Sessions – Wakeboarding Mag

Sessions: Photo Gallery by Jeff Mathis

Andrea Gaytan — Fri, 12 Nov 2021 20:11:04 +0000

Jefferson W. Mathis aka @jeffshotthat, has established his name as one of the elite photographers in the industry in a very short time! Always around contests and events with a great attitude, time after time Jeff gets “the shot”. We’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. Enjoy!

Alex Graydon – spray – Lake Martin, AL – 8/4/20
Sometimes less is more, as was the case with this shot. Alex Graydon and I grew up together riding on Lake Martin, so obviously we go way back when it comes to wakeboarding. So when he got his first pro model, the Native from Slingshot, I was beyond stoked for him. For this shoot, I was up at my lake house for a bit last summer visiting my folks, but I knew I wanted to carve out some time to shoot some photos of him on his new board. We figured out a time and got out there. He had mentioned that he wanted to get something that showed off the flex tips of his board before we started shooting. We knocked out the session with plenty of awesome wake shots but as the light was getting close to being a bit too high to keep shooting, I suggested he cut out and lay back on the tail to get a cool spray shot before calling it quits. Well, he did and before I knew it, a rainbow started appearing behind him from all the spray. I framed him up, snapped off a few shots, and came up with something we were both really stoked about. Jeff Mathis

Brandon Harris – carve – West Rock Wake Park, IL – 9/14/20
I’ve only been to West Rock once and it was right as things were slowing down up there for the end of the season. Luckily, I was with a crew that didn’t mind braving the cold a bit. We set out one morning to get a solid batch of shots on all the various hacks we had throughout the park but before we got going, I wanted to get some clean carving photos right down the center of the run because the water was so glassy. I wanted to shoot from an elevated spot so as I climbed up the motor tower, I told Brandon Harris just to do some S-turns right down the middle and the result was exactly what I had envisioned. I feel like it really conveys the pure stoke that is riding a board on water. Jeff Mathis

Fynn Bullock – tsbs 1 late melan – Lake Fairview, FL – 5/13/20
One of my favorite things to do while shooting wake is floating out in the middle of the lake while the boat does laps around me. It’s one of those situations where I’m completely calm yet totally worried the entire time. What if the rider sprays me on accident? Or runs over me? Anything can happen when you’re out there. Luckily, riders like Fynn Bullock know what’s up and when you combine his style with the right spot, magic can happen. I’ve always loved this shot because the water splashes in all the right places covers up almost the entire frame except the spot that Fynn is poking through. When things like that come together, you gotta love it. Jeff Mathis

Guenther Oka – blur – Clear Lake, FL – 4/23/20
Guenther Oka has always been one of my favorite riders to work with not only because he’s insanely talented, but also because he’s such a humble dude that I can easily bounce ideas off of. I got this shot one evening on Clear Lake while Guenther was working on a video project for Liquid Force. He had this insane rail set up and while he was going back and forth, I thought I’d play around with some slow shutter/pan style shots and ended up coming away with this one. I had never really messed around with that style of shooting before so I was stoked on the result. Jeff Mathis

Jake Ramsdell – bs big flip – Battle Falls, FL – 1/31/18
Battle Falls is one of those special places in the sport that has seen a lot of NBD’s go down so when I got the call from Reed Hansen that he and Jake Ramsdell were going to go out for a session, I couldn’t turn them down. We arrived with plenty of light and with it being January at the time, we didn’t expect to be riding past sunset. But when the energy is up and the riders are knocking off tricks left and right, you don’t worry about the cold and you just keep shooting. This shot was one of the last we got that day and I really like it not only because of the moodiness of it being a night shot, but I love the way the flash on the water coupled with the silhouette of Jake and his board just play off each other. Jeff Mathis

