Todd Glaser

Alex Gray is not afraid

2011-12-29T19:14:00.000-08:00

http://www.surfermag.com/features/top-10-stories-of-2011/

Photo of the year

2011-12-28T16:25:00.000-08:00

Earlier this year I was lucky enough to goto Fiji for one of the biggest swells of the year down there. I shot this photo of Bruce Irons and it is up for photo of the year among quite a few amazing images. Check it out and vote for the one you like the most

You can click the link here:

http://apps.facebook.com/offerpop/Contest.psp?c=56413&u=15482&a=146623488729946&p=12524098855&v=Entry&id=166339&rest=1

Surfer Poll BTS

2011-12-28T09:06:00.000-08:00

Mini and Dane post win for best web clip.

inspiration 2

2011-12-22T13:01:00.000-08:00

Chris Orwig. Santa Barbara train tracks..2008

Sometimes all you need for a bit of inspirtation is to look back on old images and think about the day that you took them. This image of friend and teacher of photography and life Chris Orwig was shot while he was setting up a portrait of Joe Curren for his new book. Chris was kind enough to bring me a long to watch him do his thing and help out. My goal was to be sure the type 55 polaroids didn't get run over by the train and keeping the lightmeter handy.Needless to say a train came and blew them all away, but we found them!..If you get a chance, take a look at his site and see some of the work he's created. One of my biggest inspirations in the photo world and world of life.

www.chrisorwig.com

Derek Dunfee

2011-12-22T12:52:00.000-08:00

Derek Dunfee..2007

behind the scenes at surfer poll

2011-12-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

grant ellis shooting kelly slater. surfer poll2011

inspiration

2011-12-18T22:44:00.001-08:00

steve sherman. Surfer poll 2011

end of the roll

2011-12-18T22:27:00.000-08:00

window display in Solana Beach

2011-12-17T12:12:00.000-08:00

journey of a lifetime

2011-12-15T21:29:00.000-08:00

see more here:

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/across-the-pacific/

smile

2011-12-12T00:19:00.001-08:00

jenna. sf 2011

Gabriel Medina

2011-12-11T11:47:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Medina. Pipe masters 2011

Jamie Obrien at Pipe

2011-12-10T00:37:00.000-08:00

JOB..late afternoon pipe. 2011

Pipeline Masters..day 1

2011-12-09T01:28:00.000-08:00

CJ Hobgood..last heat of the day.

Sunday football with Quik and Balaram

2011-12-04T10:44:00.000-08:00

Balaram Stack Quik ad from Mexico...I still like the Chargers more.

hawaii time

2011-12-04T00:06:00.000-08:00

I apologize for the lack of updates lately..It's been a very busy week in Hawaii since arriving just after Thanksgiving. I worked on a really cool shoot for Quiksilver with some of their key surfers as well as a campaign for a new headphone company which should be out next summer. Shoot all day, edit all night..A lot of images, a lot of editing, no complaints. For now I leave you with this image from the first day I arrived. Big, North Swell Pipeline, 3 guys out..Howling North East winds.

Behind the scenes Tahiti

2011-11-17T12:11:00.000-08:00

At times when documenting trips I find what is going on behind the scenes to be more interesting than the waveriding itself. On this particular trip that didn't quite apply...the waves we had were by far the scariest things I had ever seen. The night we flew into Tahiti happened to be mere hours before one of, if not, the heaviest sessions took place at Teahupoo. While everyone was trying to sleep a couple hours before the sun came up. Beren Hall and Taylor Steele were up nearly the whole night prepping for the shoot ahead.

Billabong Pro Security house. The end of the Road Tahiti. 1am. August 2011

Hangs upon Nothing surf trailer

2011-11-13T14:51:00.000-08:00

Hangs Upon Nothing - teaser from Jeremy Rumas on Vimeo.

16mm film, Indonesia, Mikala Jones as the guide and all the music selfmade..Looks like the start of a great surf film..check it out!

he did it~!

2011-11-06T17:56:00.001-08:00

the asp messed up....

2011-11-06T09:58:00.000-08:00

as read on surfermag.com

While the ASP has certainly been blessed with luck as far as scoring waves recently, they have not been blessed with significant mathematical ability. As it turns out, Slater is still one heat win away from becoming the 2011 World Champion, and Owen Wright can technically take the crown. According to a press release from the ASP (don’t worry, we double-checked their info this time) Owen can take the title from Slater if he wins the Search in San Francisco, and then continues on to win at Pipeline, all without Kelly making another heat. The odds aren’t exactly stacked in Owen’s favor, but perhaps stranger things have happened.

