Long Island Photography by Jim Cook :: Timeless Ride

restoration

2011-11-27T13:32:00.000-08:00

One day back in 2003 or so, I went to work at Kelley Boys and saw this board for sale on consignment. It sat in the shop for weeks...months, and nobody ever called asking about their board. We'd lost the contact info and it just sat there. I'd look at it every day, even taking pictures of it. One of the photos below was taken in the back of Kelley Boys in Sayville. Finally, we heard from the owner, and I got the board for $50. I've had it for about 8 years. It was all dented up, the nose was chopped with foam exposed and the tail was ripped open as well. I never took it surfing because it would just soak in all the salt water, but a simple ding repair wouldn't do. So I got it resorted at Natures Shapes and this is the result. I don't know the origin of the board or where it has been shaped or surfed, but now it resides in Copiague, fully restored.

This is before...

And this is now...

Updating the site

2011-11-20T17:12:00.000-08:00

Major changes coming up for the site, updating the product pages to be more user-friendly, putting in lots of hours in front of the computer. Hopefully it pays off. Need more time in the water.

It's been a while...

2011-10-11T19:41:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since my last posting. The summer flew by and now it's Fall! The Quiksilver pro has come and gone and I managed to get down on the last day for only a few hours in the morning... just enough to see the first 2 heats. I got a couple of good ones and I'll be participating in a show at Empire State Studios along with many other notable photographers, of whom I'm honored and humbled to share the gallery with...

Opening reception is Saturday November 5th at 8pm
Empire State Studios
Click here for details >

Summertime

2011-08-23T17:54:00.000-07:00

It's been quick summer. But it's been a good summer. There's been a consistent amount of rideable surf as well; almost every weekend producing fair weather and some form of bump breaking on the sandbars. The water's been clean and warm lately... this is one of the best times of the year as we approach autumn. Lot of buzz surrounding the highly anticipated Quik Pro NY. In a week and a half Long Beach will be swarming with local surfers, and city goers hoping to catch a glimpse of Slater or Taj (hopefully) tearing up some draining dumpers. In the meantime, I've been helping Mike over at Natures Shapes with his graphics for his website. On Saturday, September 10th there is a huge end of summer party and sale at the Showroom to celebrate the showroom's 4 Year Anniversary Party. Pray for Surf!

Shaun Tomson @ Bunger Surf Shop

2011-06-12T17:46:00.000-07:00

Thursday June 9th - It was a stormy night. The black clouds marched in from the north and the winds became fierce. The rain began to fall and I could see Shaun through the door of Bunger Surf shop. He was signing books and telling stories. The rain poured and the thunder clapped and I, along with a small crowd enjoyed an evening of stories and inspiration. Shaun is a man filled with stoke and spirit. He embodies a positive outlook on life, no matter what the situation.

Montauk

2011-05-22T21:11:00.000-07:00

Montauk in May. It was still awfully cool out – felt more like fall. The waves looked good from the view of old montauk hwy, and were better at camp hero. The weather stayed sunny for Friday. It felt good to connect with the east end again...

Summer foreshadowing...

2011-05-09T08:58:00.000-07:00

All conditions lined up for a good surf session Sunday morning. The winds combed the ocean into some nice small lines. The water felt unbelievably refreshing. It was a good introduction to the coming summer months...

Melali Sessions

2011-04-29T14:47:00.000-07:00

Got to see Rob Machado, Jon Swift, and band perform the Melali Sessions soundtrack along with the movie. It was a long night, but worth waiting for the main event. More pics to follow...

Gallery Wrap

2011-03-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

I recently did a 24X48 canvas gallery wrap for my brother and his wife. They wanted the Robert Moses Sunset II image. I think it came out pretty sick, being that it was taken way back in 2001 on a Pentax Spotmatic.

Cold Morning Session

2011-03-01T08:05:00.000-08:00

It's been starting to warm up around here lately, but the front came through yesterday and brought some cold air and north winds. The wind was unusually calm this morning. Met Aaron down at Gilgo, not a soul in the parking lot; that's usually bad news even for cold days. A run up the dune revealed nice glassy conditions, but hardly any waves. The tide was rising fast. But I hadn't surfed since early December and Aaron hadn't been in since November... and we haven't surfed together since... October maybe.... DAMN! So in we went, which turned out to be a good decision; there's a nice little bar just west of the tunnel. Rights and lefts until we couldn't feel our hands and feet... it took a while to warm up.

Killington Powder

2011-02-27T16:17:00.000-08:00

Last minute decision to ride up to Killington with SnowbirdsSkiTours. VT got pounded with snow on Friday, leaving 14 inches on the mountains. We arrived around 9 and were welcomed with falling snow, which continued to fall all day. I'm going to miss the winter; the cold, fresh air, the smell of wood burning stoves... winter storms...

