There are a few things that go towards making a half decent surf photograph – Decent surfers, good waves, equipment that will allow you to capture the shots with good enough quality, composition, timing, a willingness to stand with wet feet for a few hours(!), a knowledge of the subject, patience, persistence, the list could go on..
But one thing that will make or break any picture, not just surf pictures is LIGHT. Even with all the above in place, if you don’t have good light you might as well leave the camera in the bag and go for a surf yourself.
I was photographing yesterday at a spot close to where I live, which will of course remain nameless, an early start had us there for about 7.15 as the early morning light was working its magic on the surf. But even with good light, the location of the surfers in relation to the sun and myself on the reef always proves tricky with the camera exposure shifting all over the place.
Most of the action shots were taken pretty much straight into the sun, ‘contre–jour‘ as the books call it, which comes from the French ‘against daylight’. 
Its always a buzz going through the edit from a shoot where you think you might have taken a few good shots, its even more of a buzz when you see a couple of winners.
room2850.org 