Welcome to our new series titled “On Location” which explores surfing hotspots around the world through the lens of a photographer that is renowned for shooting that area.
Each photographer will share some of their favourite surfing and lifestyle shots from that spot. They will also be giving the back story behind their relationship with the place and share travel tips and advice to help anyone whose thinking of heading there.
The first feature in the On Location series is with Jason Childs who has chosen Bali as his location. Childsy is a contributor to our Tracks print store and you can purchase some of the images featured in this piece, as well as others, here.
What originally brought you to this location? Tell us a bit about your history and relationship with the area?
JC: I fell in love with Bali and Indonesia on my first trip in 1989. I was lucky enough to move to Bali with my partner (now my wife) in 1993. Michelle got a job there in the surf industry and I said I’m coming too. So it wasn’t my great idea to move to Bali, but once I’d been there for about six months I thought; “why didn’t I think of this myself?” We moved to Bali in 1993 all stayed till till 2016 when we returned to Australia with our sons. The great thing about moving to Bali in the early 90s was the acceptance from the surf community who brought you into their world and allowed you to gain a connection to the island, its waves and the Balinese people. It was a very special time to be in Bali as a surfer and photographer and that relationship for me, I still enjoy till today with my family. I continue to travel to Bali and Indonesia every year, this year will be my 35th year. Once Indo gets in your blood, it stays in your blood. I guess my heart will always be in Indonesia not matter where I live.
How long have you been shooting here and what makes it so special for you?
JC: I’ve been shooting in Bali from that very first trip in 1989 when I was young. I was lucky enough to stumble across a pumping six foot session at Padang Padang with local Made Kasim, Hawaiian pros Ronnie Burn and Derek Ho and legendary filmmaker Jack McCoy was shooting from the water. I was shooting stills from the top of the cliffs that day at Padang Padang. It was my first time and I fell in love with the place. That love affair continues to this day. The images appeared in Tracks Mag and are still some of my most precious images of Bali on slide and in B&W negatives. Padang Padang really is the jewel in the crown of the waves in Bali. It’s still the best wave on the island and the most photogenic wave when it’s on. The Balinese surfers have always been the standouts in the lineup at Padang Padang. I remember surfing in Bali in the early days being described as “the Balinese are dancing on the waves”. Amongst the crowded lineups in Bali, the local boys still control the lineup and their style and grace is unmatched.
The beauty of shooting Padang Padang is that there’s so many angles you can shoot from. Swimming shooting fisheye, sitting on a jet ski, sitting high on the cliff (in the old days with the surfboard carriers), from the Warungs with a coconut or cold Bintang or down on the reef at low tide with the local fishermen and bikini clad girls. There’s just so many beautiful angles to shoot. It really is one of those magical waves to surf or shoot. No matter what angle you shoot it from you will be mesmerised by the golden light in the afternoon with that beautiful backlit green. A surf photographers dream indeed! My favourite surfers to shoot out there over the years have been the graceful goofy footers Made Kasim, Rizal Tandjung, Made Switra, Made Adi Putra, Mega Semadhi, the list goes on.
What are your favourite things about the area and why?
JC: Bali is changing so rapidly from the place that most of us surfers now in our 50s, 60s, 70s can remember but the magic is still there. You just have to search further into the heart of Bali to experience its spiritual magic. It still happens everyday with a Hindu ceremony on your way to a surf. Many people now come to Bali for the food, partying and, yes, still for the surf. Bali really does have something for everybody compared to the 70s and 80s when it was just a surfers and hippy travellers dream. The best and my favourite thing to do is to hang out with the Balinese people at ceremonies or a surf with old Bali mates. For the average Aussie tourist who doesn’t surf, their magic is still down on the beach at Legian and Kuta having a sunset beer and a massage. The culture for me has always been so interesting as a photographer and after living in Bali for so long, it’s still mesmerising seeing and photographing all different kinds of Balinese Hindu ceremonies. I think for anyone visiting Bali it still is pretty special when you can step out of the Western world and into the mystical world of the Balinese Hindus.
Recommendations for travel, where to eat, drink and where to stay?
JC: The key to Bali these days is to visit a location and post up there for a week or so. The days of jumping in the car and driving all over the island to chase waves are well and truly gone, unless you want to sit in traffic for half the day or go before dawn. Spend a week staying on the Bukit Peninsula or on the east at Komune Resort where you can paddle straight out front into Keramas or search the other rights on that coast. Kuta and Legian beaches are also sitll popular. There’s so many great places to eat, regardless of your budget. You can ear nasi campur or nasi goreng from the local warung or visit one of many new fancy restaurants in Bali. I don’t think there’s any other places in the world that has those options and still gives you value for your money. If you like to party, there’s a million different places to go in Bali. However, remember where you are and to respect the local people, their customs and culture in Bali. This applies for anywhere in Indonesia.
Bali’s still part of a right of passage for every Aussie surfer. Komune is the perfect resort for a family or taking your girlfriend/wife where you can surf all day and she’s happy to sit by the pool and drink cocktails. Ulu Surf Villas is the premier location on the Bukit to stay at with Uluwatu right in front of you and has a great restaurant and bar called Mana Uluwatu. A short scooter ride away you’ll find so many nice places to eat and you coud even have a game of padel tennis at Padel Uluwatu after dark if ya into that. Dance and party the night away at Ulu Cliffhouse or chill there all day on a day bed. Sunset drinks after a surf at Single Fin Bali or a cold Bintang in the Ulu warungs keeps it real. A fancy dinner at Tabu, Uluwatu’s premier Supper Club serving Mexican & Japanese indulging in a night of dining and dancing!
The best surf shop with healthy fresh food and coffee is Drifter Uluwatu. Canggu offers everything on every budget for accommodation and whatever you want to eat, drink and dance to every day and night of the week and, yes, there’s still surf there.
What can people expect if they come on a surf trip here?
JC: What can people expect if they come to surf in Bali in 2024? Well its crowded, but you still find those uncrowded sessions if you search a bit further than the Bukit Peninsula and hit dawn sessions. Dry and wet season in Bali throws up so many different options and there’s no other island on the planet that has as many waves to surf! There’s still lots of other places to surf in Bali besides the A-list waves. Surfing somewhere like Nusa Dua is an experienced only surf option when it’s on. It is such a challenging wave and ensures ya don’t have learners in the lineup for long. One set its four feet and then the next set is eight foot and you’ll need that Indo gun under your chest.
Bali is still such a great place to have a surf trip with your family. Surf on the beaches with your groms or take them for the first time up to Ulus and paddle out through the cave to surf racetracks. Do a dawn patrol somewhere on the East coast in uncrowded lineups with the Mount Agung volcano in the background while you look back into the rice fields. Or you jump a boat from Sanur and go Nusa Lembongan island and surf Shipwrecks, Lacerations or Playgrounds at a much slower pace than Bali. There’s still that magic feeling of throwing on pair of boardshorts and waxing up a new board and being back in the tropics of Indo, while you know it’s freezing cold in the middle of winter back home in Aus. There’s nothing like that sweet smell of Gudang Garam clove cigarettes when you first arrive in Bali. It’s like a welcoming back to your second home. Respect the local Bali people, surfers and give a smile, you’ll always get one back.
To see more of Jason’s images and to purchase them from our print store, click here.
