Surf Cinematography Legend Larry Haynes Captures His Final Wave on Video Before Dying Moments Later

Brent Bielmann/World Surf League/Getty

A surf cinematographer died shortly after capturing his final wave on camera during a stand-up paddle board session with friends.

Photographer Mike Prickett confirmed the news of Larry Haynes's death on Thursday to Hawaii-based television station KHON2, expressing that his death was unexpected since he had worked behind the scenes filming The Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational only a few weeks prior.

"We were so, so shocked. He just did the Eddie Aikau with us. He did the Pipe contest. He does everything with a smile; and then, we just lost him," said Prickett. "He caught a wave at Laniakea. And, then, he came in and collapsed."

Musician David Elecciri Jr also confirmed the news of his death, explaining in an Instagram post that the collapse caused him to have a heart attack in his car and that he had just called him a few hours prior to heading to the beach inviting him to lunch.

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After lifeguards asked the surfer's friends to collect Haynes' paddle board from the beach on Friday, Prickett discovered Haynes' Go-Pro in which Haynes captured his final wave.

"There must have been 40 files, and we looked through all of them," Prickett told KHON2. "And, then, he had a lot of, like, non-start type waves and over and over and finally caught this beautiful wave and rode it for a long time. And, by the end of it, we were cheering and yelling and crying — the whole everything."

The video shows the cinematographer concentrating as he prepares to paddle through the towering wave alongside his friends.

Haynes often shared his rides on his personal Instagram alongside his time in the water filming others. Those moments were touched on by fellow photographers like Ryan Moss who wrote he admired "his dedication to his craft and his huge smile," alongside a video tribute on Friday.

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"He always wore that huge smile every time I would see him out shooting at Pipeline or Jaws," he continued in the post's caption. "You never think your heroes are ever going to move on. They're too good, too strong, larger than this life and world we live in. Thank you @fluid_vision for the laughs, smiles and aloha your shared with all of us. You were taken from us way too soon. It's not going to be the same without you."

Following his death, many members of the surfing community continued to pay their respects, including World Surf League CEO Erik Logan.

"Many of our fans might not know him, but you know his work," he wrote in an Instagram post alongside a variety of pictures of Haynes. "Larry was always in the water, on the back of a ski, hooting and hollering at the surfers on every wave. His stoke and life force was real. No matter if the waves were XXL or if they were small, his smile was the same. He will be missed, sorely."

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His work portfolio boasts over thirty years of skill that includes work behind helmet cams, jet ski cams, and water videography. He founded his own production company, Fluid Vision Productions, Inc., in 2015.

According to surfing publication Stab Magazine, he is also remembered for working on films such as 2012's Chasing Mavericks and the 1990s underground series Fluid Combustion.