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Steph Gilmore, D’bah, Gold Coast

Steph Gilmore’s back. After a home invasion and assault at the beginning of last year, the 24-year-old understandably took some time to recover, missing the year’s opening event at Snapper and struggling to find her feet through the rest of 2011′s tour. But it was a different Steph who belted down the line at Snapper this year. Saying she breezed through her heats might be a touch liberal, but it ain’t that far off. And, d’you think the vibe of winning is good for confidence? “To be carried up the beach with your friends underneath you with thousands of people around has got to be one of the best feelings in the world,” she said after the win. “It took me back to 2005 when I won here as a grom. Last year went so quickly and it felt like I didn’t even exist on the rankings and that fire wasn’t really there. This year it’s so good to have that back! My cheeks are so sore from smiling already.”

And smile she does. Even in this photo, mid-swerve, she’s getting her cheshire cat on. “I love how infectious her smile is,” agrees Ryan. “Even during this turn, where most people would be putting on the most heinous game face. And she should be smiling, too, as she’s right back on track for world title number five. You can’t help but smile with her.”

On this day, Ryan had set up on the breakwall and was shooting across D’bah to the north end. “Steph surfed right underneath the wall at what I thought was way too close for the amount of lens I had ponied up on my camera,” he says. “I don’t think I’ve ever shot a surf photo this tight before. Pretty fired up on the Nikon lenses and the detail in the foam on the wave and even in her hair.” So are we.

Photographer profile

Ryan Miller

Ryan Miller, 33 years old, does not know how to write a bad email. Your pals at Stab have learnt to live vicariously through Miller’s red wine-fuelled letters from the road. His travels take him to some dreamy locales and, in those places, he scores all-time photos: “My favourite photo I’ve shot was of Benny Bourgeois in the Caribbean, with a fisheye. Often I just take photos, but rarely do I get to make one.” In an age of tail-highs and released fins, Ryan still most likes to shoot someone who can lay-down a big backside turn. Namely: Jordy Smith, Dane Reynolds, Gabe Kling, Kekoa Bacalso, Damien Hobgood and Peter Mendia. Like most photogs, Miller misses Scott Aichner’s work. But, as far as contemporary inspiration? “Trying to see things through my daughter’s eyes. It’s wild to think about someone experiencing something totally new on almost a daily basis when, as adults, we rarely get to experience something truly new.”

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