Larry Moore

Californian surfing enthusiast whose work defined a new genre of watersports photography

Larry "Flame" Moore, who has died aged 57, created modern surf photography from a beach near his home in southern California. As photo editor of Surfing magazine from 1973 to 2004, in which his byline appeared on 43 covers, he would rise at dawn in Dana Point, south of Los Angeles, and head for a nearby surf spot called Salt Creek where the early morning sunshine was vital for first-class work. After an hour or two of shooting, he could still arrive in good time for work at Surfing's desk in San Clemente.

Although "Flame" Moore - so named for his bright red hair - used expensive cameras with automatic shooting speeds of nine frames a second, as well as specially designed lightweight waterproof casings, he always preferred scenes naturally lit from the front. As well as photographing from the water, he worked from boats, the shore and aircraft, but only snapped skilled surfers he had briefed. Above all, his pictures were acutely sharp, sometimes picking out each drop of water. He defined the new genre.

An international traveller in his quest for the perfect wave, Moore's greatest exploit occurred 100 miles off the coast of San Diego, and it was a world beater. An avid sailor (he later built his own 45ft yacht), he had known since the 1970s of a place to avoid - Cortes Bank. Here, an underwater mountain came within feet of the surface, creating mammoth waves - with the right weather. The spot was unknown to surfers, and even to official navigation, as the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise discovered the hard way in 1985 when the bank tore a huge hole in its hull.

The biggest waves occurred in winter, but not every year. Moore waited. In February 1989 he saw impressive photos of a storm swell in Hawaii with waves of 40ft high. Currents always brought these to California in about two days, and Moore persuaded a pilot friend to fly out. Later he recalled how they saw waves breaking from 20 miles away.

"We're talking well over 80ft high, easily," he said. "Not only were they gigantic, they were running down the reef to where guys could ride a wave for nearly a mile."

Still Moore had to wait. Not until January 2001 did he launch an expedition with surfers and jet-ski boats. Moore shot from the air - and the photographs went round the world. The highest surfed wave was 66ft and brought its rider, Mike Parsons, $66,000 in prize money. The expedition became the highlight of a surfing film documentary, Step Into Liquid.

The son of a Los Angeles fireman, Moore began surfing as a boy. He graduated from Long Beach state university and thought of becoming a teacher. But he encountered a friend who was fleeing to Canada to escape the Vietnam draft. The friend owed money to Moore, who was militarily exempt for medical reasons, but instead gave him his camera, a Pentax K 1000. "Then all my friends wanted me to take pictures of them surfing," he recalled. Soon after, he had his first picture published in a surfing magazine.

During his stint as a photo editor, Moore helped launch the website, Recently a book of his photos was published, 30 Years of Flame: California's Legendary Surf Photographer. Through his work he popularised surfing spots in Hawaii, Chile, Australia and Tasmania.

Until diagnosed with a brain tumour, Moore surfed all his life, but in deference to his quest for the right light, "only when it's overcast". He is survived by his wife Candace and their son.

· Larry Owen Moore, photographer, born July 17 1948; died October 10 2005