Folly Surf Photography

Little Bit of Eta

2020-11-21T19:42:00.003-05:00

I was really torn between riding my new board on some actual waves and shooting. Riding my new board mostly won. Here are a few early morning shots before I jumped in the water. I also made an Instagram give it a follow because I'll be posting there a ton. @follysurf.blogspot

Hurricane Epsilon meh....It's been a while............

2020-10-29T09:59:00.001-04:00

Hi. I'll be posting more often again. Conditions weren't great for the Hurricane Epsilon swell but here's what I got.

Mex 1 6th Year Anniversary Snowboard Rail Jam Party!

2019-01-13T19:32:00.000-05:00

For the past several years Holy City Events has teamed up with Mex 1 Coastal Cantina in West Ashley to host their annual Snowboard Rail Jam. It was such a blast being able to cover the event. Thank you Morgan, Chad, and Mex 1 for a great night and show! If you'd like a print or a flash drive of photos please contact me via mcassidy.cofc @ gmail.com for more details.

The two shotcallers and Chad's lightshow. He likes lasers.

Chad likes lasers. Did I mention that already?

Waivers next year?

Deff one of the hardest and stylish riders of the event but even the best eat rail from time to time.

Positive every other photographers flash fired at the same time for this photo. Lit like a stadium.

How yo photos look?

Huckin' flips.

Landing flips with one leg. Dafuq you doing?

EDIT 1: Adding more photos below.

Back Again Saturday Waves

2018-11-24T18:16:00.000-05:00

Aviation photography consumes most of my time these days but when the airplanes are on vacation I head to the beach. All below photos are from Saturday 11-24-18.

Follyhood is that you??? Kinda looks like Justin I dunno tho.

SEWE

2018-02-17T22:41:00.001-05:00

Ayo. Went to SEWE and took a pic of a hawk.

No surf so I like taking pictures of things that fly or move fast.

Mike C

I'll Never Shop at eDigital Again and Sk8 Charleston

2018-02-04T17:18:00.001-05:00

Long story short...I had to send everything back I bought from eDigital. The camera, the lens, battery grip, everything. Lens was damaged, camera sensor was faulty (spot on images), missing manuals, terrible service etc. They accepted my return and I said screw it and bought even better equipment.

Scroll down to the bottom for more details about how shady eDigital is.

We haven't been getting much surf so I went to the Sk8 Charleston! Now, I'm not too keen on action night photography yet but I promise I'll get better at it! Please, if you know the guys in the shots, let them know where to find themselves. I'll deff be going back!

My Instagram for instant updates for where I am and when I post new content.

Once I figure out how to make gifs without imgflip the quality will be much higher

Thanks Sk8 Charleston and the skaters who gave me something to shoot.

Mike C

They sent the camera and lens separately which doesn't seem like a big deal but a lens that is over a G, supposedly lost in shipping isn't a good feeling. Never once did they answer my phone calls and I had to get Amazon involved for them to answer my emails. Eventually they sent me an email with the tracking number the day it arrived. Trash. Whatever.

Look how damaged the lens box was....

You can see the further edge of the box is crushed as well. The lens box was put into another box that had one slim sheet of bubble wrap on top of it. Bush league.

Here's how the packaged the camera. Listen if this all cost me $10 I wouldn't give a shit but this is sensitive camera equipment come on.

Another super thin sheet of bubble wrap was placed on top for whatever reason.

To wrap things up I got a full refund from them which remarkably was the easiest part of this whole ordeal and I purchased everything from Amazon directly which was a much nicer experience.

The Whole Setup is Here!

2018-01-09T22:15:00.000-05:00

eDigital is still a shady company in my eyes. They literally gave me 7 word emails regarding my missing items. Thankfully everything arrived....only one thing though. The packaging was so trash. All the edges of every box are crushed to some degree. I'm really thinking of sending it all back but I'm super stoked to have everything I may just say screw it and keep it all. I inspected everything pretty thoroughly and there's no physical damage to the lens of camera. So we good to go. Cya at the beach soon.