In the most epic possible scenario, according to the ASP press release, “If Kelly fails to advance out of another heat this season, and Owen wins in San Francisco and Pipeline, the two will tie at best of nine, eight, seven, etc. events, and the 2011 ASP World Title will be decided in a “Surf Off.”’ Sounds pretty theatrical, doesn’t it? Ocean Beach residents are currently trying to get the champagne out of the sand and back in the bottles, because it looks like this race is still at least one heat away from coming to an end.

Ke11Y!

2011-11-03T07:17:00.000-07:00

For the past two years I have been given the oppurtunity to spend quite a bit of time with Kelly chasing swells and documenting the waves he loves to ride...This image which was chosen as one of the two images to celebrate his 11th world title was taken while in Fiji in April this year! I want to first thank Kelly for allowing me to come on the trip and Quiksilver for putting me on the last minute flight to arrive the morning of this day!!! Along with this image, we scored a couple spreads and cover all from the same day!
Congrats KS!!!!

Dunfee and Rusty in Puerto

2011-10-11T09:29:00.000-07:00

A couple pano's from the US Open

2011-10-09T14:18:00.000-07:00

My friend and diehard film shooter Eric Warner was kind enough to let me borrow his xpan during the US OPen this year. I love the extra wide look you get without the distortion. You can check out some of his work on his blog at:

goneclamming.tumblr.com/

finals:awards photographers

crowds

dane

noah beschen

more crowds

photographers

Alex Knost

2011-10-09T14:08:00.000-07:00

alex knost. mainland mexico

winter is coming

2011-10-04T17:08:00.001-07:00

Taylor Paul on a borrowed board at Mavericks. November 2008.

Daphnes ad

2011-10-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

Fiji 2011

more amsterdam

2011-10-02T13:27:00.001-07:00

Hurley pro lowers snapshots

2011-10-02T13:11:00.000-07:00

hi-5's

a wall

morning lineup

ks turn

fold out cover of Kelly Slater in New Surfer Mag

2011-09-30T16:27:00.000-07:00

Kelly at Restaurants. July 2011

del mar racetrack

2011-09-25T08:33:00.000-07:00

del mar races. August 2011.

bookstore in amsterdam

2011-09-24T08:58:00.000-07:00

amsterdam 2011 on ilford HP5.

Editing day today

2011-09-23T13:24:00.000-07:00

Bruce Irons Wallpaper

2011-09-22T17:19:00.001-07:00

The Wild Ones

2011-09-22T12:29:00.000-07:00

"THE WILD ONES" New Artworks by Artist Susan Wickstrand from Susan Wickstrand on Vimeo.

Above is a video of collaborative work that I was very fortunate and lucky to be a part of with Susan Wickstrand Roche..Check it out!

Nouvelle Vague offices NY

2011-09-22T12:05:00.000-07:00

last minute portfolio touch ups with Cole Barash. Brooklyn NY 2011

Bruce Irons

2011-09-20T16:45:00.000-07:00

Bruce Irons at Cloudbreak as seen in the new Surfer Magazine.

NY

2011-09-19T15:29:00.000-07:00

almost...

2011-09-18T16:58:00.000-07:00

will skudin. puerto escondido

on the road....

2011-09-14T07:20:00.000-07:00

lax. august 2011..still not home...

New York

2011-08-25T00:22:00.000-07:00

cardiff kook

2011-08-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

Airport transfer

2011-08-12T18:37:00.000-07:00

Andrew Doheney, Alex Knost and Tyler Warren on the bus from one airport to the next. Paris July 2011.

the man behind the camera

2011-08-11T11:35:00.001-07:00

vans filmer and all around great guy Regan Ritchie in France

Spanish surfing adventure

2011-08-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

Surfer Magazine recently put up a web gallery of a portion of our adventures through France, Spain, and Amsterdam...I owe a big thank you to Vans and Joel for inviting me on the trip to hang and document the surfing and lifestyle around the Salinas Duct Tape Invitational.
You can check the rest out here:

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/summer-in-europe/

long time coming:new print portfolio almost done

2011-08-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

last minute jpg checks before hitting Print tomorrow...very excited to see how it looks..here's a quick preview..

