty of surfing the Isle of Wight and around the English coastline. The Majority of photos are from my local breaks of Freshwater Bay and Compton Bay. It’s also grown over the years to include a few product reviews (surf or photography related), some of my favourite surf related videos and also photos of Kitesurfing and SUP and other water-sports that take place on the IOW when we’re not surfing.
The best surfer out there is the one having the most fun
If in doubt, paddle out.
There is not one right way to ride a wave
Big Tuesday (part one)
Big Tuesday by Jason Swain. Well the light wasn’t as good for photography as during the last big swell but the waves were every bit as good, and at times during the day maybe even bigger. Various reports of broken boards and leashes during the day, bodies dragged...
Dawn Patrol (part two)
I'm not sure how many parts there will be in total 🙂 Dawn Patrol (part tow) by Jason Swain. And it's photo blog number four from the swell that keeps on giving! Surfed some lovely clean waves today (wednesday) but no photos, these are still shots from the mornings...
Dawn Patrol at Freshwater Bay (part one)
Dawn Patrol by Jason Swain. The third photo blog in as many days with a few photos from this mornings low tide surfing at Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight. Lots more to come... All photos shot with the Sigma 5o-500mm telephoto lens on a Canon 6d camera body, mostly...
Al’s last wave
Another day and another decent swell at Freshwater Bay by Jason Swain. It's always a struggle thinking of new themes and titles for these surfing photo blogs, especially when they are pretty much always about the same thing (surfing on the Isle of Wight) but todays...
Surfing the last day of the 2013/14 Winter at Freshwater Bay
Surfing The last day Winter at Freshwater Bay by Jason Swain. Some photos from a day that offered waves from first light to last light, sometimes huge and sometimes perfect, but always pretty good. These were all shot around 1pm at Freshwater Bay just before i got in...
Before Hercules
Before Hercules by Jason Swain. We've had such a run of storms and swell lately that they are tending to all merge into one, but this one was easier to remember as it was the last swell to hit the Isle of Wight before 'Hercules' arrived. An early morning session at...
Freshwater Bay Surfing Panorama
Freshwater Bay Surfing Panorama by Jason Swain. A little bit of surf action from this morning (Sunday 5th January) at Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight. They weren't the greatest waves and it wasn't the greatest light, but they were having fun surfing and I enjoyed...
Low tide surfing at Freshwater Bay
Low tide surfing at Freshwater Bay photo blog by Jason Swain. A few shots of Tom Court, Sam Scadgell and friends having a bit of low-tide fun at Freshwater Bay this afternoon. The swell had really dropped off from the sizeable chunks that were coming through in the...
The Solo Surfer
The Solo Surfer by Jason swain. A little photo blog from the other day at Freshwater Bay, when the wind stopped blowing so hard, just for a few hours, and one solo surfer (Will Rome) managed to get in and grab a few waves before it all got onshore and blown out again....
The Longboarder
The Longboarder by Jason Swain. A lone longboarder (Will Rome) enjoying some winter groundswell all by himself at Freshwater Bay earlier this week. Shot with the Sigma 50-500mm telephoto lens on the Canon 6D camera body. Exif Data = f/8.0 at 1/1000 287mm iso500 Took...
SUP at Freshwater Bay
A little photo blog featuring an unknown SUP at Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight earlier this week by Jason Swain. I spent a few hours at the bay on Monday waiting for the tide to drop and the right hand break to start working after a big high tide and 2-3m swell....
Wild Wight Water – Kite-surfing at Freshwater Bay
Wild Wight Water - Kite-surfing at Freshwater Bay by Jason Swain. Extreme Kitebaording action from earlier today at Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight, before the St Jude Storm hit. Shot with the Sigma 50-500mm telephoto lens on a Canon 6d camera body. Exif data =...
September Swells – The first swell of the 2013/14 winter surfing season on the Isle of Wight
September Swells by Jason Swain. "It's a cliche with Isle of Wight surfers, but every year we wait through endless long summer months of flat seas and occasional onshore days of wind-slop, dreaming of the September swells arriving to unload our shores. Created by...
September Sessions – Surfing on the Isle of Wight.
September Sessions - Surfing on the Isle of Wight by Jason Swain. It's a bit of a cliche with UK surfers in general and I think Isle of Wight surfers in particular, but every year we wait through the doldrums of all those endless long summer months of clam seas,...
Guest Wetsuit Review
Wetsuits for summer and winter When it comes to choosing the perfect wetsuit, there are so many things to consider and look for in a design that’s it’s easy to get confused as to which one is best for you. Veterans of the wave will know that when you’re looking for a...