JB O’Neill – overturned switch melan 1 – Blue Lake, FL – 3/27/21
Blue Lake is another one of those legendary locations in wakeboarding that if you get the invitation to shoot there, you just have to make it happen. This was also my first time really hanging out with JB. Everyone knows him for his YouTube channel and for being a “go big” guy. Well, that’s definitely true if you’ve ever watched any of his videos but you would also know that he has a ton of style as well. We were just wrapping up this sunset shoot when I asked JB to do a couple more of his overturned switch melan 180’s. That’s a pretty simple trick for him so once we were up to speed, he stretched one out and it just happened to be framed perfectly with the construction equipment on the beach and with the insane sunset we had, it turned out to be an absolute banger of a shot! Jeff Mathis

John Dreiling – method – Lake Hiawassee, FL – 4/13/20
If there’s one thing everyone knows about John Dreiling, it’s that he LOVES wakeboarding. It doesn’t matter if it’s behind a boat, a ski, a winch, a cable, or anything else that could pull a rider, if it has to do with wakeboarding, John will be there. So when the pandemic hit and all the cables were shut down, John did what any rider would do and got out behind a jet ski and hit some good old fashioned rails and kickers with the help of the Stuckey family. This method came from one of those sessions on Lake Hiawassee. There’s just something about a method with a flash in the middle of the night. Ya love to see it! Jeff Mathis

Maxime Giry – noseslide – Orlando, FL – 3/17/21
Maxime Giry is one of the most stylish dudes on a wakeskate out there today. You can’t argue with me on that. He happened to be in town earlier this year for a bit and although I didn’t get to shoot with him as much as I would have liked, I was still able to get up with him and Jake Ramsdell for a fun little winch session. This ledge is not too far from Jake’s place on Lake Holden and is the perfect height to lock into some technical moves. Max messed around with some board slides while I was dialing in my strobes and by the time he was warmed up, I was ready to go. A few hits later, we had this proper noseslide in the bag. What I really dig about this photo is how you can really see the skate nubs digging into the concrete and how Max is fully on his nose. It doesn’t get more legit than that! Jeff Mathis

Quinn Silvernale – switch fb – Valdosta Wake Compound, GA – 8/6/20
The Valdosta Wake Compound has always been like a second home to me and Quinn Silvernale has always been one the best dudes I’ve met in wakeboarding. I’ve watched VWC go from a dream to reality and it’s been awesome to see it happen. The 2.0 at VWC is infamous for being one of the best set ups at any wake park and it shows through the many videos and photos that come out of that place. For this shoot, we really had no plans of shooting at all. I was on my way back to Orlando from Lake Martin and I decided to break up my drive by stopping by the Compound. I pull in and after I say hi to everyone, Quinn tells me they just put a new tank over on the 2.0 that he’d been wanting to get a shot on. I immediately start pulling my gear out and get set up. It was about 3 pm so the sun was still pretty high and harsh so I knew I would need to light him up. We get the 2.0 running, pull a driver out of one of the campers, and get to it. A few hits later, we came away with this shot that has VWC vibes written all over it. Jeff Mathis

Taylor McCullough – bs indy – Blue Lake, FL – 3/27/21
This is another shot from the Blue Lake trip that I just absolutely love. I’ve known Taylor McCullough for a while now and she rips. Period. She’s always had plenty of style which makes shooting with her enjoyable. This was such a dope shoot not only because we got an amazing sunset but because we had already been out on the boat all day riding, surfing, foiling, and just chilling with our crew. To top it off with an awesome sunset shoot was just the icing on the cake! It really doesn’t get much better than that in my opinion. Jeff Mathis

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Sessions: Photo Gallery by Bryan Soderlind

Chase Heavener, Captions by Bryan Soderlind — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 17:01:00 +0000

“Any attempt to rattle-off Bear’s accomplishments as a photographer would be hard to fit onto a single page, but, to me, listing his achievements wouldn’t be the best way to describe what separates Bear from the rest. It’s that photography feels like Bear’s art. It feels like the medium he has chosen to leave his mark on the world. Even now, after what are probably hundreds of thousands of photos taken, you still see his passion for his art form. Every time I see his images, I think, “How did he do that!?”. And while the short answer to that question is hard work, determination, and persistence, the real answer is that intangible Bear magic he brings to every shoot, and the wisdom that only comes from decades of working on his craft. So, when thinking about all the iconic images Bear has created over the years, what makes those images distinctly his, are the way he translates what can’t be put into words, into images that define a moment perfectly.” – Chase Heavener