Surfer Magazine September 2011

2011-08-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

Cover of Kelly Slater from our April trip to Tavarua. We flew down there for 2 1/2 days and this was shot on the first day of our trip. I went from the airport straight to the lineup at Cloudbreak. Never been there before and it was quite a memorable day.

Rob Machado Hurley ad photographed at Oceanside in June

Same day as the photo above but this image was held for editorial for the magazine. Rob Gilley shot an amazing image about 10 years ago in Oceanside and I've always wanted to shoot in light like that. This day Rob had gotten home at 2am from a portrait shoot in Los Angeles and after 3 hours of sleep I was at his door picking him up. We surfed from around 5:45-7:30. It was really cold, but the light was as good as light gets. Rob was really cool about getting up early and knew that this day was going to be a special one when we checked the buoys.

This day was a fun day at lowers, nothing epic, just rippable and clean. Kinda cloudy actually. While Dane and I were shooting, Kelly came down and surfed too. Walking back to the car at the end of the day I couldn't resist but snap this photo of the two of them on the tracks.

Taylor Knox ad for Dragon shot at Backdoor in Hawaii this year

Kelly Slater photographed for Quiksilver Wetsuits in Santa Barbara in February of this year.

This months issue of Surfer Magazine just came out and had a collection of photos that I was lucky enough to shoot and be a part of..It's always cool to see your images printed in the magazine and not just on a computer screen..It's on the newsstands now..check it out!

sunday stroll

2011-07-24T01:52:00.000-07:00

encinitas

del mar

Tavarua rd 2

2011-07-23T10:35:00.000-07:00

Surfer Magazine just put up a slideshow of some of the photos from my last trip to Fiji..You can check it out on the link below...

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/fiji-fires/#ee36fcdb52

Rob Machado for Bloomingdales

2011-07-20T00:44:00.000-07:00

Rob Machado photographed in Hawaii last winter for Bloomingdales

Slide Magazine Cover

2011-07-20T00:24:00.000-07:00

cover

original photo

This months Slide Magazine has an image that Eli Mirandon and I shot together last winter in San Diego. He is riding a self shaped Balsa board with an agave stringer. He asked me what I thought about him trunking it during this session to pay homage to his Dad and Uncle (Nick and Bear Mirandon). I thought it was a great idea (as I was putting my 5mm on. It was January after all). Eli was a trooper and surfed for about an hour before he couldn't move anymore. This shot was taken on the second wave of the session!

1st wave of the trip

2011-07-18T04:02:00.000-07:00

1st day of the trip. 1st photo taken. 1st wave. Kelly Slater in Fiji.

last guy in

2011-07-09T11:05:00.001-07:00

mexico

The 100 Best waves

2011-07-06T22:40:00.000-07:00

Surfer Magazines BIG issue just came out with a feature on the worlds 100 Best waves...Below are a few of the waves they chose my photos to represent..You can see the rest in the mag or online here...
http://www.surfermag.com/photos/the-100-best-waves/

Wednesday

2011-07-06T08:16:00.000-07:00

Josh Morse. Ocean Beach. July 2011

Surfer Web Gallery for Independence Day

2011-07-05T17:48:00.000-07:00

Below are a couple images that Surfer put together of the teams files for a new web gallery..

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/independence-day/

fireworks

2011-07-05T12:00:00.000-07:00

ocean beach, san diego. july 4th 2011

Happy 4th of July

2011-07-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

what better way to spend the day than with BBQ's and friends.

Taylor Knox outtake from the other day

Where'd all the waves go?

2011-07-01T15:31:00.000-07:00

just when june gloom is over, the sun comes out and the ocean goes flat.

camping

2011-06-29T15:48:00.000-07:00

sunrise portrait of Rusty

seals

the road less travelled can lead to waves less commonly surfed

Mikala forgot his shoes.

Surfer Magazines BIG issue is out...

2011-06-29T10:46:00.000-07:00

Surfer just came out with there annual oversized BIG issue...Below is one of the photos that I shot that was run in the mag...pick it up, check it out, there's a story on the 100 best waves in the world!

Rusty Long. 2011

Taylor Knox portrait outtake

2011-06-27T15:38:00.000-07:00

Today I shot a portrait of Taylor Knox for an upcoming article in Surfer Magazine...We met up early, went surfing, and than came back to my house where my good friend and amazing photographer Grey Lockwood had setup a studio in the house. This is just an outtake from the shoot. A light test at best, but thought it came out pretty cool. I owe a big thank you to Taylor for his time and Grey for being an awesome assistant! You can check out some of his work here:

http://www.greylockwood.com/

Taylor Knox. Del Mar 2011. outtakes...

how big is your quiver?

