#5 - Waffle Seoul: Gone Skating with Vans

The first entry in this blog was about skate photography in Seoul. Those images were made just for fun, and to help my buddies at Fixed Korea with a video they were making. Once you start working as a commercial photographer, it’s easy to forget the benefits of shooting for the sake of it. Thanks to that project I got both a reminder and a call from Vans asking me to shoot a series on one of their newest team riders: Eugene Choi. I couldn’t have been more stoked. I’d turned down a steady studio job at the beginning of the year for moments like this: working as a freelance photographer means getting to do the projects I choose. Working on projects I care about means a lot to me, and my having skated for over 20 years, it’s safe to say I cared about this one.

I met up with Eugene twice as we worked together to get the images for Vans. I was immediately impressed by his good nature and constant positivity, as well as with his willingness to throw himself at some heavy spots. On the first day we met at his local, an empty fountain near Sunae. I skated with him while he warmed up, honestly just to show him that I could. As a skateboarder, you’ll have a lot more confidence in a photographer who skates than one who doesn’t. Before long Eugene had put down a solid overcrook on the ledge and we were off to the next spot.

I’d come a couple of hours early to scout, and had found an amphitheatre with a broad semi-circle of stairs. I pointed him to the cleanest run up, but the brick landing was equally sketchy everywhere. Without any second thoughts he tossed himself at a 10 stair kickflip, putting it down in just a handful of tries. Not satisfied, he went back for a cleaner landing and stomped it.

We caught up again the following weekend, and set about getting the final images. After warming up at Sunae, we headed down to a nearby stream and one of Seoul’s best DIY spots. Under a bridge some true believer had cemented concrete quarters into a bank wall, making for a perfect transfer spot. After I took a board to the face and got covered in concrete powder, Eugene had put down a boned out transfer and a frontside air.

We made our way to our final spot of the mission, which had been saved for last due to the high probability of a bust. Eugene had a double set kickflip in mind, and immediately threw himself at the gap. Straight away security swooped in and looked very displeased, but we promised that although we were going to keep trying anyway, we’d be as quick as possible. Whilst the guard walkie-talkied who knows whom for back up, Eugene showed exactly why Vans had picked him up by landing bolts on a hefty flip. I semi thanked/apologised to the security guard whilst his walkie-talkie issued garbled cries from the void and we got the heck out of there.

Shoots like this help me feel like I’m on the right track with my commercial photography career, and it reminds me that going the scarier route of freelance as opposed to the safe route of an office job was the right call. I’m grateful to Vans for the opportunity to shoot skateboarding, and to Eugene for not pulling punches.

If you have any questions about being a freelance photographer in Seoul, or about being a commercial photographer in general please ask away. I hope to help as many people looking to do it as I can.