Whoa.

Those who have never been to Australia may be surprised to discover that behind the sunny smiles, puka shell necklaces and “g’days” lies an absolutely draconian form of government. Rules and laws, restrictions and regulations that would have made those Pensioner Guards of old wince. During these Covid times, for example, states cut themselves off entirely from one another and made it illegal to travel across borders (unless holding a Kelly Slater passport).

Harsh.

Well, as the pandemic eases, Australia is re-opening to itself. A few short days ago, for example, Queensland opened its doors to those arriving from other states by air. It was a such a welcome surprise to the country’s surfers, as Queensland features many world-class waves and also world-class surfing family’s like the Wrights, Wilsons and Coffeys.

The Australian Capital Territory’s Labor government was thrilled, and possibly observing those Coffeys, that it released a surfing image so shockingly lewd as to demand its own “members-only” subscription.

Whoa.

More as the story develops.

"His home, his digital photographs, film negatives, family heirlooms, clothes and everything he owned is gone."

The recent fires in Washington and Oregon have devastated so many. As an Oregonian, I watched in horror as complete towns became engulfed in flames, entire regions laid bare. The Pacific Northwest’s surf community is small and tight and I discovered, yesterday, that the legendary PNW surf photographer Mark McInnis had lost everything as his house burned to the ground.

Chris Burkard, who recently appeared on Dirty Water and is very near a saint, set up a Go Fund Me for his good friend, writing:

Friend & photographer, Mark McInnis, has brought joy to many with his images of distant waves and remote landscapes. He recently moved back to his home in the PNW only to have the recent Holiday Farm Fire completely decimate the community of Blue River, Oregon. And with it, his home. The salt in the wound is that this tragedy occurred just prior to finishing a year long project of backing up his entire collection of images offsite. He was left with nothing. His home, his digital photographs, film negatives, family heirlooms, clothes and everything he owned is gone. We are talking well over six figures of loss. The harsh reality that Mark’s cameras and entire library of images and backups were all set ablaze is a learning lesson for any creative person, especially when your livelihood depends on it. My hope is that we can give back to Mark to get him back on his feet and hopefully repay the joy that he has given all of us through his photographs. And, for the record, Mark refused to set this up himself. It took some harsh words from a friend for Mark to realize that we are grieving as he grieves and that the way we heal, is to help. So while he may not ask for help, but he genuinely needs it. Furthermore, in true McInnis fashion, Mark is insisting on donating 10% of all donations over the $30,000 mark to The Upper McKenzie and Volunteer Firefighter Relief Fund. Thank you in advance for supporting my great friend, a valued member of the photography community and an inspiration to us all.

If you have every enjoyed McInnis’s beautiful work, or care to help, please click here.

And thank you.