Surfing
Surfing
Join Leroy Bellet on his quest to capture the surfing photo of a lifetime
From the South Coast to the South Pacific, Leroy Bellet is an Australian teenager who's turning the world's perception of surfing photography inside out. Find out why in the latest Chasing The Shot.
"I've definitely got to the point where I don't have to think about the surfing side of things anymore," says prodigious photographer Leroy Bellet on what it takes to pull into heaving reef slabs behind pro surfers, while capturing every instant with thousands of dollars worth of equipment. "I'm so focused on framing the shot that I can't afford to be fumbling around, getting my feet in the right place. It's a positive distraction in big waves, too. You're so focused on getting the job done that you forget about the risks you're taking for a second."
Leroy Bellet readies himself to set to sea
© Ed Sloane
A wave so beautiful you almost forget how dangerous it is
© Ed Sloane
Leroy Bellet meets Chris Bryan, borrows his Phantom Camera
© Ed Sloane
The team gets down to business
© Ed Sloane
It's hard to believe Bellet is only 19 years old and a first-year university student on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia, when you read lines like the one above. It's even harder to fathom that a lot of the photos you see on this page were shot at an even younger age still.
Then again, Bellet is a remarkable teenager, with incredible confidence and self-belief beyond his years. When you see the crazy positions he puts himself in to pursue his artistic passions however, it all starts to make sense.
Bellet first got into surf photography to show his parents exactly what his surfing obsession was all about: the barrel. Unlike the traditional surfer-to-photographer evolution, he was a point of view guy from the start. "I would have been 12," he says. "It was right when I began high school. I was an OK surfer and even tried competitions, but they weren't my thing, I just really wanted to document tubes. I always thought the big POV wide-angle barrel shot was the ultimate."
Michel Bourez setting up the photo, and beating, of a lifetime
© Leroy Bellet
With the wave clearly a closeout, Bourez accepts his fate with a grin
© Leroy Bellet
Michel Bourez stands tall in the hometown tube of his life
© Leroy Bellet
Leroy Bellet and Michel Bourez soak it all in as the curtain comes down
© Leroy Bellet
It wasn't until Bellet first saw French photographer Laurent Pujol's double tow-in efforts in the sand-bottomed barrels of Hossegor that he realised what he'd envisioned was actually possible. It was a penny-drop moment in his young career. Since then he's donned helmet, booties and body armour, and towed-in over South Coast rock shelves time and again, most often trailing behind two of the region's hardest chargers: Scott 'Whip' Dennis, and Australia's next big-wave big thing, Russell Bierke, defending Red Bull Cape Fear champion.
As Tyge Landa's incredible film for the latest Chasing The Shot episode above shows, Bellet struck success early, and then decided to keep on pushing himself harder to chase down loftier goals. At first he tried trail shooting with legendary lensman Chris Bryan's Phantom camera, and while this yielded incredible imagery of Bierke and Dennis, it also cost a US$100,000 piece of equipment along the way.
Leroy Bellet and Craig Anderson at Teahupo'o was always going to be special
© Leroy Bellet
Craig Anderson gunning for the exit, as Leroy Bellet buckles up for impact
© Leroy Bellet
Craig Anderson's surfing is beautiful at the best of times
© Leroy Bellet
As Craig Anderson senses victory, Leroy Bellet keeps on shooting
© Leroy Bellet
Next came the dream shoot of Teahupo'o in Tahiti. One of the most feared waves in the world, Chopes is a frightening proposition when you only have to worry about surfing it, so add photography duties to the mix and you have a truly terrifying proposition.
Such are the joys of youthful enthusiasm however that Bellet didn't let nerves or excitement slow him down. Instead, he flew to Papeete and drove to Teahupo'o to shoot with local standout Matahi Drollet, global star Craig Anderson and Championship Tour competitor Michel Bourez.
Tahitian young gun Matahi Drollet lining up a front yard glory run
© Leroy Bellet
Tahitian perfection, starring Matahi Drollet
© Leroy Bellet
Drop complete, Matahi Drollet puts his foot down in pursuit of tunnel's end
© Leroy Bellet
Here's where the layman dies. Not Matahi Drollet or Leroy Bellet
© Leroy Bellet
The results are spectacular, and since the first photos snuck out, it's fair to say that Bellet's name has been on the lips of surfer's everywhere and a subsequent Surfing World cover. This documentary will only serve to amplify that. We hope the edit above does some justice towards Bellet's body of work, and if it leads to a few A-list surfers wanting to shoot with the plucky young Aussie, we can't wait to see the results.
Big thanks to Landa for believing in Bellet's talent from the start, and all of the Ulladulla crew who got behind their boy in support, whether driving jet skis in treacherous conditions, or simply doing runs to the legendary local pie shop. We'd also like to give a special mention to our army of photographers, Ed Sloane in Australia, and Zach Sanders and Domenic Mosqueira in Tahiti, for helping shining an alternate light on all that Bellet and the surfers get up to back there. This project has been a labour of love, and we sure hope you enjoy the end result as much as we've enjoyed bringing it to you.
2016 Red Bull Cape Fear champ Russell Bierke sliding into a Teahupo'o beast
© Zach Sanders
Michel Bourez grins as Leroy Bellet bears it, deep down the Teahupo'o mine
© Zach Sanders
Water safety director Scott Dennis managed a couple of lunch break specials
© Zach Sanders
Craig Anderson steals to victory as Leroy Bellet readies for impact
© Zach Sanders
