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The Ends Photography Show Online

Reportage By: John Watson

The Ends Photography Show Online

Couldn’t make it out to the opening party of The Ends at Mission Workshop? No big deal, yesterday I shot some photos of the pieces and they’re all displayed in the Gallery. At this point, I’m exhausted from this whole process of going through 800 drum-scanned photos and narrowing a selection down to around 30 photos. The theme is apparent here, if you take the time to soak it all in and I’ll be posting more about The Ends over the next few weeks…

This show will travel to Eurobike and Paris later this summer, as well as Interbike. We’re still trying to figure out what pieces will be displayed where, but in the meantime, the photography book is available at Mission Workshop. Also, you can contact Mission Workshop if you’re interesting in purchasing one of these handmade, high-quality photographic prints on Fuji paper.

Local Access Only in Melbourne

Reportage By: John Watson

Local Access Only in Melbourne

“Local access only” is not to be confused with “locals only”. If there’s one thing to be said about Australians its that they love to show visitors how great their land is. Land is something that’s very ethereal these days. Tourism changes the way one interacts or engages with a place. For example, a surfer would have a very similar experience as a cyclist in Australia but a businessman or businesswoman might have a different perspective altogether.

As cyclists, we look for the most anti-social areas to socialize. No one wants to chat on a busy street. #NotBeachRd. We look at cities differently and while many people prefer the beaten path, some head out down roads with no KOM, no segments and no social scene. I’ve been very blessed to be given such a unique view of Victoria and over the years have met some great guides.

This roll of film was lost. Ok, not lost, just in the bottom of my film container in the fridge. It contains some moments from rides, a Black Breath show in Melbourne and some other randomness. Check out the narrated photos for the full story.

Tools of the trade:
Yashica T4
Fuji Pro400h

Mission Workshop Presents “The Ends” My Show Tonight!

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Mission Workshop Presents “The Ends” My Show Tonight!

I jokingly said the other day to a friend that the hardest thing about my trip to China with Mission Workshop wasn’t actually being in China, it was sorting through all my photos. Over 20 rolls of 220 film, 10 rolls of 35mm were accumulated in the three weeks I found myself in Asia. Imagine having to sort through all that and pull together a concept.

a short preview of the book

This is “The Ends”, a book of photographs that is being released at my photography show at Mission Workshop this Saturday, June 15th. You can Pre-Order the book now and it’ll ship Monday, June 17th. We’ve already got the copies and they look amazing. Each copy was printed in Oakland.

“75 page soft-cover book showcasing John’s photographs from the 1,000km bike tour.

Setting out from Shanghai, John Watson and Mission Workshop began their cycling tour of China’s Yangtze River Delta. Using both film and digital formats, Watson photographed the surroundings and encounters with the local community. Led by their friends from Factory Five, they headed into a frenetic network of massive residential complexes, large industrial parks, and super highways. At first glance, the route seemed straightforward, however, the reality of the 1,000km trip was far more intense than anyone expected.

The following photographs from their trip were taken by John Watson, depicting his impression of what is meant by “the ends justify the means.”

This is The Ends.

Available for sale online and at Mission Workshop San Francisco. Ships Monday 6/17.”

Please spread the word, buy a copy of the book for $35 and roll through the show this Saturday!

The Ty Divide

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The Ty Divide

One of my good friends and someone that’s come to represent fun times, Ty from Golden Saddle Cyclery, is getting ready to embark on the Tour Divide. For those who aren’t aware, the Tour Divide is a solo bike race from Canada to Mexico along the great dividing range. The word “adventure” gets thrown around a lot these days, but I can assure you, this is a fucking adventure. If you haven’t watched the documentary, Ride the Divide, I suggest you do so!

This is a life-changing ride, something that Ty has been preparing to undertake for over a year and I am stoked for him! Follow him on Instagram, wish him luck and be sure to ask him lots of questions. He loves questions.

Merckx Mondays

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Merckx Mondays


Photo by Michael Williams

I receive what I would consider “gems” in the form of emails from time to time. This one in particular came from Michael in Sacramento. A lifelong Merckx fan, Michael actually got to visit the factory back in 1985, where, as he described, he was too much in awe to focus. Literally.

Amazing… Hopefully, there will be more on the site from Michael in the future. Even if I have to travel to Sacramento to document it myself.

