MY STORY
My love for the ocean began 10 years ago when I started surfing in Tynemouth, England. As an 18-year-old, this feels like quite a long time ago! I was instantly bitten by the surfing bug and quickly turned trips to the grandparents into an excuse to surf the local breaks. After about a year, I competed in Tynemouth Surf Co's Open and finished 4th, which wasn't bad for my first competition. Since then, I have been on swell-chasing trips, including St Agnes in Cornwall, Ericeira in Portugal and most recently, to Devon to score perfect glassy Woolacombe waves and the hollow barrels of Croyde. When asked why I surf in the North Sea, I respond that surfing isn't just about scoring massive waves. It's the awesome community that makes even the messiest days fun, the fantastic events that bring everyone closer together, and the fantastic opportunities connected to surfing. Such as photography, fashion, relationships, and overall good times chilling with the people who share the same utter obsession and relentless dedication to the cold early mornings, the freezing wetsuits, and living in the hope that I'll park up and see some lines coming through. Or just to be battered, and we all love it. Being the current Northeast of England rep for the International surf magazine Wavelength (wavelengthmag.com) is a huge privilege. I am honoured to represent this thriving and awesome community.
Closing in on three years ago, my obsession with everything surfing inspired me to set up my surf brand, Beyond The Blue. I do everything connected with my brand, including marketing, website design, clothes design, clothes manufacturing, and social media posts and advertisements, running with the slogan 'designed by surfers, made by surfers, worn by surfers'. Many of the materials are made from recycled plastic. Beyond The Blue has grown substantially, with sales throughout the Northeast and mainland Europe, the USA, and Australia. The brand also sponsors a local shredding surfer. In the past three years, I have completed four successful collaborations with a wetsuit repair company in the Tynemouth area (who repair suits from all over the UK), a mindfulness and well-being yoga company operating throughout the Northeast, and a youth group travelling to America. The most recent collaboration was with the Newcastle University Surf Club, who asked me if I could manufacture hoodies for them. Since the first order, we have successfully completed five series of clothing lines, including embroidered caps, hoodies, sweatshirts and a multitude of T-shirts, as well as asking me to provide prizes, photography and sponsorship for their regional university surf competition. My business interactions and communications with collaborators have led to confidence in my decision-making and my ability to work as part of a team and work independently to deadlines.
I was 15 years old when I bought a secondhand GoPro, which allowed me to film POVs of my surfing for the first time. During my first session, I was super excited to get out of the water and see the footage, which was the first time I'd wanted to leave such good surf. But the thought of making a small edit and backing it with a cool song had utterly taken over my mind. This captivation changed from POVs to attempting to film other people with my GoPro, which was pretty challenging, as you can imagine! But this all changed when I borrowed an old Canon my Mum had lying around. I filled numerous SD cards with anything I could photograph, but the photos I was most satisfied with depicted the ocean, surfers and the fantastic surf community in the North East of England. From then on, I focused my photography and filmmaking on surfing and the sea.
This will be my second year of professional experience as a photographer and filmmaker. The commissions include many shoots, brand photos and videos, individual surf films, surf club shoots and films, and several surf comps. I strive to capture authentic, high-quality work that portrays the action and inspires people through diverse compositions, my favourite being in-water shoots. I love filming these the most as it's different every time you enter the water, even when it's with the same crowd of people. Adapting to changing conditions has made me proactive when filming as I have to adjust to the ever-changing North Sea, whether it's a beautiful glassy morning or freezing choppy barrels. I also love shooting with other people, focusing on capturing different angles of amazing events where I feel my friendly and relaxed communication skills come to great effect. Having such a huge passion for both photography and filmmaking has its benefits as it allows me to think on a deeper level about my photography, as I aim to capture a story in one image. This mindset challenges me to think differently about editing, composition, cropping and my subject choice, which has improved my photography and reflects my filming as I identify the correct subjects and objects to include in a sequence to effectively portray an idea or story.
I am currently studying for my A Levels at Sixth Form College. My A Levels are in Art, Photography, and 3D Design. My photography and filmmaking have developed substantially with the guidance and support of my teachers, who fully support my obsession with the ocean. All my college coursework revolves around the sea and the coastline. My teachers have pushed me to explore different compositions, styles, and formats of work. Regarding my future education plans, I have an offer from Sunderland University to commence a Film Production degree this September. The programme is ranked one of the best in the UK. However, I have chosen to defer my entry until September 2026 to allow me to travel the world for a year, filming and surfing some of the most incredible destinations on the planet with the ambition to make a series of films about my travels, surfing, and interesting characters I hope to meet.