BEST LENS FOR SURF PHOTOGRAPHY // IN AND OUT OF THE WATER

Picking the right lens to shoot with can be difficult. I break down my methodology for choosing my go-to lens when I shoot surfing on land and in the water with a quick, but in-depth review of why.
This concept of picking a lens based on the probability of nailing more shots goes beyond the surf and I hope that this lesson can transcend into other ways that you shoot when you're trying to decide on which lens to use.
**Huge screw up on my part, I'm not sure how I got Stu Gibson and AquaTech Marketing director Phil Gallagher mixed up so badly... the names don't even sound similar. What an air head moment, huge apology to Phil, but please check out Phil's awesome work here: / philgallagherphoto **
Filmed and edited by Connor Trimble
www.connortrimble.com
Instagram: / connortrimble
TikTok: / connor_trimble
✅ My Gear
Small Camera Bag:
Big Camera Bag:
Carry On Hard Pelican Case:
📷 Cameras
Canon r5: amzn.to/3qiMkG9
GoPro 11 Black: amzn.to/43FQbvi
Insta 360 X3: amzn.to/45KvrEq
📸 Lenses
Canon RF STM 16mm F2.8: amzn.to/3qoJLTb
Canon RF 15-35mm F2.8 L: amzn.to/3qpDruE
Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8 L: amzn.to/3MKF6lS
Canon RF 50mm F1.2 L: amzn.to/3qr7H8c
Canon RF 70-200 F2.8 L: amzn.to/43jhEDc
Canon RF 100-500 F4.5-7.1L: amzn.to/3qmtwG2
Canon RF 2x Extender: amzn.to/3N7OiC7
Canon EF 100mm Macro F2.8 L: amzn.to/3C9e56Q
Canon RF to EF Adapter: amzn.to/3CabCZI
💧 Underwater/Surf Housing is the EVO III
aquatech.net/?...
💦 DISCOUNT ON AQUATECH PRODUCTS 💦
AF-CONNORTRIMBLE-AT = 10% off all AquaTech Water Housing and accessory products
AF-CONNORTRIMBLE-AG = 10% off all AxisGO products
•My Go-to surf setup is 24-70 with zoom port
•My go-to dive set up is 15-35 with an 8inch dome port
🎧Audio
DJI Mics (my favorite): amzn.to/3N67U9V
RODE Wireless Go: amzn.to/3X189GN
RODE VideomIc PRO+: amzn.to/43uyPl8
RODE Video Mic Go: amzn.to/43mmjoe
Sony Headphones WH-1000XM4: amzn.to/3qiOTIh
Apple Airpods PRO 2nd Gen: amzn.to/42kufVm
📺 External Monitor
Atomos Ninja V+ Production bundle: amzn.to/42gC929
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DJI Mavic 3 Cine: amzn.to/43Egh1P
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SanDisk 4TB Extreme PRO Portable SSD *SUPER FAST*: amzn.to/3qcQnnl
OWC ThunderBay 8 RAID: amzn.to/3WPqhTU

[@richardromanashton]

Watching you be so consistent from the shoot you did with italo that I was lucky enough to connect with you at to today had been nothing short of inspiring. Would love to see more of these videos! Would love to see how you go about looking for or setting up for shots or is everything entirely reactive ? 🤙🏽 much love bro

[@ConnorTrimble]

OOOOOH!!! Such a good question, appreciate you asking (: For brand campaigns, it's 50-75% planned, but a lot of times you get inspired on the spot and change things up. But typically you have a shot list you have to follow and you're going through checking them off the list like I got a tight, wide, medium shot of the front + back. Then in the water I got lifestyle (paddling by/sitting on board) tight + wide and then a few good action shots ideally that range from tight to wide. When I'm shooting on my own for fun, which I need to do more often... I try to stick with either ONLY photos or ONLY video to have a more focused approach. Otherwise I feel like you can get lost going back and forth pretty easily. My mind set here is to have one really insane goal shot that may be hard to capture, but is doable in the conditions on hand. And if I come away with one photo that is really top quality then I'm psyched on my session. Usually you can get at least one every session, no matter how the conditions are. I think that's become my mind set though because I have a huge body of work at this point. So I'm really shooting for quality over quantity vs. when I first started I was really hustling to learn and build my portfolio. *Honestly with the consistency after shooting Italo for Billabong, one thing that's become super weird for me is that I don't edit very much. The Billabong shoot was one of my first times not editing..... Now I take the photos, sometimes pull selects for the brands and the vast majority of the time I ship a hard drive off. It's so wild that a lot of my best images I've ever taken, I have forgotten I ever took or just never got around to editing. Stoked to answer any question though and continue building an awesome community on KZbin where like minded people can come together to share + learn (:

[@Domcaptures]

Yeaaaa buddy!

[@Thechristianedwardss]

Yeah Connor!!!🔥🤙🏼

[@ConnorTrimble]

lessssgo! (: Tripod review incoming in a few months lol

[@tonypalmer.photos]

Awesome video, just came across your channel. Interesting take on the 24-105. I literally (in July), upgraded from an 80d with 24 2.8 and 50 1.8 in the water. I picked up the r6ii and 24-105 f4 and 50 1.8 and thinking about the upgrade path for the housing. I've been impressed with the 24-105 and was considering getting the port to match. Thanks your video helped. 🤙

[@ConnorTrimble]

100%, glad it could help!

[@hellogoodbye4894]

Subscribed! Thank you for making these! ✌️

[@ConnorTrimble]

yeah no problem! Thanks for the support!

