The North Shore of Oahu in Hawaii on March 9, 2014. (Kenji Croman)

When photographer Kenji Croman realized words can’t describe what it feels to be inside the barrel of a wave when bodysurfing, he decided he would have to show people what it felt like.

“I love bodysurfing because it’s just you, the wave and fins, nothing else. It’s so pure,” Croman, who lives in Hawaii, told weather.com. But when he would try to explain the feeling to his friends and family, they didn’t quite understand.

“I would flare my arms up to describe how big the waves were, make funny sounds with my mouth describing the thunder and bass the waves make underwater and ramble on how beautiful the colors and reflections were,” Croman said of trying to articulate his experience bodysurfing the big waves at Waimea on Hawaii’s Big Island or Pipeline on Oahu’s North Shore.

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It is through photography that Croman was able to share his experiences. That was how he transitioned from bodysurfer to surf photographer.

When Croman gets ready for a shoot, he puts his camera in water housing to protect it, slips on his fins and swims out into the break. While that may sound easy, it takes a lot of planning and preparation.

Before he heads out, he visits Surfline’s website to check the surf conditions. He then makes sure his camera is ready to go in the housing, “It’s about being in the right spot to photograph the wave, it’s about training yourself to stay in the impact zone which is one of the hardest things to do because your natural instincts is screaming at you to ‘get out of the way!’”

Croman says his favorite places to shoot are Keiki Beach on the North Shore of Oahu and his “home break” at Sandy Beach. To see more of Croman’s work visit his website or Instagram.