Shaun and MR

legends of the lens - Anthony Friedkin

Surfboard with setting sun ,1980. Anthony Friedkin is a Californian surf photographer with an artist's eye, and didn't dwell on the commercial side of surf photography. A surfer himself since he was young, I think some of his most successful photos are reflective and personal moments of being out there on the water. Photos like Surfboard with setting sun and whitewater wall are such simple ideas most photographers probably overlook them, but Friedkin has made them powerful and memorable. Woman by the pool has a very different feel, almost like a fashion shot, at some swanky 70s Beverly Hills country club. Woman by the pool, 1975

Rick Dano on the highway, Malibu, 1977

Whitewater wall

Offshore wind

Universal studios during the filming of Jaws

Tig kneeboard

I've been chatting a bit with Tigger recently, which has been very enlightening. I sent him pics of this 4'11 Tig which was on ebay recently, and wondered if he remembered it as it looked early. Tig doesn't remember all his old boards, but likes to see them again, and definitely recognised this as a memorable, family board , made in '68ish. He says it was made for either one of his sisters or for Steve Lacey, and it is actually in the photo of the Newlings that was in the '69 Observer magazine. Tig says 'one of the first ever Tig boards along with those other pretty awful tracker shapes ( McTavish inspired) you see in the photo.'

Tigger is still surfing strongly, and says he had one of the best barrels of his life at Snapper last week.

From Observer magazine 1969. Shows the kneeboard and two other Tigger boards .

Tigger, Constantine/Boobys mid 70s, photo Alex Williams.

fins

The other day I had a bit of spare time playing with my daughter Kitty, so with 20 old see through fins, one greenhouse roof and some lovely april sunshine we made these images. Like it when the colours are overlapping, which is also one of the main interests in my painting. Surf art ? Its in the eye of the beholder

early Vitamin Sea singlefin

Stephane, my friend in Biarritz, is still finding old British boards over in France. Here's one of those rare first Vitamin Sea singlefins, which he found in Bordeaux last month. This one really does look like the one Phil Clifford is holding in the photo below. Made in the late 70s at Newquay, probably shaped by Tad or Phil. Logo art by Kevin Russ.

frootful lp

My old mate nick at Frootful has achieved his dream by putting out his first lp here. Its a class mix of jazz ,funk and soul, with Nick on guitar, Angeline on vocals and Pete on sax, plus others, on the Freestyle label. The quality hits like a smack in the face, and I hope nick goes on to be Cornish soul brother no.1. The band launches the album in London on the 15th April at the Alleycat club on Denmark st. ,and in Cornwall at Miss Peapods in Penryn on 17th April, 8pm . Be there.

Sequence of Nick at Godrevy on his glass tiger. Good colours

friends reunited

Its farewell to my Cheyne Horan today, but a happy goodbye. It was Martin Conolly's first board , a christmas present in 1988, and the board he began surfing on. When he part exed it for a Boardwalk thruster a few years later did he think he'd ever see it again ? Not a chance. Martin runs a surf school and is a friend of Alex's, and sent in photos of a couple of nice old boards for the blog last year. On the blog he caught a glimpse of what might have been his first board, but wasn't sure - there could have been loads with that design. But looking at the stickers on the underside sealed it, it was the same board, and he sent in an old pic of him and the board in 1988. Now, the Cheyne was a board I'd vowed I wouldn't part with unless I found a nicer one, but hey I am human, and the chances of finding your old board again after 25 years are so slim, we've done a board swap and its back in his quiver and going to get in the water at Bantham again. Needless to say he's as stoked as a 10 year old with his first board ! I'm hoping that a healthy dose of good karma may come my way and help me find another cheyne one day...

Martin said the condition of the board was pretty similar to when he last saw it all those years ago, admitting to causing the dings as a grom. It just has a couple of different stickers now. A pretty good survival !

three amigos

Like this old photo of the Vitamin Sea crew with singlefins fresh from the factory. The year is 1979 , and on the left is Phil Clifford of Rockit surfboards, Tad Ciastula is in the middle and Chris Jones is on the right holding one of his Bronzed Aussies singlefins - you don't see many of those any more . Phil Clifford is holding a board very similar to mine below. This was the first or 2nd year of Vit Sea's production in Newquay. Classic.

One of Phil's Rockits.

Tiki splat 7'8

Here's a radical board for its day (1969), a 7'8 shortboard made by Tim Heyland at Tiki. These days it looks a lot less radical - heavy, long, very rounded all over, but that's progress for you. Its from a bygone age when surfers were throwing away their old boards to get hold of the new and responsive board designs coming out of Australia. In 1968 Tiki had moved to Barnstaple in Devon and during the winter of 68 - 69 Tim made over a hundred of these Australian inspired v-bottom 8 footers which were taking over from longboards as the fashionable board to surf. This board is probably one of that batch. It has the feeling of a mass produced board with less attention to finish than some other boards of the time. The sales of these boards funded Tim to go to Hawaii's north shore for 10 weeks in '69. Tiki and Tim are still going strong in Braunton today. This board uses a stringerless castle foam blank, Tiki's in house foam, and a nice Wave set fin from Australia. Its got 50 50 rails and no hard edges anywhere, 7'8 x 21 x 3. Nice Tiki splat logo with an overlap of yellow and blue logos, very 60s. The leash plug has been added later, it would originally have been a lose it and swim, as they all were in those days.

Tim, Dave and Allan Brookes, Braunton around 1970

from British Surfer 1969

Derek Hynd

Derek Hynd is a surfer I admire in a big way. Back in the early 80s he had mind blowing moves and style. I was stoked to find a board shaped by him at my local car boot sale - above.Its very similar to the board he's surfing in the youtube clip at the top - he rips !The fact that he kept surfing at top levels after losing the sight in one eye was pretty amazing too. Below is a Terry Fitz board with a Hynd team logo.

Alex's photos

A few more great images of the old days, mainly late 70s- early 80s, from the Williams archive. Above- Pottz at the '84 Fosters in Newquay, 'local' boy done good.

Richard Carter on left

Andy Cranston, Vit sea sprayer.

Fistral comp early 80s