Possibly the most important ingredient to taking a good surf photo, timing is crucial. Always try and take the photo at the most critical point of a wave or surfers manoeuvre. It helps to have a camera that has a high FPS (frames per second) ability, around 6 fps or higher is good.

How you utilise light in your photo can be the difference between having an exciting and dramatic photo compared to a dull, boring photo. Always try to look for ways that light can highlight the surfer or a manoeuvre. Shooting at sunrise or sunset can always present interesting light setups.

A lot of people start off shooting as zoomed in as possible, however if you pull back a little and try get some features of the landscape such as foreground or a backdrop in your shots it can help to create a more interesting and dynamic photo.

Always look for an angle that will show the full potential of a manoeuvre or wave. For example a barrel shot taken from straight on will look flat, where as if you shoot at a 45 degree angle to the wave you will be able to see the rider in the barrel.

If your image or the surfer in your photo is out of focus, then its not a good image no matter how good the lighting is, or how creative you have been. Use the AI Servo mode or focus-tracking mode on your camera to follow the surfer making sure you get them in focus throughout the entirety of the wave.