What to Look for When You Watch Yourself Surf
To analyse your surfing on video, go through the footage in order (paddling, pop-up, stance, where you look, speed and wave choice) and pick just one thing to change in your next sessions.
Published September 17, 2026
The first time you watch yourself surf, everything looks wrong at once, which makes it hard to know what to fix. This is a checklist for going through your footage in order, from paddling to wave choice, with what good looks like at each stage and the usual fix when it does not.
How to watch your footage
Cut the session into one clip per wave and watch them one at a time. Watch each wave three times: once at normal speed for the overall picture, once in slow motion looking only at your body, and once looking at the wave and where you are on it. Pause at three moments: when the wave starts lifting the board, when your feet land, and at the lowest point of your first turn.
It also helps to have a reference. Find a clip of a good surfer on a board like yours, on similar waves, and pause at the same three moments. The differences jump out much faster side by side than they do from memory.
Paddling and catching the wave
Look at your position on the board first. The nose should sit just clear of the water. If it keeps pushing under as the wave arrives, you are lying too far forward. If the board sits tail-down and the wave passes under you, you are too far back.
Then look at your stroke and your timing. Good paddling is long, alternating strokes with the chest slightly raised and the legs together and still. The most common thing footage shows is the surfer easing off at the exact moment the wave arrives. If you see yourself stop paddling and the wave roll on without you, the fix is simple: two or three more strokes than feels necessary.
The pop-up
Slow this part right down. Check where your hands go: flat on the deck under your chest, not gripping the rails up by your shoulders. Check whether you stand in one movement or go through a knee on the way up, and whether your back foot drags along the deck before it lands.
Then check timing. Popping up too late leaves you standing in the whitewater with the wave already gone. Popping up too early, before the board is really moving with the wave, stalls you. On a clean take-off, the board is already sliding down the face as your feet land.
See what you actually do out there
Book someone to film your whole session from the beach at one of six spots from Matosinhos to Sagres, then watch your waves back.
Stance
Freeze the frame the moment you are fully standing. Your feet should be a bit more than shoulder-width apart and across the centre line of the board, with the back foot roughly over the fins. Knees bent, back fairly straight, head over your feet, arms relaxed and low in front of you.
The classic faults are easy to spot once you look for them: standing tall with straight legs, bending at the waist with your backside sticking out instead of bending the knees, feet too close together, or the back foot landing well in front of the fins so the board has no drive.
Where you are looking
Your head leads everything, and on video it is obvious where it points. If your chin is down, you are looking at the board, your weight tips forward and you will go straight or fall. Look for your eyes travelling along the wave in the direction you want to go, and in a turn, for your head and shoulders turning before the board does.
Speed and using the wave
Watch where you are on the wave. Going straight towards the beach and ending up in the whitewater is the most common pattern for newer surfers. The aim is to angle along the unbroken part of the face, close to where it is breaking, because that is where the speed is.
If you are already riding along the face, look at your bottom turn. A good one starts with the legs compressing low, the eyes and shoulders turning up the face and the board leaning onto its rail. If you stay upright and swing your arms to turn, the board flattens out and loses speed.
Positioning and wave choice
This is what the wide shots are for. Where do you sit compared with where the waves actually break? How many waves do you paddle for and miss, and how many good ones do you let go past? Are you constantly paddling back to the same spot after the current pulls you down the beach? Surfers who catch more waves are rarely stronger paddlers: they are usually sitting a few metres closer to the peak.
Turn it into one thing to try
By the end you will have a list. Do not try to fix all of it. Pick the problem that comes earliest in the sequence, because a late pop-up or a back foot in the wrong place causes several of the problems that come after it. Make that your one cue for the next few sessions, film again in two or three weeks and compare the same moments. If you want a second opinion, send the footage to a coach: we recommend Justin West Coaching for online feedback.
Frequently asked questions
What should I look for in my surf videos?
Go through it in order: your position and timing when paddling, your hands and feet during the pop-up, your stance once standing, where you are looking, whether you angle along the wave or go straight, and where you sit in the lineup. Then pick the earliest problem in that sequence to work on.
What is the best camera angle for surf video analysis?
Side-on from the beach, roughly level with where the wave breaks. It shows stance, foot placement and body movement clearly. Filming from behind or in front hides most of that, and a wide shot is only useful for positioning and wave choice.
How do I analyse my surfing technique on video?
Cut the footage into one clip per wave, watch each at normal speed and then in slow motion, and pause when the wave lifts the board, when your feet land and at the bottom of your first turn. Comparing those frames with a good surfer on a similar board makes the differences easy to see.
Can someone analyse my surf footage online?
Yes. Many surf coaches offer remote video analysis: you send clips and get written or video feedback on what to work on. We recommend Justin West Coaching.
How often should I film my surfing?
Every two to four weeks is enough for most people. That gives you time to work on one change across several sessions, so the next footage shows whether it stuck.