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J. Grant Brittain is the dean of skateboard photography. Over a 40-year career that began when he started photographing locals at the Del Mar Skate Ranch, Mr. Brittain has documented skateboarding’s rise from a niche Southern California activity into a lifestyle and international sport that will debut at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Mr. Brittain spent most of his career working for Transworld Skateboarding and The Skateboard Mag, but over the past few months he has been going through a lifetime of photos for a book project he’s planning. Now 62, he continues to shoot skateboarding, but says his favorite period remains the 1980s.

“It was before video, YouTube, Instagram, before the internet,” he said. “These guys were making up all these tricks, and they did it with their friends and pushed each other. It was so private and I think that’s what I liked about it.”

He shared some of his favorite old photos and talked about the history behind them. His comments are in the captions, and a gallery of his work can be found here.