MikeC

Sending Camera Back

2018-01-05T14:33:00.000-05:00

eDigital USA (Amazon Seller) sent me the completely wrong order and they are the most difficult people to get in touch with. I'm not saying don't order anything from them on Amazon but be extremely careful when you do. This has been a nightmare.

UPDATE 1: Here's everything that's missing that I ordered:

An invoice or receipt. Yup they didn't even send me any kind of paperwork.
Nikon 200-500 Lens = Missing
Nikon Battery Pack = Missing
2 Sony Memory Cards = Missing
Extra Camera Battery = Missing

Also the packaging was very suspect. Many small accessories were loose. The box they shipped the camera in was nearly the same size as the Nikon camera box. There was only room for a thin layer of bubble wrap one ONE SIDE of the box. That's how small this shipping box was.

In all, over $2000.00 worth or product is missing from my order. It completely blows my mind they didn't even send an invoice.

Just a few minutes ago I got off the phone with Amazon Concierge Care and they were extremely helpful. Now I need to wait for eDigital to contact me back. Their policy is 2 business days to get back in touch with customers. Guess I'm waiting till next week.....

MASSIVE UPDATE

2017-12-25T20:52:00.001-05:00

EDIT 1 12/28: Camera isn't arriving until tomorrow (12/29). Another issues is I'm working 8a-8P and the cam has to be signed for. ugh..... I'm trying to get it sent to the FedEx Ship Center so I can pick it up on my lunch break.

I said screw it and dropped a ton of money on a new set up. Everything is coming in on the 28th this month! If you look at my last post I claimed the same thing but ran into some major issues that I don't want to talk about. We're all good now and we'll be perfect on the 28th when my new setup comes in!!! Take a look at the pic below so see whats coming in!!!!!!! So pumped up!

Nike D500 with a 200-500mm and Grip

(Bought another lens as well not pictured)

Cya at the beach soon!

MikeC

It's Been Way too Long

2015-12-14T13:53:00.002-05:00

Almost 6 years ago to the day I started Folly Surf Photography. I was only one of two other surf photographers on the beach. You probably don't even know their names. It was a different time. Once the blog got some traction a lot of other people grabbed a camera and began to shoot. Now we have a small handful of really great photographers. You know who you are and you guys probably know their names. I'm happy to say it's been awesome to witness how far the local photography scene has come.

On average I still get 1000 views per week. No idea why because ever since my camera got stolen way back in 2013 I haven't posted shit. I took some serious time off from everything when that happened.

But a big change is about to come once again to Folly. Remember how I put the Washout on Surfline, Surfer, and The Surfers Journal? Be patient, I'm coming back.

I can't wait to start taking more photos like this. Hurricane Earl September 2010.

MikeC

My Camera Has Been Stolen

2013-06-19T15:22:00.001-04:00

Someone came into my house stole my camera, hard drive, lenses, and PS3. If anyone has any info please contact the police.

The thing I really want back is my camera

It's a Nikon D800

MikeC

Oh Hey!

2013-06-03T20:37:00.000-04:00

I'm still alive. It's finally warm. And I've surfed for the past 5 days in a row. What? Kind of amazing duh. So in honor of the first Tropical Invest this season I decided to come out of blog hiding. Although I kinda wish I brought my camera out to the beach today so I coudl put a picture up but the rain put a damper on things.

Tomorrow I want to take a few shots. If anyone wants to donate me a 70-200 Nikon lens I'd love that. Hey, it's worth a try.

MikeC

Waves

2013-04-08T01:20:00.001-04:00

I've been in a blah mood lately. I don't feel like writing anything either.

MikeC

Worst Winter Ever...for Surfing

2013-03-29T01:13:00.001-04:00

Sure we've had some waves this winter. Four swells if you even want to call them that? Bunch of bull. I've been doing some other things. Like bowling. Riddle me that. It's been so flat I joined a bowling league. I'm lame? No I'm not. I bowled a 275 the other day. So you cool kids may be better surfers than me but I got bowling on you. And yeah I still take pictures.

