JPG Magazine: Stories: My Precious: In need of a faster camera

In need of a faster camera

I've always been surround by action sports, mainly skateboarding. Living in southern California, it's just part of the culture. I was introduced to it at a young age and it will forever be a part of my life. I remember the stories my uncle used to tell me about the contests he used to compete in when he was my age. Back then, it was slalom or 360 contests. Now it's who can throw the gnarliest trick down the 15 stair handrail and up/down the euro gap. I've met a lot of pros in my day and interacted with a few people from Transworld Skateboarding Magazine. I'm always curious to see who's doing what or where the new spot is. I was always intrigued by shooting sequences. Before digital, power winders and motors were used. I always wanted to get a set up like that but never had enough money. I remember going into the local camera shop and they were selling a used set up from famed skateboard photographer Grant Brittain. I can only imagine the amount of drool that came out of my mouth that day. I went back many times just to look at it. I wish that I would have had the chance to own that machine, not only to take great sequences but to own a piece of skateboard nostalgic history.

Now, in the digital age, finding cameras that shoot multiple FPS is a breeze. With the addition of memory cards and being able to view the pictures immediately, it just makes the process that much easier. Shooting 8 FPS with film requires a lot of changing rolls, but digital is only limited to your camera and the amount of memory you have.

I have a friend who is an action sports producer working with top pros from all over the globe in all fashions of extreme sports. He usually has a photographer on call, but not this day. I received the call and was informed that Josh Kasper, professional skateboarder, was itching to throw some hammers down the Carlsbad gap. (if you know skating, you know this gap) He said that he was in need of a shooter and I told him I was in. The only problem is that I shoot with a Canon Rebel XT, not exactly the ideal camera for shooting this type of action. So, we arrived at the spot, set up and our skater was ready to rock. He practiced a few times and got ready to start throwing down the big tricks. I tried my hardest to get the tricks but was unable to only being able to shoot 3 FPS. We actually had to do some tricks twice to get an acceptable sequence. Normally this would work, but the sun was setting and it completely changed the lighting and shadows. All in all, we got some decent shots and some good video.

Josh Kasper-heelflip indy down the Cbad gap

I'm just waiting for the go signal, and I'll soon have an 8 FPS camera in my hands.

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