2011-06-23T10:13:00.000-07:00

eric "Bird" Huffman. Bird's Shed. 2011

Jack Coleman loves cupcakes and super 8

2011-06-21T16:15:00.000-07:00

jack. oaxaca mexico. june 2011

angles...

Jack COleman Surf Films from jack Coleman on Vimeo.

going for a walk

2011-06-21T09:21:00.001-07:00

on the move again..

2011-06-20T12:58:00.000-07:00

mexico city airport rain storm. june 2011

australia snapshot

2011-06-08T22:32:00.000-07:00

MC doing work

is there?

Kelly Slater on the cover of the UT business section

2011-06-07T11:56:00.000-07:00

Woke up yesterday to see Kelly on the cover of the Business section of the Union Tribune with a photo I shot of him from Fiji earlier this year..No photo credit was given..Thanks UT.

Ryan Burch Volcom ad

2011-06-06T18:44:00.000-07:00

Mikey G and the creative team at Volcom came up with this new ad of Ryan Burch using a photo we shot together this winter..I think it's pretty rad that a company like Volcom would use Ryan as there backpage ad riding a longboard!! Ryan is one of the funnest guys to share the water with and hopefully the ad shows a little bit of that!

almost summer web gallery on Surfermag.com

2011-06-06T18:39:00.000-07:00

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/almost-summer-2/

new print portfolio in the mix!

2011-06-04T09:04:00.001-07:00

empty wave

2011-05-31T15:58:00.000-07:00

cloudbreak, tavarua fiji, 2011.

New portfolio on Surfermag.com

2011-05-30T13:37:00.000-07:00

Surfer Magazine lent me some world wide web space to share with you some of my favorite images..Below are a few and the rest can be seen on the link below...They are from my travels in California, Hawaii, Australia, and beyond....

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/exposure-4/

Chasing Monsters Interview

2011-05-26T12:15:00.000-07:00

Ken "Skindog" Collins along with a couple have friends have put together a new site called "Chasing Monsters" to help promote and let the world know what goes on in the minds of the worlds biggest wave surfers. Skindog was one of the first guys I met my first time shooting at Mavericks and has always been welcoming to my friends and I as we make the journey up there in the winter...Check it out!

http://www.chasingmonsters.com/photos/item/28-in-focus-todd-glaser

coffee time

2011-05-23T16:44:00.000-07:00

Costa Rica coffee time

sunset tonight

2011-05-03T22:28:00.001-07:00

Cardiff by the sea, may 3 2011

telephone poll

2011-05-02T21:03:00.000-07:00

sunday morning walk in solana beach..firing off the last couple frames before dropping the film off at the lab.

put a bird on it

2011-04-27T12:49:00.000-07:00

I had breakfest with a friend from New York about a month ago and in our discussion between California and New York he mentioned that anything is considered cool in NY if it has a fixed gear and cool in California if it has a bird...this ones for you amigo..sunrise swim this morning.

brown pelican. sunrise at cardiff by the sea. april 27 2011

vans Joel Tudor ad

2011-04-26T10:53:00.000-07:00

joel cleaning the board

original logo

This past winter in Hawaii Joel was kind enough to let my girlfriend and I stay at his house in Hawaii...The day we shot this photo was probably one of the flattest days we had ever seen the north shore in the winter, but that didn't stop us from surfing! We went into Haleiwa and borrowed a '65 Bing Copeland 9'9 and went surfing out at Vland..This is Joel on one of his first waves riding the board. Joel surfed this board better than I have seen him surf any other longboard (except for his 10'0 Wayne Rich)..Below is a video from Vans of Joel talking about the board and footage of the day we shot the photo

outtakes

2011-04-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

Every once in ahwhile I'll go through my harddrive and pull random images that never made the cut into the magazine and if it weren't for this blog would never be seen. Some may not be composed the best, or perfectly exposed, but there's something that I like about all of them...little moments in time.