[@fortalecimento1]

Aloha from rio de janeiro I used my 24 -70 2.8 at the waterhousing on dayle bases and 100 400 from the sand somethimes

[@ConnorTrimble]

Nice! Honestly I love my 24-70, I just found that I prefer being able to have more flexibility with the zoom. Especially at Pipeline :D

[@paulomello4669]

My favorite lens in the water too

[@BenInTheWater]

Awesome video! So much good information here. Thanks dude! 🤙

[@ConnorTrimble]

100%! Appreciate your support, it means the world! --> if you like getting super nerdy on all of this, just wait until to Go-To Settings video drops haha... editing it right now and I seriously can't believe how/why I need to go in to so much detail. But we're doin in and hopefully it helps! LEt me know if there's any specific videos you'd like to see in the future :D

[@BenInTheWater]

Thanks @@ConnorTrimble ! I can't wait to check it out! It's awesome hearing all this from a seasoned pro so the detail is great! I would love a video about shooting over shallower reefs, how to stabalize yourself when shooting / treading water without kicking the reef. My local is a fairly deep point break, but I was struggling out in Oahu trying to not hit the reef while shooting longboarding on the south shore.

[@ConnorTrimble]

@@BenInTheWater ooooooh thanks for the feed back! Honestly something I don't even think about anymore because I'm always over super shallow reef. Will 100% make a note of it to cover in a video in the near future

[@shotabauer9328]

Super helpful, thanks!

[@ConnorTrimble]

Glad it was helpful!

[@surflifeimages]

The 24mm is golden. I use Sony 24mm GM glass, it's a F1.4 but I shoot typically early morning/sunrise. I kind of wish I had the 24-70 or 105. That's a great in water lens. Dig your images as well..... Clean and captures the essence.

[@ConnorTrimble]

I LOVE the 24 when shooting wide barrel shots in water with a smaller port. But I just find myself wanting the 24-105 flexibility. It's clutch, especially with client work.

[@PocketOKrypto]

I'd be very interested in seeing your auto-focusing set up for shooting from land with your 100-500mm. Thank you and great video! Liked & subscribed. Aloha!

[@ConnorTrimble]

I usually use the single point auto focus. I shoot a lot of commercial lifestyle work where a small focus point is easiest to switch between face and product. I really like that tight control for my focus point, but most people I know use the 9 points of focus. Unfortunately though, I think it's super situational, but 75% of the time, I'm using the single focus point for stills. I also do not usually use a tripod. For video, I'll actually use manual focus or the 9 point focus more.

[@PocketOKrypto]

Thank you for the reply. I appreciate your input!@@ConnorTrimble

[@memetphotos2100]

Yes im agree with you 24-105mm F4 is best one, i used more than 6 years already

[@ConnorTrimble]

The best hands down

[@julianlopezbecker5200]

Hi! I want to do some videos to windsurfers. What kind of tripod and head do you recommend me?

[@ConnorTrimble]

I think a good fluid head above all else. It really depends on your budget though, you can get a decent set up for $400, but the best systems are $3k+. It also depends on how heavy your camera is. What set up are you using and what's your budget?

[@PapaSurf-Tower10]

Hey Connor, I’m land based surf video/photographer here in San Diego. I just made the switch from Canon 90d to Canon R6 Mark II using my EF 70 to 200, a 1.4x and converter. I’m not stoked with the quality so far and the weight. My first RF lens is the 24-70 2.8, and now I’m inclined to agree with you, that I should have gotten the 24-105. I also have a EF 100-400 Lens, that does not seem to work well with the RF converter. My thoughts are to dumb the RF converter, 1.4x, 70-200, and 100-400 and purchase RF 100-500. My hesitation is budget and I still use the 70-200 with my 90D for backup. Is the RF glass that much better? Harry

[@ConnorTrimble]

Hey, thanks for the questions! I'll try to break it down for you in segments: RF glass is NOT ALWAYS BETTER in my opinion. Especially the rf70-200 2.8, I've had a hand full of issues with mine which sucks after the EF 70-200 f2.8ii was my all time favorite lens. If you're mainly shooting on land then the 24-70 2.8 is a great lens and I'd actually probably buy it over the 24-105 f4. Since I made this video, Canon launched the 24-105 f2.8 though and if you have the money, I'd get that. The converter will make images softer for sure and the EF1-400 is known to be a little soft. I have been pleasantly surprised by my rf 1-500 especially from 1-300, it's super sharp. 4-500, it starts to crunch the blacks a little more, but that's common with the extreme telephoto lenses. Overall, I think that upgrading from EF to RF glass is a huge pain in the ass and super expensive. I just did the complete overhaul in one year and kind of regret doing it so quickly. It's really up to you and how you're using the lenses the most. My needs are probably much different than most because I shoot photo, video, in water, on land, lifestyle, action sports, product and occasionally studio style product shoots.

[@AJven257]

Hello Conner , quick question for ya. Have you used the 24-105 lens to shoot anything UNDERwater? I own a sony 24-105 and considering a port setup for the underwater housing but cant seem to find any content shot underwater with lenses in this specific focal range.

[@ConnorTrimble]

Hi, yes you can use underwater quite easily! If you're shooting purely underwater though, especially for diving, I suggest using a wide angle lens like the 15-35 or new Canon 10-20

[@AJven257]

@@ConnorTrimble I am already using 16-35 focal length and to be honest it is not my preferred range, the 16-35 focal range is somehow very popular amongst dive photographers, and in my opinion a very limited range to zoom in and out in the first place. I have used 24-70 as well, was just wondering if anyone has used a zoom lens that extends beyond 70 to 105 and if there was any complications in focusing because of that.

[@Atlantic_01]

is it the same for surf video graphy

[@ConnorTrimble]

Hi, I think it depends on what your specific needs are, but for me the answer is YES! I use the 24-105 f/4 for most video work in-water. I really like the 24-70 f/2.8, but honestly will switch to the 24-105 f2.8 when Aquatech releases the port for it :)