Stratton Riding

2011-02-15T19:41:00.000-08:00

Shot up to Stratton on Saturday... it was cold and snowing with good conditions on the mountain.

Grey Horse Tavern

2011-02-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

Last week, I participated in art night at Grey Horse Tavern; displaying my matted and framed photos. It was a great night, having family and friends show up to enjoy the evening with.

Photos for Sale at Babylon Bean

2011-02-06T12:57:00.000-08:00

I have 4 framed photos for sale at Babylon Bean in Babylon, NY. Babylon Bean is a great little coffee shop located just off Montauk Hwy. in Babylon... check out their great coffee and see my photos on display.

Babylon Bean
17 Fire Island Ave Babylon, NY 11702

Killington

2011-01-23T09:53:00.001-08:00

The mountain is all-time. I haven't been back in about 5 years, and so I even forgot how it looked. The temperature was about 12 all day with wind chills in the -0's. Despite some awkwardly slow conditions at the base, the trails at snowdon and ramshead had some unbelievable powder! We'll see what happens with this upcoming system set to hit on Wednesday.

Winter Storm Warning

2011-01-21T14:14:00.000-08:00

We are well into winter here in NY. It has been storm after storm; seems like there is a new one every week. I still feel like we are awaiting our worst storm, most seem to skip on by and dump inches upon inches up north. That very well could be what's on the way for next Tue/Wed... Last night we received an additional 3-4 inches of fresh powder. It's been a good winter so far...

ART

2011-01-08T08:27:00.000-08:00

A couple of months ago, Art Brewer came to town to do a seminar at SVA and he stopped by Mollusk. I had caught wind of this and made the trek into Brooklyn. The shop was mostly empty with a few locals swarming Brewer. It was winter, it was dark, and I had my Nikon FM2n, but I managed to capture a moment with Brewer telling one of his stories and sharing a laugh with Chris...

Before the dawn

2010-08-29T16:28:00.000-07:00

I finally awoke before the sunrise and drove down to Gilgo in the dark. I planned on meeting up with Aaron, and while I waited for him to arrive, I snapped a few pics of the sunrise over the dunes. The wind was north and the ocean was glassy, showing a waist high swell. Great day of surfing in-between the Saturday morning crowds.

4th of July

2010-07-21T17:35:00.001-07:00

Sunday in Montauk for the 4th. It was a sweltering day, which ended with a cool/warm breeze, fires on Umbrella beach, and a massive crowd gathered for the fireworks. The hour wait for a Pizza Village pie was WELL worth it...

Sunrise and north winds Part 2

2010-07-01T07:33:00.000-07:00

When you are the first to arrive in the Gilgo parking lot in Summer it either means the waves are horrible or you're just plain lucky. It's 5am, the tide was low and just starting to rise, giving way to knee to occasional chest high peelers on the shallow bar.
The paddle out was cake, and the waves were breaking in water that wasn't as shallow as I thought, producing long rides. I rode for an hour alone... a few good rights later and I was off to work.

Sunrise and north winds...

2010-06-21T19:27:00.000-07:00

Starting the day off with a few small waves really hit the spot. The wind was north. The day before was hot and humid, the front brought rain and thunder, and then switched the wind overnight. The morning was gray to start, but the sun rose as I crossed the bay. Waves were barely breaking, but with the dropping tide, a few swells cracked. The sun was strong but pleasant, the air was clean, the sea was glassy with slight texture. The waves got better with the dropping tide...

Photos for sale

2010-06-13T15:57:00.000-07:00

I finally have photos for sale on my Prints page check em out HERE.

2010 Fish Fry(e)

2010-05-16T16:37:00.000-07:00

Grand Blvd. Long Beach :: May 15, 2010

Okemo

2010-04-26T19:18:00.001-07:00

Joey and me at Okemo :: Winter 2010
All pics shot with a Kodak disposable camera.

I just saw online that Jay Peak has a Winter Storm Watch and they are going to re-open for this upcoming weekend to ride some late late season snow!

spontaneity

2010-04-19T18:50:00.000-07:00

I miss the winter. I miss the feeling of inclement weather. I love the winter because of its uneasiness. This past February, a major storm hit the northeast. It was raining along the entire eastern side of the Hudson, all the way up to Canada. And it was snowing - dumping - along the western half of the Hudson. Remote places upstate NY received 6 feet of snow overnight. It was a Friday, work was closed, and we made the call. Belleayre Mountain was covered in snow. Surrounding mountains had lost power along with thousands of residents. Belleayre could only service half the amount of full capacity because of unplowed parking lots. It was epic to say the least... best boarding I've ever had on the east coast.

New stuff

2010-04-15T21:49:00.001-07:00

Going away party for Joey Sweet...