jack freestone. Dragon offices. September 2010

mikey detemple. santa cruz coffee shop. jan 2011

mikala jones, rusty and greg long. jan 2011

log cabins hawaii. december 2010

brett simpson and tom curren. hawaii 2010

kelly slater. backdoor. pipemasters 2010

joel tudor and ezra. night training in hawaii 2010

dane, blair, shea, and mc checking the shot from the last wave. MC's shot made the cover on a $20 rangefinder. mine was the Quiksilver ad, and Blairs is sitting on a harddrive somewhere. Shea was surfing. july 2010

dane reynolds. super 8 projects. cabo july 2010

Reef Mcintosh Dragon ad

2011-04-24T10:53:00.000-07:00

reef mcintosh. Dragon ad. backdoor, hawaii 2010

moto x

2011-04-21T18:46:00.000-07:00

Today I drove up to Temecula to meet up with Robbie Maddison to shoot his new Dragon ad. He just moved into this really cool house with its own foam pit and track...We'd never met before, but he was really nice and easy to work with..Especially considering he had a bad fall last week in Dubai which left half his leg black and blue...This was the third time we had tried to shoot together as the first two times were rained out..I think we got some cool shots together..The stuff he was doing on his bike was amazing..Never seen anything like it..This is an outtake of one of his friends during there warmup run.

Brett Simpson

2011-04-21T18:36:00.000-07:00

brett simpson photographed on the goldcoast of australia in february 2011.

Ace Buchan

2011-04-21T18:29:00.000-07:00

One of the nicest humans ever..Ace Buchan..goofyfoot. 1 snapshot on the goldcoast of australia. feb 2011.

westeran australia empty

2011-04-17T12:15:00.000-07:00

2 guys out. waves ridden for 5 hours. 1000 people about 1/2 a mile up the road and 1 10 foot shark sighted the next day. beach closed. western australia april 2011.

clouds in tavarua

2011-04-17T12:13:00.000-07:00

tavarua. fiji. april 2011

having fun

2011-04-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

timmy reyes. western australia. april 2011

Indonesian lines

2011-03-28T17:57:00.000-07:00

somewhere in Sumatra, Tip to Tip trip 2010.

When the bay closes out.

2011-03-25T14:06:00.000-07:00

shane dorian. waimea bay. december 2009

Peruvian pullout

2011-03-23T13:02:00.000-07:00

machado.peru.2009

dog walk

2011-03-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

Jenna and I have been housesitting over the weekend at our friends house in Cardiff..>They have two awesome dogs. One is named Kula and the other is Pancho...Pancho's a Mastiv. He's huge. Weighs about 150 pounds. We took them out for a walk before the rains came in and I snapped these photos of us walking...I never had a dog growing up so it's fun to take care of our friends pets.

Pancho on the left, Kula on the right

they like there walks

awesome path to the next path

big dog, big meals, comfy grass....

Pancho lighter and more agile now

palm trees are the new birds

On the Board cover_Alex Knost

2011-03-20T18:48:00.000-07:00

I just got the new On The Board mag in the mail yesterday and to my surprise was a photo that Alex and I shot together while in Santa Cruz in January for the Duct Tape Invitational on the Cover! This was taken the first day I was shooting with my new 35mm lens...I owe a big thank you to Mio and the crew at OTB, Alex for catching the wave and doing his thing, as well as Scott, Joel and the crew at Vans for allowing me to come up and shoot for the week!!!

The best job in the world..or is it?

2011-03-18T14:26:00.000-07:00

I feel like I have the best job in the world...I am so lucky to be given the oppurtunity to watch some of the best surfers in the world do there thing and be a part of a group that defines our surf world at this time. Sometimes my job is as easy as hanging on the beach and shooting the guys do there thing..Othertimes it's not that easy. This photo below was from a session earlier in the year at Mavericks when I shot photos off of my friends Jetski..I don't have the best track record with jetskis, but have yet to lose one either! This session, Derek Dunfee and I drove out to Mavericks in the dark and while he surfed, I shot photos...During this session a freak accident occured where I had to jump off the ski and let someone else drive the ski to make a rescue..Luckily I had a wetsuit on and camera in a waterhousing so there was no delay..>I jumped in the water, rescue made, everyones ok. On Wednesday of this week Sion Milosky wasn't so lucky. He unfortunately got caught in a situation where there was no ski to help him and a two-wave hold down didn't let him back up. I couldn't imagine how his family is feeling right now during a time like this. It forces us all to take a good look around us and be fortunate for the presence that our friends and family have among us as well as how important it is to lookout for one another in the water. Below are a couple photos from my last trip to Mavericks where I got to meet Sion and watch him do what he does best in the water...RIP.

cleanup set

Derek likes to shoot photos

Derek took this photo of me after getting heat stroke for being out there too long..I crawled on the dock, puked my brains out, than Derek put me in front of the wall to shoot this photo. photo: dunfee

Sion charging Mavericks earlier this year...RIP

the road less travelled

2011-03-13T14:02:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the swell looks right, the tides are good, and the wind is perfect..You travel for days, you sleep in the dirt, you get to where you think the waves will be the best, and something just isn't right. For every score there's countless almosts...Here's a couple scans from an almost trip a couple months ago with Mikala Jones, Greg and Rusty Long...