Parks Bonifay / 9/3/2020 / Lake Minnehaha
Parks and I had this idea to shoot a long lens (400mm) from his front porch through the spanish moss about 4 years ago. Finally last September we finally rallied early one morning to get this one footer shot with Rusty Malinoski pulling him behind a Sea-Doo. I stayed on Park’s front porch and enjoyed my coffee, easiest shoot I’ve done in awhile! @thegoldenbear

Brandon and Josh Harris / 1/28/2021 / Lake Ronix
Brandon and Josh Harris sessioning my old pontoon boat for Ronix’s “Toon On, Too In, Toon Out” edit. The “Twins” as they are known around “The Lake” (Lake Ronix) are always creative and a little crazy with their riding. Their video edits are always a must see cause you know they are putting it on the line. @thegoldenbear

Massi Piffa / 1/28/2021 / Lake Ronix
Massi with another unique hit on the pontoon boat out at Lake Ronix. He is always proving himself as one of the most well rounded riders. These nose grab stalls took perfect timing from the cable driver and Massi, after a few tries the pizza boy nailed this shot and then quickly got yanked all the way back to the water. @thegoldenbear

Guenther Oka / 3/5/2021 / Bridge City, TX
On a recent trip searching for tanker waves with Sea-Doo we came across these perfect pillars. Guenther was ready to ride his foil since the plan was to catch a tanker wave going past the bridge but no ships showed up. Guenther strapped in his wakeboard and made the best of the situation by front-boarding one of the pillars of the tallest bridge in Texas! @thegoldenbear

Brian Grubb / 3/6/2021 / Galveston Bay, TX
Foiling is fun behind a boat but it is even better behind a ship! Brian Grubb foils down the line of a container ship wave swelling up on the shoals of Galveston Bay. Grubb may hold the record for some of the longest rides as this trip we chased him on the Sea-Doo for miles as he glided till his legs burned out. @thegoldenbear

Travis Doran / 3/8/21 / Lake City, FL
This winch spot is one of two natural waterfalls in Florida. I’ve been here a few times over the years and knew it could be too big to hit on a wakeskate for most. Travis is one of the heaviest wakeskaters and for him it’s a spot to bust out some tricks. Check out the new Space Mob Coalition Movie when it drops later this year to see what tricks Travis pulled at this spot! @thegoldenbear

Crosse Bearden / 3/8/2021 / Valdosta, GA
Valdosta Wake Compound is always one of my favorite places to shoot. Making ideas happen with the crew is always easy, Crosse and I got this photo relatively quick one morning. Quinn was using these cages for another shoot so Crosse I borrowed them real quick and I crawled inside. @thegoldenbear

Quinn Silvernale / 3/8/2021 / Valdosta, GA
Quinn Silvernale nose tapping his Space Mob board on a sign setup at VWC. I was pumped on the water coming off his board on this one! @thegoldenbear

Wesley Jacobsen / 3/8/2021 / Valdosta, GA
Wes nose tapping the mini brush guard on his van. It’s become a tradition to involve all kinds of vehicles when shooting at VWC so when Wes got his newly imported Toyota Van we had to park it under the cable. I’m always happy when we can work an alien and a dog into a wakeboard shot too! @thegoldenbear

Crosse Bearden / 3/8/2021 / Valdosta, GA
Crosse has all kinds of flow and style but he’ll also charge some big gnarley hits. This back nose-slide on the container at VWC has about a 12 foot drop after and if you miss the container you are in trouble. He pulled several of these off perfect like only “Craw” can! @thegoldenbear

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Sessions – Bear Day at Valdosta Wake Compound

