Growing up beachfront was the start of LeRoy Grannis's affair with the ocean. From a young boy of 5, he was body surfing with his father. He even made himself his own bellyboard to use on vacation at his mother's house in Florida.
In 1931 Grannis started kneeboarding on a piece of pine wood that he sculpted into a water craft. Soon after, Grannis started borrowing stand up surfboards from friends in Hermosa, and eventually became a member of the Palos Verdes Surf Club
As Grannis grew older, it became a challenge from him to balance surfing, working and family life. He was a student at UCLA for a short period, but had to drop out during the depression because he lacked the money for tuition. After quitting school, Grannis took random jobs such as a carpenter, junkyward worker and a brief period at Standard Oil.
Grannis later found himself a job with Pacific Bell through some surfer friends of his that worked there. With a consistent job, he was able to develop his photography skills, which would eventually lead to a new career.
Grannis's photos were first published in Doc Ball's book California Surfriders. After that, he started getting more involved in the surfing community by surfing in contests and assisting Hoppy Swarts with the United States Surfing Association.
Leroy was working too hard at his job and eventually found himself with an ulcer. His doctor recommended that he take a break in order to recuperate. Durring LeRoy's time away from work he began photographing more and ended up getting his work published in magazines such as Surfer, Reef, and Surfing Illustrated.
Grannis is credited with being one of the most important photographers of his time period because of the vast amount of photographs he took documenting the surf culture. He also stood out from the crowd because he invented a contraption that would allow him to change film in his camera while staying out in the water.
Grannis spent 10 years photographing the world's best surfers in Hawaii and California. He later became the photo editor of Surfing Illustrated and International Surfing which he help start.
LeRoy was elected to the International Surfing Hall of Fame and the best photographer in 1966. He was also awarded a lifetime achievement award in 2002. He was also the the subject of a Surfer's Journal article ode to master photographers.
Recently Grannis's photos have been featured in surf films such as Riding Giants and in a limited edition book titled LeRoy Grannis: Birth of a Culture.
Title: A Visit to the Shaper Artist: Leroy Grannis
Title: Surfing in the 60's Artist: Leroy Grannis - 15437
In 1931 Grannis started kneeboarding on a piece of pine wood that he sculpted into a water craft. Soon after, Grannis started borrowing stand up surfboards from friends in Hermosa, and eventually became a member of the Palos Verdes Surf Club
As Grannis grew older, it became a challenge from him to balance surfing, working and family life. He was a student at UCLA for a short period, but had to drop out during the depression because he lacked the money for tuition. After quitting school, Grannis took random jobs such as a carpenter, junkyward worker and a brief period at Standard Oil.
Grannis later found himself a job with Pacific Bell through some surfer friends of his that worked there. With a consistent job, he was able to develop his photography skills, which would eventually lead to a new career.
Grannis's photos were first published in Doc Ball's book California Surfriders. After that, he started getting more involved in the surfing community by surfing in contests and assisting Hoppy Swarts with the United States Surfing Association.
Leroy was working too hard at his job and eventually found himself with an ulcer. His doctor recommended that he take a break in order to recuperate. Durring LeRoy's time away from work he began photographing more and ended up getting his work published in magazines such as Surfer, Reef, and Surfing Illustrated.
Grannis is credited with being one of the most important photographers of his time period because of the vast amount of photographs he took documenting the surf culture. He also stood out from the crowd because he invented a contraption that would allow him to change film in his camera while staying out in the water.
Grannis spent 10 years photographing the world's best surfers in Hawaii and California. He later became the photo editor of Surfing Illustrated and International Surfing which he help start.
LeRoy was elected to the International Surfing Hall of Fame and the best photographer in 1966. He was also awarded a lifetime achievement award in 2002. He was also the the subject of a Surfer's Journal article ode to master photographers.
Recently Grannis's photos have been featured in surf films such as Riding Giants and in a limited edition book titled LeRoy Grannis: Birth of a Culture.
Title: A Visit to the Shaper Artist: Leroy Grannis
Title: Surfing in the 60's Artist: Leroy Grannis - 15437
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