Greg searching

Mikala, Greg and Rusty

australian jetlag

2011-03-08T01:20:00.000-08:00

There was a lot of wind

Parker, connor, and perry make the Young Wise Tails..check out there blog..there's some good stuff on there

view from the water at greenmount. That's our hotel to the right

the view from the hotel.

Just spent the past 18 days in Australia working on the new Dragon Eyewear campaign and trying to find some waves inbetween heats at the snapper contest. The goldcoast went kinda crazy this year. I have never seen so many people at the beach at Snapper. It's 1am and I can't sleep from the jetlag..Here's a couple photos I tried to post from my trip while I was there, but the internet lagged so they never worked.

Interview on J7 surfboards

2011-02-22T00:46:00.000-08:00

My good friend Jason Feist owns a surfshop in Santa Barbara on Cota street called J7, makes really good boards, and always has a spare space on his floor for me to sleep on when in SB...He did a little interview with me when I was up there last...Thanks again for letting me crash on your floor!

You can read the whole thing here:

http://j7surfdesigns.com/articles/j7_shaper_jason_feist_interviews_surfer_mag_photographer_todd_glaser.html

Q & A with Todd Glaser
Interview by Jason Feist

Recently, I had a chance to catch up with good friend and Surf Photographer Todd Glaser. It is always fun to hang with Todd and listen to the stories he tells over a few beers! Todd is currently working as a staff Photographer for Surfer Magazine and even though he is young in years, his talent and portfolio rivals even the most seasoned veterans! Every time I see his images, it makes me feel like I am there in the line-up and that is what I personally feel sets Todd’s work apart. His collection of photographs is amazing and I highly recommend browsing through his portfolio as I am sure you will be equally impressed! Please read through this recent Q&A with Todd Glaser and I hope you enjoy the images he included! Thanks, Jason.

Hey Todd! It has been way too long since we have had a chance to sit down and talk story! It sounds like you have been super busy jet setting around the globe and chasing swells. It must be nice to take a short break and recharge the batteries?

Hey Jason, yeah it’s been great to be home for a bit… I love traveling and being on the road, but it’s nice sometimes to sleep in your own bed and be around family.

Todd Glaser Photo: Jeff Flindt

When you are home do you like to cruise and shoot photos of friends and stuff or prefer to just surf and hang low?

It depends, sometimes I like to put the camera down and just surf. Because, a lot of the times when I am on the road or on a trip, I am too busy working, so when I’m home is when I surf the most. If the waves are really good though and a couple of the boys are in town, I get psyched to shoot too. I always have a camera with me, so if there is something I see that captures my attention I shoot it. I start to get a little weird if I haven’t shot a photo in awhile. It doesn’t have to be a surf photo, but anything. My girlfriend and I like to go on walks or go to the zoo. There is always something interesting to shoot there.

Knowing you for quite some time now, I have to credit you with having an amazing work ethic and commitment to your passion for surf photography. What seems to motivate you the most these days and what are some of your creative inspirations?

Thank you. I don’t know how to answer this because I truly just love what I do and am so fortunate to be given the opportunities that I have. I guess the reason I wake up early and keep shooting is to try and capture something new and different. Knowing that with every morning and sunrise there is something unique and new to photograph. Some days I’ll be up early and go surf, other times I shoot or even just drive down to the beach to get a clear head to start the day. In terms of being creative, I always love to look at photography books, magazines, and films. I’m a big fan of movies. I like to pause them during the most intense scenes and see how I would photograph that moment if I were there. Old Scorsese films are amazing for that. It’s also fun to think about the subject and see how we can create something that best suits their personality or style of surfing.

Over the years you have produced some incredible images of the J7 Team riders. Can you talk a little bit about what your favorite images were and why?

