Taking a photo or shooting a video is now an integral part of many paddlers’ SUP trips and getting good images when paddling can be tricky. Enthusiastic paddler and semi-professional photographer, Morten Bruhn from Infinity SUP Nordic has been turning his lenses towards the water shooting for his own trips and covering events here in Sweden. Eager to improve his SUP photography game Chris from TotalSUP sat down for a Swedish fika with Morten to find out how best to capture his trips
Drone image from Morten Bruhn
Hej hej Morten, welcome to TotalSUP!
Hej Chris, bra att vara här
Right, that’s my Swedish exhausted, let’s talk Infinity SUP, Stand Up Paddling and Images.
A picture says a thousand words, where shall we start?
The Infinity Everready at rest in Sweden
At the beginning! You are my local Infinity dealer, supplying my Blackfish fix last year and I have already featured some of your images on the site already so you’re not new here but this is the first time we’ve had a chat. Briefly, how did your paddling story start and then how did you get involved with Infinity SUP?
I found SUP nearly 6 years ago during the summer. The combination of water, exercise and nature made me fall in love with this sport and made a great complement to my other big interest, cycling.
After trying to stand up on a borrowed board I started to look around for my own, talking to some local paddlers and got hold of a couple of used boards, I was still figuring out what I needed to buy and what kind of board that suited my paddling.
While looking into the market I found the Infinity brand and got the opportunity to test out a board that met my expectations, a Blackfish of course!
What was it with that Infinity Blackfish that hit the spot for you?
I think it was the same things everyone is looking for in a SUP. The Blackfish I tried was fast and stable, I could use it in any conditions I would paddle in and even though it was an older board it was in great condition, very well made. That’s important.
Infinity Blackfish iPhone image – Chris Jones
It is and you know I’m a Blackfish fan, we met after that when you had already started with Infinity SUP Nordic, how did that happen?
After that, I sent an email to Dave Boehne at Infinity to figure out how to purchase some boards. I already had a small business specialising in sporting goods, primarily from my cycling background but also some general fitness equipment and accessories. Our conversation moved to the broader Nordic market and the lack of representation for Infinity SUP in the area and from that Infinity SUP Nordic was born. Now we are going on the fourth year of business and growing the presence in the Nordic countries, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland.
And I see that haven’t stopped with SUP, you are expanding your own skill base with foiling! How does the Infinity range suit the novice foiler?
I’m just dipping my toes in the wing foil sport as a complement to paddling. Infinity has a wide range of boards from novice to advanced and from small to big wings to meet all conditions of wind. In Europe, we complement with axis foil products.
Fantastic, good luck with the foiling! You’ve been a photographer for years now, were you looking for ways to combine your passions for paddling and capturing the perfect image from the beginning or is this something that has grown as you’ve become a more enthusiastic paddler?
All the beauty which I experience while paddling is hard to ignore and trying to capture that was something that came automatically for me from the start, being on the water is a great place to capture images. I’ve tried a lot of different ways to shoot and found different ways of capturing that perfect image while paddling.
But you’re not only taking shots on your trips, you’ve started to cover SUP events including last summer’s biggest event in Sweden, the 2023 Skrea Strand race where you met Mr TotalSUP himself.
Absolut! That was fun, a really busy day and I am glad that I did not have to spend as long in the water as Mathieu did!
Mr TotalSUP putting his smartphone to good use
Sporting events must present a different set of challenges to other photography jobs, what specific challenges are there when working at a SUP race?
Yes, they do but I like a challenge. Firstly, I try to understand the upcoming race course, checking to make sure there have been no changes to the courses advertised, at Skrea Strand I spent set time trying to find good angles that worked for the beach start and finish.
The main challenge with the start at Skrea was that it was pretty far out in the water and the first buoy turn was quite close to the start so the timeframe from capturing the start to the turn was short. You need to think ahead not just react to the race as it happens.
After the start, which is always good for dynamic images, my next focus is to try to capture all participants, not just focusing on the leaders. It is tempting to stay with the lead paddlers, but all the participants appreciate and deserve photos from their race. And sometimes the battles away from the leaders give more interesting images, capturing the achievements of as many paddlers as I can.
Finally, I try to find a good angle to capture the finish, this is often a big challenge in itself as you often want to shoot with a wide-angle lens and a zoom lens at the same time and from the side and the front. So it’s a bit of give and take, trying to anticipate what’s going to happen next and where the action is going to happen and trying to get some of the atmosphere at the event with a bit of candid shooting on all the things that happen around the venue.
To shoot these events is really fulfilling and my way to support the sport here in Sweden.
I must confess that although I own several cameras 99% of my photography is done on my phone and I am very interested in getting more out of that, over to you…
Phones are fantastic tools for photography now and I capture a lot of images with mine too.
Sometimes I am very organised, you might say very ‘Swedish’ and on those days, when I paddle, I decide beforehand what kind of paddle it is and what kind of expectations I have, balancing some training with some photography for example. Then I choose a camera accordingly.
I split my padding into four different categories of paddling:
Training, no time to stop for coffee or for shooting photos except at the start or finish.
Social paddle, guiding and socialising with many possibilities for stops and taking pictures.
A more relaxed paddle by myself when I can relax and recharge. Time to enjoy being on the board and capture images of whatever I see.
A photography paddle, specifically for images. This might be for business or working with a paddler who wants photos or video, sometimes with a drone.
I think that is simply being organised, I never think about which camera to take before paddling.
As you say, the phone today is an incredibly versatile tool for photography and some of your images of Marled last year were amazing, that was with your phone wasn’t it?
Bioluminescence in the sea near Gothenburg – Chris Jones
Yeah, I got very lucky!