Here's something I did last weekend you may like.

Firstly if you haven't been to The Alley downtown you should go. It just got voted best bowling alley.

Last weekend they hosted Las Olas's Hydration Swimwear Show and of course I was there to document it.

Oh yeah I made a video too.

MikeC

Took a Little Break as Usual

2013-01-05T16:58:00.000-05:00

Yeah I know, I've been slack the past month. But to be honest though, the waves have really sucked. We might be getting back into the swing of things later next week. And sure I'll take some pictures, I kinda miss it.

Few that I've dug up.

MikeC

....Tropical Season Isn't Over

2012-10-21T21:36:00.001-04:00

Courtesy of Rafael

MikeC

Told You it'd be Clean...

2012-09-19T23:15:00.001-04:00

...Just didn't tell you it was going to be a mush fest. I always catch myself saying 'nonetheless' when describing the surf at Folly because at least one thing is constantly out of wack. Whether it be the wind, power, tide, STUPID BUGS, backwash, jellies, foam boarders...., I could go on and on. I really need to surf a proper wave.

MikeC

Leslie has Kept Me Busy

2012-09-08T18:37:00.000-04:00

I took the time today to cruise around to different spots along the coast to find a semi off-shore spot for this blazing SW wind and overall it was a complete fail like every other time I've tried to search for that "secret spot." It is non-existent by car.

Yesterday we saw some light offshore winds which opened up some barrels. Enjoy and go look on Magicseaweed and Surfline's Leslie Part 2 feature. You'll see The Washout all over the place.

MikeC

Leslie Barrels Galore

2012-09-07T00:30:00.003-04:00

I just got off work and I don't feel like putting together sequences maybe tomorrow.

Winds went offshore today right around 930 and it got super fun. Don't believe me? Just look at the shots.

Tomorrow looks like round 2 barrel fest.

If you haven't understood the concept of good and bad lighting, consider this. Notice how the colors pop and the photo just has a crisper feel when I have my lens pointed away from the sun? So if you see me on the beach and you think you got enough game then set yourself up away from the sun.

All the yellow spots you probably didn't notice are just butterfly's...

MikeC

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Leslie Continues with Less than Ideal Conditions

2012-09-05T22:09:00.003-04:00

Well I didn't have work today so my hopes were up I could at least see one glassy part of the day. Again I defer to my most popular phrase here on the blog, "Folly never ceases to disappoint me." Wind blew from dawn till dusk.

Bright side is that my new lens came in today. But when it's windy like this it whips up all kinds of shit in the air including the most annoying haze/mist. It gets on the lens, makes everything brighter, and pisses me off.

Winds are forecasted to be 3 mph out of the west Thursday morning. Sure.

That is all for now...

Did you notice something new I did? Go back and look at the 2 "one color" shots. Getting artistic in this b.

If you're wondering, "Why are all the same people always on the blog wahh wahh!!???" It's probably because you suck at surfing. Listen, don't take it the wrong way, I wouldn't take a picture of myself either. Same principal that the magazines have. People want to see action. They don't want to see you riding down the wave in your safety stance.

MikeC

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Las Olas Show and NEW LENS COMING!

2012-09-03T00:32:00.001-04:00

The lighting was absolutely horrendous in the back of Juanita's as you can figure. No flash during runway shows so it was real tough getting acceptable photos (only true boss photographers adhere to this rule, all others are sub-humans). And there was this weird light pointed at the models legs that made them look half Avatar half human. Weird colors all over the place. All in all I was able to salvage most.

To see the rest of the photos go to Folly Surf Photography on Facebook and LIKE the page!!

And I bought a new LENS!!!!!!!!!! It is coming Wednesday just in time for the swell. I'm really excited so you kooks better be ripping cause I'm bustin shots and shootin video. Let's get it.

