The incredibly beautiful and wild power of waves in photographs
It's bound to make a surfer looking for the perfect wave wince, but for an Australian photographer the violent chaos of the ocean's waves is the ultimate discovery.
Maelstrom, a project and exhibition by Luke Shadbolt, 31, captures the surf at its most turbulent and dramatic in a set of awe-inspiring photographs.
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An appetite for the surf is an innate part of Shadbolt's life, as he grew up surrounded by beach culture on the relatively sleepy, yet open surrounds of the Central Coast in New South Wales.
Shadbolt was a surf photographer for five years, but during that time he became bored of the faultless waves he was capturing. It was this that led to the concept for Maelstrom.
"I had been travelling all around, searching for perfect waves," Shadbolt told Mashable Australia. "But I guess it was getting a little monotonous, in a sense. So I wanted to turn against that and find the craziest, most chaotic waves that I could find -- that's where the motivation for [Maelstrom] came from."
Shadbolt also found inspiration in one particular photo he snapped two years ago, which won him the Nikon Surf Photo of the Year. "It was showing this surfer throwing his arms up in front of this big whitewash explosion," he said.
The photo has dual interpretations: It can be seen as an appreciation of the ocean by the surfer, or a mocking attempt to control it, Shadbolt explained. This photograph led him to explore the wild side of the ocean.
Within his work, Shadbolt said he has tried to capture the duality of waves -- creative and destructive in a single act, something that he believes is representative of human nature.
The photographs in this project were captured over six months, with Shadbolt planning the shooting locations in advance and waiting for the right moment. As for exactly where the images were taken, it'll continue to remain a secret. "I can't actually say where, just out of respect to the local guys," he said.
Shadbolt will still continue to photograph works that are inspired by nature and the water, although some of these will take place away from the ocean. Even though there are more places with crazy waves that he's just waiting to discover.
"There are other areas I'd like to explore that are in similar style to [Maelstrom], it's just a matter of waiting for the right conditions. It's just a matter of monitoring it and waiting for it happen," he said.
As these stunning works prove, it is definitely worth the wait.
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