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Coffs Harbour today and a huge swell was pounding the beaches. The conditions were akin to a washing machine so I retreated to the protected Jetty Harbour. These fellows were having fun surfing right next to the normally quiet boat ramp, and the swell was huge. I haven't seen surfing in this spot in 5 years.

These are the first surf shots I have taken with the Canon 70-200. They're nothing much to speak of in themselves but the swell was worth photographing.

Ozi.

Obstacle surfing 1


Obstacle surfing 2


Shark biscuit
biscui

Love that last one!!

Yeah Bindii, the swell was amazing. I read on the Swellnet website that the swell recorded at the mouth of the Tweed river was 33 feet!! That's big. Cheers, Ozi.

Nice action ,hope the swell drops before the Coffs Harbour yacht race finish.

Jeff

ozimax wrote:Yeah Bindii, the swell was amazing. I read on the Swellnet website that the swell recorded at the mouth of the Tweed river was 33 feet!! That's big. Cheers, Ozi.

Whoa.. now I am extra glad... thats where we were supposed to be leaving from...

Bindii wrote:Whoa.. now I am extra glad... thats where we were supposed to be leaving from...

To go where, and on what??

Apologies Bindii, I just read the other post re new year's boat trip. Not a good idea as the swell is supposed to last for the next 4-5 days. You will just have to enjoy yourself on land. Happy new year!

Nice shots Fraser. Any potential sales?

No Mick, I've printed an awful lot of surf photos/enlargements for people and never made a cent profit on any! I'm a hopeless businessman!

G'day Ozimax
I remember surfing that beach when I was a kid visiting Grandma's place.

A question I have is why did you pick the 70-200?
I am trying to decide between the reach versatility of 100-400, or go the 20-200 2.8.
What are your thoughts, and why would(did) you go one way

Thanks
Waz

wazonthehill2 wrote:A question I have is why did you pick the 70-200?
I am trying to decide between the reach versatility of 100-400, or go the 20-200 2.8. What are your thoughts, and why would(did) you go one way
Thanks
Waz

Waz:

The 70-200 is an incredible allrounder. Until recently (when I added a 10-22mm) it was the only lens I had. It is a bit short for wildlife/surf and a tad long for portraits (on a crop body) but overall it's hard to beat. The build quality is tank-like, the AF is instant and it's sharp. For portraits it is a great allround lens.

As for the 100-400, I haven't used one so I can't really comment. Evidently it is a push-pull type lens which you may or may not like. I'm not sure if any one on this forum has one. It would make an excellent surf lens, especially with an extender for a lot less cash than a 400/500/600mm lens.

What sort of camera body do you have? If you are using a 1.6 crop camera the 400mm will give you (effectively) 600mm+ of tele zoom.

Hope this helps!

Ozi