Ron Church

Ron Church was born (1934-1973) in Denver, moved to Los Angeles with his family at age 11, and briefly studied photography at the Art Center School of Design in Pasadena after high school .Pioneering surf and diving photographer from San Diego, California; best known for his elegantly composed black and white shots of Southern California and Hawaiian surf scenes in the early 1960s. Ron Church has been a waterman from his early days as a young boy, making his own wetsuits to keep the chill of the Southern California waters to a minimum. International UW Photographer of the YearFreediver, world record spearfisherman, surfer, surf photojournalist, award winning underwater photogropher, jet test pilot photographer, deep sea submersible pilot, first American on the Cousteau team as still and video photography and pilot ot the Deepstar and other submersibles.
Ron Church 's photographs make up a good deal of the archive of iconic photos from surfing and Californian cultures’ history and his work inspired a new breed of surf photographer, and still inspires modern-day surf photographers. Ron Church was one of the pioneering photographers of surfing and surf culture in California and Hawaii during the 1960s, shooting legends from Duke Kahanamoku to Greg Noll. His photos captured the surf culture of the time beautifully, both the action in the water and the wider culture, the people, on the beach, in the parking lots, at the pier.