READERS’ GALLERY z

READERS' GALLERY: IN FOCUS Intro>Regular readers may recognise the name Carlos Altamirano. His shots have frequently appeared in Readers' Gallery over the years and we always look forward to seeing his emails pop up in the old inbox. We thought it was about time we all found out a bit more about our favourite under exposed contributor

Caption>Chema Covarubias

Tell us about yourself Carlos.

I am 30-years-old, live in Guadalajara,

Jalisco in Mexico and am a sales rep

for a company that sells electronic

components, called Rand Technology.

We know you're a keen kiter, how long

have you been kiting and shooting for?

I have been kiting for four years. I

started shooting two years before that.

It took me two years to really want to

kite because I was heavily into

wakeboarding. Shooting for two years

helped me understand more about

kiting and eventually get started.

Why do you like shooting kiteboarding

so much?

Being in the water and having fun with

my friends are the main reasons. It feels

great to get some nice shots, and then

seeing them in Readers' Gallery in

Kiteworld is really rewarding!

Your friends must be pleased that you

always have your camera out?

They are. It can get pretty crazy though,

they're like bees around a honey pot. If

I shoot with the fish eye lens they have

to ride really close. Everybody wants a

good shot and sometimes I'm more like

a traffic controller saying who can go

next so they don't get tangled in each

other’s kite lines, which happens from

time to time.

What are the conditions like for shooting

at your spot?

I get a lot of freedom because we ride

in waist deep lakes, so I can be in the

water using the fish eye lens a lot,

which is my favourite. I occasionally

shoot from the shore but it's hard

because the sun gets right in front of

me, so I have to play around and try to

get some crazy shots using the sunlight

to help me with effects. Last session I

got some shots that made it look like

the board was on fire.

What is the kiting like at your spot and

is it very popular?

We mainly ride on three different lakes

called Villa Corona, Valencia and Sayula,

depending on the wind direction. The

lakes do dry out though, so we need the

rainy season to fill them back in. We

also have a good beach spot on the

Pacific coast called Bucerias in Nayarit,

but it's three hours away. The scene is

growing here every year. There are some

good riders like Chuy, Diego, Chente and

Raquel that help people to learn or to

land new tricks. A young grommet called

Rodrigo is always pushing the older

riders to step it up. The main wind

season is usually from February to June,

but we ride throughout the year even it's

only once a month.

Do you find it difficult to resist the urge

to kite and not shoot?

It's hard! I try to get a quick session in

before I start shooting when the light isn't

so good and then ride again until the sun

goes down. If I don't get the chance to

ride but I know I got some good shots

then it's worth it.

Which camera do you use?

I have a Nikon D200 with a custom water

housing for the fish eye lens. I also have

an 80-400 zoom lens to shoot with from

the shore. All the equipment is worth

around US$5,000

What tips do you have for other

amateur photographers?

Shoot until your battery runs out and

try to understand and predict the way

your friends ride so you can get the

best shots.

Caption>Alan "Rincromado" Morfin

Caption>Oscar "Zurdo" Anceno

Caption>Alejandro "Jando" Flores

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