Oh it's a Nikon 70-200 VR. And I'm coppin a TCE-20 III teleconverter so I can morph it into a 400mm. BOSS SHIT.

MikeC

LAS OLAS FASHION SHOW TONIGHT

2012-09-01T16:24:00.002-04:00

TONIGHT LAS OLAS PRESENTS

AT JUANITAS DOWNTOWN

I'll be posting a handful of pictures from the show here and all of the looks on FACEBOOK. LIKE THE PAGE!!

Oh and by the way, waves are on the way. Looks like Leslie might just stall right off our coast for a few days. Local winds better shape up.

MikeC

Leslie's Outlook: Second Half of Season Poised to Deliver

2012-08-31T13:58:00.003-04:00

Leslie and Kirk Satellite

Redemption for this lackluster season could be arriving as soon as Tuesday next week for us. Model consensus is steering Leslie West and then begins to shift on a more WNW track as the Atlantic ridge weakens. Depending on the strength of this ridge will determine the size of the surf. A weaker ridge will allow Leslie to slowly curve NW in between Bermuda and the Eastern Seaboard. If the ridge is stronger she will curve North closer Bermuda. Either way we are expected to see a long period ground swell impacting much of the coast next week due to Leslie steadily strengthening and her trot Westward.

Here’s a scenario to look forward to.

Leslie is moving at a quick 15+ knots as of right now. But as she begins to interact with the ridge to the North of her more and more, she will slow gradually. Many of the computer models have her coming to a near dead stop nearly parallel to Folly Beach….and even strengthening while she lays. If that happens do I even need to say the rest?

Once she stalls out on Wednesday it's a toss up where she is going to fly off too. The ensemble models show how confused the computers are post day 5.

MikeC

Coming Up on the Halfway Point

2012-08-29T12:35:00.002-04:00

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK!!!!

We had a great response yesterday as our first day up so let's keep it going! Loving the support!

Isaac wasn't the best but he definitely made his presence known at select times. Leftovers were found this morning and it was so boring out there that little guy above kept me preoccupied during the lulls.

Below was pretty much all that was left over.

Bye bye Isaac, hello second half of the season. September 1st marks the halfway point of hurricane season and even though we've had the crappiest season I can remember we still have 3 months to go.

Here's what forecasters are watching now.

Hurricane Isaac

Currently producing swell for basically the whole Gulf region but he's making life very difficult in Louisiana which is more concerning. Levee's have been breached, power has been cut, and water rescues are already underway. They don't need another direct hit.

http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/story/2012-08-29/hurricane-isaac-wednesday/57401670/1

Tropical Storm Kirk

Kirk will do nothing for anyone. Models are showing Kirk head West but recurve dramatically to the N/NE. Bermuda won't even get sizable waves.

Invest 98

Right now 98 is our best bet for waves. 98 is barely off the coast of Africa and is having a tough time with some dry air but it's going to take 2+ weeks before we have any idea whether or not well get waves.

This pattern is starting to piss me off. But there is still much uncertainty as you can see by the models.

MikeC

Side note:

If you have noticed a decrease in quality of my pictures it's because I am saving up for a better one. Probably the Nikon 70-200. I procrastinate because I'm forking out an ass load of freaking money. The lens I'm currently using now; well let's just put it this way, I wouldn't sell it to anyone because it's such a piece of 'ish.

I promise next swell I'll have the 70-200. I'll just be banging my head against the sand 'cause I just spent 2 stacks.

Isaac Monday

2012-08-27T21:33:00.001-04:00

Just launched the Facebook page!!

Make sure you click the LIKE button!!

Folly Surf Photography on Facebook

THANKS!!!!

Although there was more size today the wind and tide were complicating things. Pictures were taking late this afternoon.

I am going to start a website someday with a title that goes something like, "Can I Park Here?" Because it seems like a lot of people on Folly have no idea how to read or follow traffic rules. Can't blame it on the alcohol anymore!

MikeC