Recent Roll: Not All of China Was Terrible to Ride In

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Recent Roll: Not All of China Was Terrible to Ride In

Here’s a photo of Jeff from Factory 5 riding down an open road somewhere west of Shanghai. After all the smog (which is still visible in the background), trash and shitty roads, sections like this were a gem… I’m ramping up to my book release and gallery show in SF on June 15th. More details to come.

Tools of the trade:
Yashica T4
Neopan 400

Jamming Out in Los Angeles

Reportage By: John Watson

Jamming Out in Los Angeles

Well, not that kinda jamming.

I’ve been very fortunate every time I’ve been to LA, only because I have the best friends there. Friends who are the best ride guides and of course, own the best bike shop in LA (I mean the best bar in Silverlake). Tracko took me on one of the best cross rides I’ve been on in Los Angeles the last time I was in town. Parts of it were very LA, while other sections felt like Austin and some even reminded me (mostly smelled like) Australia. We got to fuck around a bit on tech sections, avoid dog walkers, took a few spills and hammered it home just in time for lunch. Los Angeles really does have some of the best bike riding in the country…

We totalled 48 miles and around 3,600′ of elevation but who gives a shit about the numbers with trails like this. See for yourself below!

Tools of the trade:
Yashica t4
Fuji Pro 400H

Recent Roll: End of Road

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Recent Roll: End of Road


Download the high-res here

After a hefty processing and scanning bill, I finally have all of my 2013 ATOC photos. For me, one of the benefits of shooting from the hip with a 35mm camera is catching moments like this and not knowing how they’ll turn out. End of roll / end of road, coming down Mt. Diablo with Garrett, Jeremy and Julie. I’m just bummed the next exposure didn’t make the cut!

While I figure out what to do with all these photos, I’ll let you have the high res to do as you please. Click the link above.

Get Out and Ride This Weekend

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Get Out and Ride This Weekend

It’s almost the weekend and I shouldn’t even have to tell you to get out and ride. I haven’t shown any of my film photos from China but I can let these two slip through. It’s Jeff, MMC and Tyler from Factory 5 ripping out of the bamboo forest…

Jacob Rader and His 35mm Austin Life

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Jacob Rader and His 35mm Austin Life


Photos by Jacob Rader

This past weekend, I spent my time hanging out with some great people at what is best described as a “luxury cabin in the middle of nowhere”. Texas is like that: a thirty minute drive south and you’re surrounded by nothing. One of the people who spent the weekend with us, surrounded by cacti was Jacob Rader. He’s been a friend for a while but it’s not until you have nothing else to do but talk (and drink), that you really make a connection with someone. As someone who also can’t leave the house without a camera, I can appreciate his lovely work.

Follow his Flickr, for what it’s like to live and ride in Austin, Texas.

\The Lost New Road

Reportage By: John Watson

\The Lost New Road

Late last summer, a group of cyclists got together in Northern California with Giro to try out their New Road cycling line. While there, I was told to not worry about shooting photos but I still did. Some of which made it to their ad campaign, others made it into my hoard drive where they sat for months.

With the New Road line out now, I can post these and what better time than a Friday afternoon. I’m back in Cali on Monday and I can’t wait, especially after looking through these photos again.

Tools of the trade:
Yashica T4
Fuji Neopan 400 / Fuji 400 ProH

Bush Bash!

Reportage By: John Watson

Bush Bash!

It’s the sort of tale that is the segue into a horror movie. A few mates take to the ‘Strayan wood to celebrate one of them turning forty years young. They don’t have a support car, one (ok two) of them has a camera and all hell breaks loose. Right? Well, not hardly. No hell broke loose, no hillbillies made us squeal like pigs and no thirty foot crock ate our tour guide.

In fact, we all made it out unscathed, including my film…

Tools of the trade:
Yashica T4
Fuji Neopan 400

Previously:
MelburnOut: Shifter Dan’s 40th Birthday Bush Bash Day 02
MelburnOut: Shifter Dan’s 40th Birthday Bush Bash Day 01

Shifter Bikes

Reportage By: John Watson

Shifter Bikes

It’s hard to be around Shifter Bikes and not want to document what Dan does each day. Over the years, he’s become not only a mechanic for many of his customers, but a consultant. There’s only one way to gain knowledge and that’s through experience, something few people have the time for. While many people have naive opinions, Dan has callouses…

Tools of the trade:
Leica M7
Leica Summicron f2 50mm / Zeiss f2.8 28mm
Fuji Neopan 400