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Victory! The majority of us will never know what this feels like, in any sport. To win a world title that was wholly on your back, not a team, just you, must be one of the craziest feelings in the world. I know Mick has his trainer, Phil, and all the rest of the crew that he works with all year, and I am not discounting their input or influence in any way, what I am saying is that once Mick’s out in those heats, it’s all on him. The decisions, the pressure, the conditions and the rest. Then to be greeted by two of your closest mates, that just so happen to be peers on the world stage as well, and chaired up the beach in front of, through and sometimes over your fans would all be something that I could only say must feel surreal at the time. But, as I said, very few of us will ever get to experience any of this, so my guess is as good as yours. Photo: Andrew "Shorty" Buckley
The selection of images above are some of my personal favorite photos I have taken of Mick Fanning over the years. I have freelanced for Rip Curl for over 20 years now, shooting both stills and motion, and have shot Mick a number of times because of this. The edit that below was shot on Red Epic and a Phantom Flex and was shot on a recent campaign shoot for the MF1 range.
Check out more of Shorty’s work on his website, or follow him on Instagram @shortyphotos.