The last swell of a long Winter on the Isle of Wight?
The last swell of a long Winter on the Isle of Wight? by Jason Swain. I don't know about you, but for me the winter of 2013 seemed like it would never end, and whilst for most people in the UK that was seen as very bad thing, but for surfers here on the Isle of Wight...
West Wight Wipeout
West Wight Wipeout by Jason Swain. Alan Reed practising his diving skills during a recent swell at Compton Bay, West Wight. Just one shot taken from a little series of photos of surfing when things don't quite go according to plan... Shot with the Sigma 50-500mm...
Compton Surf Check
Compton Surf Check by Jason Swain. Plenty more waves arrived on the Isle of Wight with the new swell today, but this photo was taken on the Easter weekend at Compton Bay It's part of my latest series of photos, where i'm looking a bit more at the people who surf and...
Surfing at Compton Beach
Surfing at Compton Beach by Jason Swain. A Telephoto Surfing Vertorama (Vertical Panorama) shot at Compton Beach in the West Wight during the great swell we had over the 2013 Easter weekend. You can see the Dorset coast around Swanage (also known as the Isle of...
Big Easter Swell at Compton Bay, Isle of Wight (part two)
Big Easter Swell at Compton Bay, Isle of Wight by Jason Swain. Yesterday i promised some photos without Alan Reed in them, so here's a little update with part two of my photo blog from yesterdays 'Big Easter' swell at Compton (but if you look carefully he's still...
Wave of the day – Big Easter Swell on the Isle of Wight
Wave of the day by Jason Swain. Bad timing for me to get another cold just as a pumping swell arrived on the Isle of Wight for the Easter bank holiday weekend, and although i've surfed through a few colds and lurgies this winter, something about this one made me stay...
Snow Waves on the Isle of Wight.
Snow Waves on the Isle of Wight by Jason Swain. A series of photos from the snow episode that took place on the Isle of Wight in early March 2013. The south of the Island got a good covering of snow (up to 10cm) but blown by ferocious north-easterly winds, there were...
Soulsurfing – Movement and Composition
Soulsurfing - Movement and Composition by Jason Swain. Continuing my recent theme of trying to create surfing photos that have a little bit more to them, some sense of the time and place they were taken. A silhouetted flock of passing guls, a setting sun, a lone...
One last wave before the sun goes down at Freshwater Bay.
One last wave before the sun goes down by Jason Swain. Taken from last nights photo-shoot with WightPod at Freshwater Bay. The subject is my mate Ian Pacey catching one last wave before the sun finally disappeared over the horizon. There were tricky shooting condtions...
Snow and Surf on the Isle of Wight
You should have STAYED yesterday by Jason Swain. It's not often we get the combination of Snow and Surf on the Isle of Wight, and even less often when its good clean solid groundswell at Freshwater Bay. So with limited time on my hands because of work commitments i...
Cold water surfing – Between a rock and a cold place
Cold water surfing - Between a rock and a cold place by Jason Swain. Another from yesterdays winter surf session at Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight. Taken shortly after i got out from surfing myself. Standing on the rocks we call the cabbage patch on the right hand side...
Winter Surfing at Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight.
Winter Surfing at Freshwater Bay by Jason Swain. Ten frame panorama of surfing at Freshwater Bay. Shot whilst standing out on the cabbage patch (reef) whilst still in my wetsuit soon after getting out myself. There's still snow on the hills and it was pretty chilly...
Kitesurfing Isle of Wight – Tom court in action at Compton Bay
Kitesurfing Isle of Wight by Jason Swain. Local kite-boarder Tom Court doing his thing at Compton Bay on the Isle of Wight back in September 2012. Shot with the Sigma 50-500mm telephoto lens (at 75mm) on a Canon 7d camera body, exif data = f6.3 at 1/500 Kitesurfing...
Surfing on the Isle of Wight – YSHBHY #5
Surfing on the Isle of Wight - YSHBHY #5 by Jason Swain (Alt title = You should have been here yesterday in February 2010!) So, its January 2013 now, nearly three years later, and I've finally found the time to go back and have a look at all the shots i took over 5...
Shooting from the Cliffs – Surf photography at Freshwater Bay
Shooting from the Cliffs - Surf photography at Freshwater Bay by Jason Swain. I stopped by at Freshwater Bay on my way home from indoor cricket last Sunday to do a quick surf check and spotted two very lucky people in the sea, who were the only ones out there just as...