And the processing power of your phone helped a lot I think.
Before you go out on your SUP wanting to shoot images it is always good to think about what you want to do, which might influence the camera or cameras you take with you. Do you want to capture video or photos? Who is the subject, is it you or someone paddling with you? Are you aiming for action photos or more scenic images of the landscape?
Having a plan can help to get better results but also some great images are from the moment, keep your camera or phone in a place where you can use it and capture those SUP memories!
Morten’s 360 degree camera mount and leash
Wise words, without getting too camera-geeky let’s run through some options for SUP Photography
Sure thing!
First, Smart Phones and their smart camera apps
I use my phone on most of my training sessions packed in a small dry bag. The other option is to have it in a waterproof casing but sometimes that can interfere with the quality of the image taken. The phone is a great option and provides good-quality photos but, because we keep them in a dry bag it can be slow and cumbersome to work with.
Always be ready to take an image
Good things: Everyone has one. Good quality photos and video. Very easy to use
Less good things: Cumbersome and slow to work with. Lack of quality in waterproof casing. Delicate to handle on water, touch screens and wet hands
Next, Action Cameras
My next tool is an action camera. These are, in general, a great solution for paddling. They are effective for video and still images and many of them are waterproof from the start.
Although they can take good still images when I use an action camera I only use it in video mode since capturing the moment while paddling is difficult. Afterwards, I select frames in the video and save them as the photo I was aiming for.
The biggest advantage with action cameras is the huge number of ways to use them, mounted directly on the board with an FCS mount or suction cup, using extension poles, bite/mouth mount, chest mount, head mount and more. Many cameras now use the same mounting system developed by a leading brand so it is really easy to get a camera in the place you want it to be.
How you mount the camera will largely impact the framing and what kind of shots you’ll get. All the different ways to use the camera have pros and cons and there’s a lot of experimenting to get the desired results.
GoPro image from Morten Bruhn
Good things: Tough and durable. Usually waterproof, sometimes without a case. Good photos if you want to take wide-angle photos of landscape and paddler. Easy to use. Depending on the mount you have it can be used to quickly capture photos or video. Good image stabilisation and often great apps to support the camera. can be inexpensive.
Less good: Depending on how you use it can be hard to change perspective. Because of the wide-angle lens, you need to be close to the subject. It can be hard to frame the shot, the board is on an angle the camera is on a different and so on.
Experiment with camera mounts to get your best shots
From the action camera, we move to the 360 Camera
The action camera has started to give way to the 360 degree camera, these can give some fantastic, unusual images if you take some time to learn how to get the best from yours.
Good things: Very easy to use. Good quality of video. Keyframes from videos are useable for social media. It is possible to do reframing afterwards. Easy to paddle and shoot at the same time. Good stabilisation and often great apps to support the camera.
Less good: Lenses are delicate. Not all brands are waterproof. To get good photos you need to use the dedicated photo mode. The quality of the video or photo can be limiting depending on use. Big file size and a need for fast and large SD cards.
Then we move onto full-size cameras and Digital SLRs
These are the tools I use when the end result has to be of the highest quality and the tools I use for my on-land photography business, I could talk for hours about full-size cameras but I do not often use them on the water. When I take the DSLR out onthe board it is mainly for content where I want quality and flexibility with the result. But using an expensive camera on a board can be stressful! The few times I have used it on the board I was sitting down in calm waters but I mostly shoot from shore with them. When paddling to a location I use double drybags secured to the board, just in case!
If you have nerves of steel this is one of the best solutions when the final image or video is the main goal.
Good things: Great quality of photos and video. Flexible with different lenses. Some are rain proof.
Less good: Fragile. Hard to shoot on the move. Not waterproof without a bulky housing. Bulky and heavy on the board. Expensive!
Morten is Everready to grab an image.
One of the most fun ways to capture SUP is using a drone
The drone is a great tool to capture video and photos but not while paddling. I mainly use the drone when a paddler wants video to analyse their technique on the board or for capturing scenic content for social media.
Good things: Easy to capture paddlers in action. Decent quality of photos and video. It can be very easy to frame the shot and follow the paddler. Good fun for the photographer and the paddler.
Less good: Have to consider restrictions, no-fly zones and local legislation, licenses etc. Expensive. Not waterproof. Harder to capture selfie material and not good for closeups.
Image – Chris Jones
That’s a great breakdown of the different camera types and the advantages and disadvantages of each. What advice do you have for anyone wanting to raise their SUP Photography game this summer?
Practise, practise and practise some more, and then you will learn how your cameras work best in the conditions you like.
Don’t be afraid to try something new or different, if it doesn’t work then you can always take another one.
Framing your shot is important, often a great image is spoiled by having something in the foreground or background that isn’t quite right that could have been avoided with a better angle.
Try to shoot close to action and do not be afraid to ask your paddling friends to go again if you think you missed the shot.
If you are shooting yourself from the board, try to elevate the camera a bit and move it as far as possible to the front, nobody wants an image looking up their own nose!
Make sure you always secure your gear on the board or on your person when you are paddling. Losing equipment is never good!
Tusen Tack, Morten. Great to read about your Infinity SUP journey and to get some help with taking better SUP Images. Hopefully we have a fantastic summer or paddling and racing ahead of us this year.
Morten Bruhn is the man behind Infinity SUP Nordic, the place to go for all things Infinity in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, you can see what the Nordic Speedfreeks are up to on his Instagram. He is also the man behind the camera at Brunsphoto and you can see his work on Instagram.
Infinity Surfboards are a family-owned and family-run business based in Dana Point, CA, USA with a range of SUP surfboards available through the Infinity website, including the new Everready.
You can see more Infinity Boards in action on their social media channels – Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.
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