Motivations, Tricks, and Unknown Spots

Photography By Alexander Montesinos

Photographer Alexander Montesinos talks about the underground skate scene in Marseille, being published in Transworld Skate Magazine, and how skateboarding is all about friendships.

Marseille, France

What is your history as a photographer?

So, let me introduce myself, my name is Alexandre Montesinos, I’m 34 and I’m a photographer. Actually, I’ve always been in love with photography. As a child, I wanted to be a war photographer, I read every magazine I could get my hands on to try and understand how it all works but I didn’t have a camera, so to me photography belonged to some kind of elit. Since then I still feel like a child when I watch photographers at work or even just cameras. And one day, on a whim, when I was 27 I finally decided to buy one. I carried it around everywhere and shooted everything and anything. By that time though, I mainly shot bike pictures, fixed-gear bicycles to be precise. We tried to be on every race in France and in Europe, including the red hook criterium. Those are very rapid races, often by night, they are quite impressive. Then, I really got into photography, I got a contract thanks to a friend who gave me the opportunity to work for a big company, and as time went by I approached clients and sports magazines.

How did you get into sports photography? Why do you enjoy shooting sports?

As I was saying previously, the fixed-gear helped me to learn many things about capturing movement, and also to understand how to give dynamism to photographs using movement. I’ve been skateboarding since I was 12, so let’s say that movement is in my genes, and extreme sports photography was at the heart of the pictures I daily watched, though I didn’t take the time to actually understand how it worked. As I got into biking, I didn’t skate as much. At that time, I tried different things, I wanted to take pictures without much care about actual esthetic. I was starting off, it was all about shooting for shooting.

What makes your style unique?

So, I’d say I’ve always wanted to put the subject in the foreground as much as possible, and even without any speed effect I try to make the picture as dynamic as I can. I also like to have some connection with my subject, I care about the tricks, I don’t wanna be that photographer who just wants to get his soulless picture. I’d never force anyone to get a picture, I’d only try to keep them motivated if I feel like they’re motivated, it shows in the picture. I love night photography, there’s so many things to do like long exposure, threads of light, and collage of several pictures in quick release.

Tell the story behind your favorite image.

This photo came out of the blue. At that time, I was back on my board and by chance I stumbled upon an old friend Benjamin Frayce at Barcelona. He introduced me to Rémi Monier, they skated together everyday. After a week and a half they tell me they’re planning on going to Marseille for the weekend.

A day after their arrival, Benjamin told me they’re going to la mairie to skate some gap. I knew about this freak, I knew that he could jump off mountains but it’s hard to get how high and how wide this was. He had to gather speed on a roof, jump over the void and still get over the bench at the end. Frankly, the picture speaks for itself. On the first or second land, he broke his truck, and we were wondering if we have to go back to the car to get a new one, or not. Of course, he needed a new truck, and actually I thought to myself that it was all end up here… Any normal person would feel beat down, but I was wrong. He went back from his car, changed his truck, we set everything up, and he landed it. Yet another banger for him. And I forgot to mention it but the last time he tried it, he sprained an ankle or a knee, I don’t remember precisely but it was scary.

How did you get into shooting skateboarding?

I really got into skateboarding photography 2 years ago with a local named Bbeuzy who likes to skate improbable spots, very ghetto and unskatably rough ground. He sees spots where no one does. Being mostly used to skate parks, I enjoyed exploring the city to discover unknown spots with him. After that I met the new scene and some guys I lost track of from the older one. I took the time to discuss with them to see what they knew about photography and videos, some of them gave me advices on different angles depending on the tricks and the mastering of flashes and fish-eye.

You like to shoot amateur skateboarders - why is that?

I like this question, skateboarding is beside everything else friends and moments with people, it’s not something you do on your own. So, I started to follow some guys from Marseille, then others, and step by step I got to know more and more people. I started shooting the younger skaters just as much as the older guys and I enjoyed it, everyone has their own vision and their own tricks. I wanted each picture to represent the skater through his tricks.

Photography and also video is a real motivation for the skater. This way you see them evolve, and an amateur is always hyped by photography. Whenever I can, I try to sell my photographs to paper magazines to support amateurs, so the new generation realize they can do it, and have a picture in a paper magazine. It’s still a dream. It’s more complicated with the pros, you gotta ask his sponsors, he’s very self-conscious about their image, and mostly he’s always busy, and I don’t know any ahah.

Your work has been published in Transworld Skate Magazine - how did that happen?

It’s always chance and opportunities. I met Elliot, a very nice fellow from the States at a party in Marseille, he was taking a plane home the next day, we talked about photography and skateboarding. I remember I told him I never made skate pictures. A few weeks after putting Bbeuzy’s pictures on Instagram, he contacted me and ask me to send him some pictures some pictures from the scene in Marseille. And then, I gave myself two weeks to take pictures. The result was a mix of my pictures and others mood photographs taken during their parties. Among them, there was the one of Benjamin Frayce I told you about, originally only taken for fun. It was a real pleasure to me, Transworld is quite a big deal and the article is super cool to read. Elliot described his vision of the skate scene in Marseille, and it’s awesome.

What is the underground skate scene like in Marseille like?

The scene in Marseille is a mix of people from all generations. Skaters come from every part of France to live here, I mean the sun, the sea, and la street canette ahah ! Nice weather every time of the year. It’s hard to beat a tremendous night life alongside great new spots !

In France, the skate from Marseille is getting more and more attention lately, especially thanks to skaters like : Robin Fournier, Victor Campillo and his BMG team, Maya Jacquemainn and Chloe Bernard, the youngsters from kind of crew and so many others. Skate associations such as Board Spirit Marseille and Assoskatevideo help a lot to promote skateboarding. Marseille is also well known for having many DIYs (self made skateparks built by zealous skaters), scattered in the weirdest of places : le Pool diy, les Maraudeurs, Mypy and la caverne.

What is next for you?

I’ve recently started bmx photography and right now I’m really eager to shoot some snowboard, thanks to skateboarding it’s not too difficult to find the right people to talk to. Those last months I’ve also spent some time with skaters from small towns around Marseille (some of them are featured in the photos). I try not to get stuck in Marseille and discover new people from around France. It’s amazing to be able to conjugate my love for traveling with the pictures I take, be it skateboarding or any extreme sport.