I became interested in photography largely through my love of BMX bicycling. I would study the photos in the magazines, noticing the details, making mental note. I had no formal training, just a lot of experimentation, trial, and error. In retrospect, some formal study would have been useful. I imagine it might have shifted my focus a little bit, encouraged me to consider different aspects of the process that I did not pay attention to on my own.
After a few years working primarily in the BMX industry I got hired by Woodward Camp, a summer training camp for gymnastics, BMX, Skateboarding, and Inline Skating. I was their “Art Guy,” tasked with documenting any professional visitors, the camp in general, and producing all of the marketing materials.
Working for Woodward gave me a lot of practice—expanding my sensibilities and repertoire. I was still shooting film, but now someone else was paying for it. The photo to the left is of Andy MacDonald, a professional skateboarder. Andy always wore a yellow helmet. I now have a yellow helmet. Cosmic right?
I still shoot action photos sometimes, when the mood strikes. Scroll on to see some of my favorites.
An experimentation in blur. I’m often experimenting when I take photos. This is one of the times that it came out much as I had imagined. I wanted the photo to capture a sense of motion. I also like the somewhat monotone nature of the photo, the result of an overcast day paired with a light painted surface.
This photo is significant not for the strength of the photo per se, but because I built that giant pile of rubbish that he is riding on. After work each day for about a month I collected pallets and dismantled an abandoned building in order to construct that monstrosity. One day a co-worker came out while I was leveling the base of the ramp with strings and levels, and he said, “Now that’s engineering.” Interesting how some moments get stuck in your head.