It's All About The Pull Quote

 A dance does not take place on the ground. It takes place in the air. And yes - all my words are second-hand, including those ones (but excluding the ones I make up myself).

The point being, as it says in the red pull quote (the "looks a bit like Dymo tape" part) :

"The quality and efficacy of every stroke that we take has largely been dictated before that blade ever enters the water"

I've just submitted my words and pictures for issue 156 of Canoe & Kayak UK, and in doing so realised that I'd forgotten to share with you this offering that's in #155, and already on the streets, coffee tables and in some cases perhaps fires. It doesn't have made up words in it, but I was very pleased with finally finding an opportunity to use "efficacy", and "elegant-ish" seems to have slipped past the editor as well.

I'm not allowed to tell you what's in the forthcoming edition, but it will contain more than its fair share of controversy, by dint of my disagreement with the fundamental tenets of almost everyone's paddling faith. And a disproportionate amount of nail polish, for a sports magazine. The Ed did say it was a "cracking read", though, which following hard on the heels of him labelling me an "aquatic alchemist", seems to me to call for a bottle of something bubbly.

I'm not entirely comfortable with the use of "quote" as a noun. It irks me almost but not quite as much as when people use "invite" to mean "invitation". But I have just Googled it, and apparently it's acceptable to all but the overly formal. And who am I to talk, so dedicated to Oxford commas, and starting sentences with all the things one shouldn't?

Another fine DPS...

Photo - Bjorn Thomassen © Haynes Publishing Ltd

It is a truth commonly acknowledged that the first thing you should see when you open a book is some pretty girls in bikinis. OK, maybe it isn't. But it is a common truth that kayaking books don't have enough girls in them, and that too many of the people of either gender are wearing a lot of unflattering clothing and equipment, which is no way to sell anything, especially an entire sport. And the fact is, indubitably and despite what the expert whitewater self-publicists would have you think, the majority of actual paddling that takes place in the entire world takes place wearing only swimwear.

My challenge, then, was to reflect that without incurring the wrath and ire of those who think you should never venture afloat without a lifejacket and a helmet on. Or the snide remarks of those who, for whatever reason, think that any attempt to make kayaking look sexy is in some way offensive. Frankly, it offends me when it isn't. This double page spread in the Haynes Kayaking Manual, predictably, has caused quite a lot of comment. Most of those comments have been something like "Well, I bet you enjoyed that photo-shoot". As if I have to engineer some sort of complex ruse when I want to look at girls in bikinis. That is what the internet is for.

Actually, I'm not sure I did enjoy the photo-shoot. It's nice when a kayaking photo-shoot involves more kayaking than it does carrying stuff a very long way to the location, but that rarely happens. I remember on this occasion I was exhausted and close to tears before I even unloaded the kit from the van. And then we had to carry it a very long way to the water. It's a miracle that the girls look as though they're having a good time, because it was freezing cold and very windy. Bjorn, the photographer, was soaking wet from standing in a river to get the right angle for the shots. The same river that I allowed his very expensive reflector to blow into because I was temporarily distracted by something. I forget what.

All in all, the scene behind the scenes was not as happy or as pretty as the images it created, or the people in them. But whatever. That's the way it goes. More often than not.

© Nookie Waterwear And Apparel

The photos have gone on to be popular with the sponsors who helped to make them possible, with Nookie using them in web content and on their show stands, as well as Kober paddles and Tootega kayaks.

© Haynes Publishing Ltd

And this one definitely lifts the overall feel of the book from the macho, body-armoured front cover shot (pictured below) to the tanned and happy photo that confronts the reader on opening the tome. So, difficult and stressful though it was to make the shoot happen, I'd happily have done more of them if it had been practical to use those kind of images more.

The other group whose wrath I feared was the pseudo-feminist "You're only using these images cynically to sell your book" campaign. Of course, the truth is, these ladies are not exactly paddling. They are, heaven forbid, having fun though. If they were semi- or more-naked and pretending to scout a waterfall, as some do, that might be seen as contrived. Or perhaps not. So far, anyway, I haven't had more than slightly raised eyebrows, rather than the online flaming I was expecting, but my prepared response stands... all over the world, pretty girls are at the beach wearing bikinis. Some of them go kayaking. It's not weird, or wrong.

Photo © Bjorn Thomassen

Behind The Scenes 2

I should know by now that time and tide wait for no man - photo Bjorn Thomassen

   Another of the lifestyle DPS's (Double Page Spread) for the Haynes Kayaking Manual featured a cheerful group of sea kayakers, ostensibly setting up camp / making a brew in a picturesque rocky cove. These lifestyle pics are part of a strategy to make the book "feel" good throughout, to tie together the 400 or so action shots and the less dynamic equipment photos. There are only six of them, but since they run full-bleed across two pages each, they have a big impact on your first impressions of the book when you pick it up. I judged this to be important, but time will tell whether it makes the positive difference I'm hoping for...

