Patrick Trefz is one of the most successful photographers and filmmakers on the international surfing scene, living and working for many years in Santa Cruz, California. Since his father was a photographer, he came into contact with the medium of photography quite early at the age of 14. Immediately he discovered his talent as an avid skater and surfer and was always able to scan surfers at the right moment.
His father advised him to train his eye first with black and white shots, before he immersed himself in the world of color photography, because it would be the best way to learn the image composition. In fact, the photographer followed this advice and later switched to color pictures. He had his breakthrough with pictures of his surfing friends, which he photographed on a boat trip and were printed as a double page in Surfer Magazine.
Trefz thus catapulted into the professional league of surfing photographers and worked, among other things, as chief picture editor for this magazine. His films and photos are always in the world of surfers and hold various styles and characters, which is why Trefz himself understands as an anthropologist and sociologist. Lured and inspired from distant and remote places, surfers are not necessarily shown riding the ocean waves in their classic poses. Trefz is more interested in portraying people around the sport, which is rather unusual in the scene. His black and white photos appear epic and timeless, like picture sequences from old films.