Without a doubt, Keoni Cuccia is the man. I have so much respect for him and the way he is as a human and a surfer. We went to mainland Mexico in 2007 and his surfing absolutely blew me away. He got more tubed than anyone else on the trip and did it with such style. During the last session of our trip and before we went to the airport, we went out and shot flash photos just before the sun came up. He pulled into one wave that I think to this day is the best flash/water photo I have ever taken. I was really excited when I got the film back on that one. While I lived in Santa Barbara, Tarik Khashoggi was always down to get up early and pack a couple. He’s got some power too. Pat Millin is one of my best buds and he surfs really well. He’s got power and one of the best work ethics out of anyone I’ve worked with. Yeah, the J7 team is always fun to hang with and shoot. You too Jason! It is always a pleasure to hang with you and thanks for letting me crash on the floor when I’m in town!

Do you have any advice for aspiring professional surfers as to what it takes to produce great shots when working with a photographer? Do you have any good examples?

WAKE UP EARLY! Don’t show up at 8 when the plan was to meet at 5. If you’re sponsored make sure you have stickers on your board. Remember that we love surfing too and waiting around for you to get your shit together doesn’t get us that stoked. Communication with the photographer is very important, if they are shooting with a fisheye, try your best to do your peak action maneuver within a couple feet of the camera. If the photographer is shooting rights, don’t go left. Save that for all the sessions where there isn’t someone shooting. Remember, it takes two to create a great image and just because the surfer rips doesn’t mean they are going to get the best images. The one who surfs well and works well with the photographer will always get the best photos. Know that the light at 7am is way better than at 9 or 11. Also, it is always about quality over quantity. Some of the best examples of guys who in my opinion are the easiest to work with are Rob Machado, Joel Tudor, Greg Long, Derek Dunfee and Chris Del Moro. Those guys are absolute legends! They’ve been doing it for a long time but still get amped to be up at dark when the waves are good. We discuss what lens I am shooting with and which one will be the best option for the waves that day. That way, when we shoot together, we are all on the same page. I value their input very highly when we shoot and if those guys are up at dark and willing to work when the waves are good, there is no reason that anyone else can’t do the same!

Your June 2009 Surfer Magazine cover shot of Greg Long. I know that a lot of people got their panties in a bunch trying to figure out where that photo was taken. What is your take and personal policies on wave locations and keeping secret or localized spots unexposed to the masses?

Part of what we do when shooting photos is bringing the viewer to what is going on at that very moment in time without giving away where it was taken. I am very conscious about what to show and what not to show. It all comes down to trust and respecting the location where we are. Greg and his brother Rusty founded that particular wave. They were kind enough to bring me there so the least I could do is conceal where it is.

Now, I am not sure how superstitious you are or anything and I completely understand if you don’t like talking about it, but do you have any juicy shark stories?

No, thankfully! But, a big Elephant seal did bump me a couple weeks ago. Scared the shit out of me!

Outside of surf photography, what are some of the other projects and cool things do you like to photograph?

Right now, I am currently working on building a commercial/editorial portfolio, which I can use to approach the world outside of the action surf. I would love to shoot snowboarding and also work on more portraits. But, I can see myself shooting surfing and the people in it for a long time. Surfer Magazine has been incredibly supportive of me since I finished school and I would love to continue working with them for a long time.

What are some of the highlights of your career so far? You know, Awards, Photo Exhibitions, Editorial achievements, etc…?

I think the biggest highlight of my career is just being able to do this for a living. There are a lot of great photographers and images out there. Being able to have my images published and work with some of the greatest surfers of our time is something I feel very fortunate to be a part of. In terms of projects that I’ve worked on, my first cover of Surfer with Greg Long is something I will never forget. That image was also voted the 2009 Photo of the Year. Last year I was hired to shoot the KS10 campaign from Quiksilver. Working with Kelly was a dream come true. He truly is the best Surfer this world has ever seen and seeing my images in Times Square and on buses in London was pretty cool too. It’s tough to put it all out on paper, but being able to travel with my friends and photograph our journey is something that I am so grateful for.

What is next for Todd Glaser? Do you have any big trips planned?

I have been home for a week and am leaving next week to go to Australia to work on the 2012 Dragon eyewear campaign. That is next on my list. After that, just waiting to see where the waves are and taking it day by day. I am really interested in doing a coldwater trip. Somewhere with waves and snow. Also, hopefully the South Pacific will start up and we’ll start getting some south swells too.

I have to say, your portfolio on your at www.tglaser.com is pretty darn impressive and that new Surfer Magazine cover of Alex Grey in Hawaii you shot is so sick! Congrats on that! What is the story behind that one?

