What It’s Like to Photograph California’s Monster Waves

Surfers and bodyboarders in Newport Beach, California, ock to The Wedge, a shark fin-like wave that breaks near the town’s harbor. For the past six years, the wave and its riders have been the focus of a photographer and Instagrammer who goes by the name Dingo. The 60-year-old Dingo (he asked that his real name be kept anonymous so that his day job doesn’t find out) recently captured the historic summer swell that battered SoCal’s beaches and transformed The Wedge into a 25-foot monster. He told us what it was like to photograph the supercharged waves. 

This swell had been moving across the Pacific Ocean for a few weeks, and I saw big waves pop up in Tahiti, Hawaii, and then Mexico. We knew it was shaping up to be one of the better summer swells to reach us. So I took a few days of vacation time from my corporate job so I could be there every day with my camera.

But you never really know how a swell is going to impact The Wedge until you really see it.

I got to the beach before sunrise to find my first spot. Hundreds of people were showing up to The Wedge to watch the surfers, and it created this stadium-like environment. People were standing ten-deep at some points along the beach.

I try to look straight on at the wave when I shoot, but sometimes I’ll also position myself behind the jetty and use a telephoto lens to aim back toward the crowd. A lot of times, that perspective will show the true enormity of the wave and just how many people are there to watch it.

When the swell arrived, the waves were really big. They were monsters, and we saw some impressive rides on them. A bodyboarder named Tanner McDaniel did a double backflip. That might be at top-five all-time video clip at The Wedge. Our local big-wave rider Sage Burke had a huge drop-in on a wave. Dawson Sherman and other surfers had some huge drop-ins, too.

There were also a few rescues. The Wedge was so big and so heavy. Sometimes we’d see a big freight train-like set come in and waves would break 30 yards farther out than the furthest surfer. If you’re not experienced in that kind of water, you can get wrecked. We saw a few people paddle out who had no business being out there, and the Newport Beach lifeguards saved them. I also saw some photographers get hit by a wave, and I posted a video of it on Instagram this morning.

I was looking for photographs that really captured what is unique to The Wedge. You see a guy being thrown 20 feet above the air. Or, you see a huge flare of water sent up 60 feet into the air—that is a classic Wedge photo.

The Wedge is a really special wave. The wave breaks and then bounces off of the jetty, and when it pushes back out to sea it will sometimes hit an incoming wave and send the water up like a massive A-Frame. It’s extremely violent and heavy, and it is not easy for anyone to ride. The power of The Wedge isn’t something you see at many other surf breaks.

You can go to other surf spots and see consistent, beautiful waves. You can see people have great rides on those waves—they will do aerials, kick outs, get barrels over and over. That’s not The Wedge. What I love about The Wedge is that every wave is different, so every surfer’s takeoff and ride is varied. Because the wave is so tricky and inconsistent, the carnage you see in the water is next-level. And it happens so close to shore that everyone can see it.

At The Wedge you see surfers, bodyboarders, body surfers, and skimboarders. There’s always some tension between the surfers and the bodyboarders, but everyone finds a way to get along. There’s definitely a pecking order. There are Wedge regulars who are there every day, big waves or small, year after year. These riders are on top. There are also old-timers who have been riding The Wedge for 20 or 30 years. These two groups are at the top of the lineup. For the most part, everyone respects the pecking order. Because at The Wedge, if you don’t respect the wave and understand the pecking order, you might get hurt.

That said, people at The Wedge look out for each other. People can get hurt there—we’ve seen broken arms, legs, a broken back, and other bad accidents. When you look at who is first to the rescue, it’s usually the surfers and the bodyboarders who will help until the lifeguards get there.

I live three blocks from The Wedge, and start most of my days by walking down there to look at the waves. I’m a corporate geek by day, working for a big company, and I do the photography in my spare time. Nobody at my company knows that I spend as much time down at The Wedge as I do.

I don’t sell my photographs. I’m not in this to make money. I give my photographs to the surfers and to the kids when I get good ones. I give them my video clips for free. It’s more fun that way.

As told to Frederick Dreier. This interview was edited for space and clarity.