© Haynes Publishing Ltd - photo Bjorn Thomassen - Valley Sea Kayaks

The location, a gully on Cot Valley beach in Cornwall, was chosen by photographer Bjorn Thomassen for its spectacular rock formations and gigantic mega-pebbles. Less so for its for ease of access while manhandling composite sea kayaks, as there is no path into the gully, but we are no strangers to adversity. As well as the four of us in the photo, there was just Bjorn, assisted for the day by awesome Swedish photographer Jeanette Svensson. But as always everyone just mucked in and lifted and carried stuff. And there was a lot of stuff. Portable studio lights from Elinchrom and The Flash Centre. That's three Elinchrom Quadras with their diffusers and stands, plus two giant folding California Sunbounce reflectors, battery packs, cameras, spares, stuff to keep it dry... Frankly it wouldn't have been possible to get the job done in the tide/weather window of about six hours without the super-portable power packs and lighting equipment, unless we'd had a separate rigging team.

The Valley Sea Kayaks and bags of Nookie gear had to be ferried down steep rocks onto the beach. Normally I'm one for throwing these durable kitbags wherever possible, but by some bad planning I wasn't sure which bags contained photographic equipment as well as clothing! And the kayaks themselves, though far from fragile, are too valuable to scrape and drag. So getting everything to the location took a while, although not as long as paddling there would have done. In another twist of fate, we were all in bare feet. I'm really not sure why that happened, and suspect incompetence on my part. I can see at least one pair of shoes in the final photo! Sometimes there is just too much to think about...

Model Chanelle, completely unfazed by being used as a porter

The Kayaking Manual has been on the streets for over a month now, and bandied around the various social media for longer than that. That photo is, so far, the only image that I've received significant grief over. Some paddlers felt that the models looked too tanned, warm and happy, and that this didn't reflect their idea of kayaking. And a couple of people thought it was a bad thing that they look like models. Sorry... The thing is, all four of the people in the shot actually are models. The fact that three of them also happen to be kayakers is kind of by the by. They were selected for the fact that they look outdoorsy and sporty, but more importantly that they can stand stand around all day getting windblown, wet, cold and hungry and still be able to smile and look good!

Models Russell and Jade also did the lifting and carrying

Some other comments:
 
'...a bit too fake for my taste, perfect hairdos, spiffy clean clothes, shiny kayaks, even the rocks are clean...'

'I would not have my composite boats on rocks like that...'

"...none of my friends and I go on a trip with coordinated tops and shorts."



That last one did amuse me a bit, because most of my friends do ;)

Interestingly, The Expeditioners Magazine sent a positive message about how much they liked the photo when we shared it on Facebook. Perhaps because they too are real kayakers, but as committed as I am trying to make travel look attractive and not like some sort of trial...

Russell takes the plunge...

 Of course, part of the mission was to feature the boats from Valley Sea Kayaks and the neoprene and thermals from Nookie. I can't get all the photos for a book like this without the help of sponsors. That's why everyone's wearing matching gear - it all comes from the same manufacturer, and the sub-plot here was to get them some catalogue shots in return for the equipment. The paddles are all from the German manufacturer Kober. The boats, while all Valley, have a bit more variety, but I still don't understand the criticism that they're "too shiny". My boats get dusty and muddy in the back garden, but they tend to get very clean in the water.
What these pics really show is the massive difference between photos of how the location really looked (mine) and the ones Bjorn lit carefully with the Elinchrom gear and shot on the top cameras and lenses from Canon. It's like pumping a little magic into the shot. And that's what I wanted... I do understand the criticisms of those who'd prefer to see grittier pics, perhaps of unhealthy looking people being cold and miserable, but I don't think that's going to sell as many books! That's it until the next instalment. Have fun, and don't forget to breathe.

Models look on as Bjorn positions lights and kayaks. Look at the difference in light and texture in the next photo!

Another of Bjorn's shots from the same set that was used in the back inside cover spread of the book. I love all the different compositional elements of this photo, it's more of an art shot than a lifestyle one.

Val Sesia Kayaking 2013

I won't be there. Last year was a hoot - sunshine on green and white water, and good friends from the kayaking industry that I hadn't see for a while. It was my first time at this annual gathering and I thought of making it a regular fixture, but this year other work and social commitments take precedence. I'll be thinking of all you crazy people hucking in the sun, though, and leave you with a little composite from last year, my first time on the Egua, but I hope not the last.

Photos © Josh Gosling & Big Dog Kayaks