Thanks! That was a lucky one. I was at Rocky point that morning shooting and the wind came up and blew the waves out. My girlfriend and I decided to go on a bike ride to get some food and when we were riding back, she suggested we check out Log Cabins. We took one look at it, saw the wind had just shifted offshore and it was pumping! We rode back to the Surfer house and I grabbed my gear. I was shooting mostly film since the light wasn’t the best and I also thought it would be a good time to shoot my Hasselblad. After shooting a couple rolls, I grabbed my digital and shot a handful of waves. That was one of them. The wave that Alex is riding was soooo heavy. That place scares me! Alex rode it perfectly though and the wave hit the reef just right. I was using a 70-200mm lens, which is slightly pulled back, but gives more of the story as to what was going on that day. When we got back to the Surfer house, I showed the photo to Grant Ellis, the Photo Editor of Surfer and he said, “cover” kind of kidding around. But, I didn’t believe him as those things can change so quickly. It wasn’t until about a month later when I was in his office and he said very casually, “oh by the way, you got the cover this month.” Than went on to refill his coffee. Kind of funny, but he was really calm about it and I was so stoked! So on this one I thank Grant and Alex for making it happen. My Girlfriend Jenna too, she stuck with me the whole time on the beach even though it was raining.

Man, it is so cool to see your hard work is paying off and it has been fun catching up with you! Keep up the great work Todd and thanks for sharing with us!

Thanks Jason! Can’t wait to come back up and hang again.

March 2011 Surfer Mag cover!!

2011-02-08T16:41:00.000-08:00

This months cover of Surfer Magazine is a photo I shot of Alex Gray at Log Cabins this past winter in Hawaii!!! The day started off slow at Rocky Point, than around 11the wind came on strong onshore. My girlfriend and I went on a bikeride to foodland to get lunch and decided to check the waves on the way back to Rocky Point. The wind had switched and it was pumping! 6-8 feet with a couple bigger sets and because of the on and off again rains, the water was a deep blue. I was going back and forth between shooting film and digital. This wave that Alex caught was one of the most perfect waves I have ever seen break there and luckily he rode it with ease. Below is the original photo, the cover, and a video of the wave...Check it out! Thanks to the guys at Surfer for running my image, Alex for catching the wave, and Jenna for hanging it out on the beach while it rained that afternoon!!

Big Worms CF Foundation

2011-01-31T20:16:00.000-08:00

Gail Stewart is really going out on a limb by training to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in the name of Big Worms CF Foundation. Worm was a true inspiration and one of my best friends. He passed away in 2008 from a lifelong battle with CF, but not without starting his nonprofit organization that is being run by his family and close friends. Take a look at the video, click over to the website and if anything learn a bit about CF and if you have an extra dollar or two..any bit helps...

CBS did a story on the news about it here:

http://www.cbs8.com/Global/story.asp?S=13930778

You can check out more information on the foundation on the link below:

http://bigwormscff.com/index.php

And information on Gales quest here:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=640958712&sk=wall

California logging on Surfermag.com

2011-01-31T07:12:00.000-08:00

Last week CDM and Mikey detemple jammed up to San Onofre for an afternoon longboard session. I was a bit hesitant to go, as I had just come home from a trip and was tired, but Chris got me pysched and we went up. Surfer Magazine made a gallery of a few of our images from the day and a couple others from Santa Cruz...You can check them out here...A few were kept for the mag, but here's a couple outtakes from the session!

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/cali-logging/

Down with the Ship

2011-01-19T13:26:00.000-08:00

Check out my good friend Derek Dunfees Movie FREE online at:

He was the first person to bring me to Mavericks and we have been shooting together ever since I got a camera...He's pretty much the man and is not scared of Big waves...I'll let the video say the rest.

http://www.surfermag.com/videos/down-with-the-ship/

Santa Cruz Duct Tape Invitational

2011-01-19T12:59:00.001-08:00

Last week I had the pleasure of spending 5 days in Santa Cruz with some of the worlds best longboarders and happened to luck into some great waves too! Below is a link to a gallery that Surfer put up with my images from the event. I owe a big thank you to the guys at Surfer for posting the images along with Joel, Scott, and Nolan for inviting me and the rest of the Vans crew! See you in Spain!!!

You can read the words here:

http://www.surfermag.com/features/alex-knost-wins-joel-tudor-duct-tape-invitational/

And see the photos here:

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/duct-tape-invitational/