SETX Surf Culture: Capturing legacy
2025
Passion project - SETX Surf Culture
In my ongoing SETX Surf Culture project, which began in January 2025, I’m capturing the people and lifestyles that you find on the upper Gulf Coast—from interiors of the Texas Surf Museum to surfers in Galveston. Among these, one story stands out as a place to introduce the project: Houston’s beloved Surfhouse, formerly recognized as the oldest traditional surf and skate shop in Texas.
These images are more than just photos. They evoke nostalgia, identity and the human spirit behind a legacy. Houston’s Surfhouse wasn’t just a surf shop. It was a pillar of the city’s surf and skate culture, a place where stories lived between the boards and behind the counter. I photographed its co-owners, the vintage gear and the time-worn décor in February 2025, just a month before the shop closed its doors for good. These images don’t simply show a space; they echo a legacy waiting to be heard.
I sat down with co-owners Brian and Fish to get a little history on the shop. Both owners lit up talking about visiting Surfhouse as kids when Lloyd and Carol Sandel ran the place. When Carol put the shop up for sale after Lloyd’s passing, Brian and Fish couldn’t bear the thought of the community losing Surfhouse too. After a quick discussion, a deal was made and Surfhouse would be saved and reopened with a fresh look in the Heights.
Brian and Fish let me peruse on my own to get ideas for photos, but the full experience wasn’t complete without a tour. The owners do construction by day, so their new build-out in the Heights was fully custom. You can tell they wanted to pay homage to Lloyd and Carol while still achieving a slightly more coastal look that might attract anyone who needs a sundress or swim trunks for vacation, whether or not they surf or skate.
If you walked through the back door of the shop (the original front door covered in years of surf/skate stickers), then you were stepping through history into the modern shop. You can’t help but admire the jukebox full of surf tunes, the collage of black and white photos, the retro Dr Pepper dispenser and loads of trophies and old boards. Past the nostalgic “entry,” the space opens up with great natural light and the bright, colorful vibes you’d expect to find in a shop closer to the beach. Even through all of the modern upgrades though, you can’t walk far without a bit more nostalgia, such as the sticker-covered checkout counter or old cash register.
Even though this a personal passion project (born from my love of the water and a need to express creativity,) these images are also great examples of photography that translates seamlessly into marketing campaigns, tourism features, small business branding and editorial storytelling. If you’re a small business owner looking to elevate your brand or an editor in need of hero portraits supported by compelling visuals, let’s collaborate to tell your story with the same depth and authenticity.