Wakeboarding Magazine — Sat, 11 Jan 2020 02:35:57 +0000

November 20, 2019 was Bear Day. So the crew at Valdosta Wake Compound did the smart thing and hung out with the baddest bear around: the 2019 Wake Awards Photographer of the Year, Bryan “Golden Bear” Soderlind. While video might be king these days, there is something special about freezing a moment in time via still photo. Fortunately, Bear is smarter than the average bear, and the crew decided to mix the two into one project. Below you’ll see not only the action-packed and fun-filled photos, but also the video – with the photos integrated into the motion aspect. It is a unique look at the unique styles of the Space Mob crew, and what makes VWC an iconic wake park.

Dary Znebel found himself hand-dragging across Bear’s classic Thunderbird, and onto the first Cover Up of 2020. Bryan Soderlind

Wes Jacobsen with the Space Mob board from Slingshot and some custom nubs for epic blunt slides like this. Bryan Soderlind

Quinn Silvernale: fully dressed for some dirty work. Bryan Soderlind

Sina Fuchs holding her own on VWC’s unique rail setups. Bryan Soderlind

Up close and personal with Quinn Silvernale’s hand-drag. Bryan Soderlind

Constanza Scaglia tail-sliding through VWC. Bryan Soderlind

Powersliding with Wes. Bryan Soderlind

Lawn maintenance at VWC is different than most other places. Dary Znebel helps with the upkeep. Bryan Soderlind

Wes pressing out the tail end of the unique Space Mob board. Bryan Soderlind

Dary and the T-Bird #1. Bryan Soderlind

Dary and the T-Bird #2. Bryan Soderlind

Dary and the T-Bird #3. Bryan Soderlind

Dary and the T-Bird #4. Bryan Soderlind

Space Mob: take us to your leader. Bryan Soderlind

Dawn patrol at VWC. Bryan Soderlind

Gone to the birds. Bryan Soderlind

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Sessions – Summer Shredding

Garrett Cortese — Mon, 01 Jul 2019 22:25:48 +0000

Check out the latest Sessions gallery, featuring some of the best riders and photographers out there. Whether it’s out on the Dirty Delta with the incomparable Josh Twelker, or young Aussie Sam Brown connecting with longtime wake photographer Chris Garrison, we’ve got you covered with this latest gallery.

Backyard tweaking courtesy of Shota Tezuka. Chris Garrison

Making the simple look awesome: Tyler Higham’s tail grab. Garrett Cortese

Dad life for Derek Cook is different than most dads. Double ups are still served and blasted off of regularly. Bryan Soderlind

Shane Bonifay getting back to his roots – and his backyard’s roots – in the Clear Lake rail park. Bradlee Rutledge

Don’t tempt Tony Carroll with some glassy water and a GoPro in his grill, he’ll shred every time. Garrett Cortese

At just 16, Sam Brown is already comfortable in front of the spotlight. Chris Garrison

Jake Pelot is often called “Old Reliable.” We just wish we could rely on the ability to regularly tweak a stalefish grab like this. Garrett Cortese

Safety is always first with Jamie Lopina. That, and style. Seatbelt grab, done right. Bryan Soderlind

Another Delta daze with resident style guru Josh Twelker. Garrett Cortese

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The Photo Issue – Fall 2017

Wakeboarding Staff — Tue, 14 Nov 2017 01:34:25 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the images from The Photo Issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Erik Ruck
Orlando, Florida Bryan Soderlind

Shota Tezuka
Lake Biwa, Japan Chris Garrison

Quinn Silvernale Jeff Mathis

Cory Teunissen
Lake Jessamine, Florida Rodrigo Donoso

Tobi Rittig
VWC, Georgia Bryan Soderlind

Parks Bonifay Bryan Soderlind

Parks Bonifay
Clermont, Florida Bryan Soderlind

Felix Georgii
Area 47, Austria Mahallia Budds

Daniel Grant
VWC, Georgia Rodrigo Donoso

Brian Grubb Bryan Soderlind

Brian Grubb
North Shore, Hawaii Bryan Soderlind

Jeff Langley
Secret Lake, North Carolina Chris Garrison

Trever Maur
Antioch, California Rodrigo Donoso

Tyler Higham
The Delta, California Rodrigo Donoso

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Sessions – August 2017

Wakeboarding Magazine — Thu, 05 Oct 2017 02:16:06 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the Sessions photos from our August 2017 issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Gordon Harrison
Tail grab
Lake Conway, FL Tyler Soden

Rusty Malinoski
Stalefish roll to blind
Orlando, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Austin Pratt
Landslide
Valdosta, GA Rodrigo Donoso

Nico von Lerchenfeld
Nose press Valdosta, GA Rodrigo Donoso

Cody Hesse
Nuclear tantrum to blind
Lake Holden, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Brenton Priestley
Switch mute 360
Orlando, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Derek Cook
Rope toss
Bimini, The Bahamas Bryan Soderlind

Aaron Gunn
Death Star tap
Valdosta, GA Rodrigo Donoso

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Sessions – July 2017

Wakeboarding Magazine — Thu, 31 Aug 2017 22:51:22 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the Sessions photos from our July 2017 issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Nic Rapa
Stalefish backside 360
Lake Ariana, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Raph Derome
Method
Lake Susan, FL Bryan Soderlind

Bob Sichel
Frontside wallride
Orlando, FL Bryan Soderlind

Trever Maur
50-50
Antioch, CA Rodrigo Donoso

Trever Maur
Antioch, CA Rodrigo Donoso

Derek Cook
Switch backside 180 to method
Lake Holden, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Cobe France
Indy tuck knee
Lake Jessamine, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Tony Iacconi
Tail grab front flip to blind
Lake Ariana, FL Rodrigo Donoso

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Sessions – May 2017

Wakeboarding Magazine — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 22:50:57 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the Sessions photos from our May 2017 issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Danny Harf
Frontside carve
Lake Minnehaha, FL Aaron Rathy

Raph Derome
Wall ride to indy tantrum
Area 52, FL Jason Lee

Daniel Miles
Indy grab
Lake Ellenor, FL Sean O’Brien

Steel Lafferty
How bout dah method
Lake Conway, FL Tyler Soden

Mike Belligain
One-foot indy 360
Discovery Bay, CA Rodrigo Donoso

Tyler Higham
Melon back roll
Lake Minnehaha, FL Garrett Cortese

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Sessions – March/April 2017

Wakeboarding Magazine — Tue, 28 Mar 2017 04:28:30 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the Sessions photos from our March/April 2017 issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Brian Grubb
Nosebone
Lake Jessamine, FL Rodrigo Donoso

Quinn Silvernale
Indy 50-50
Valdosta Wake Compound, GA Bryan Soderlind

Shawn Watson
Nose grab backside 180
Lake Hiawassee, FL Jason Lee

Jeff Langley
Method
Clear Lake, FL Jason Lee

Chad Sharpe
Back lip tail
Lake Ronix, FL Bryan Soderlind

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Sessions – Fall 2016

Wakeboarding Magazine — Thu, 22 Dec 2016 01:41:45 +0000

For those of you who don’t subscribe to the magazine… Well, you should! Take a look at the Sessions photos from our Fall 2016 issue, and you’ll quickly see why. A big shout out to the riders and photographers that put these captured moments together. Enjoy!

Tyler Higham
Melon roll to revert
The Delta, CA Rodrigo Donoso

Nick Taylor
Backside 180
Live Oak, FL Bryan Soderlind

Josh Twelker
Indy shifty
The Delta, CA Rodrigo Donoso

Shane Bonifay
Toeside stalefish
Orlando, FL Joey Meddock

Cory Teunissen
Mute 180 overturn
Orlando, FL Bryan Soderlind

Massi Piffaretti
Indy tuck knee
Belle Isle, FL Bryan Soderlind

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