Mikala Jones, Hawaii surfer known for filming inside waves, dies in surfing accident

HONOLULU — Mikala Jones, a Hawaii surfer known for shooting awe-inspiring photos and videos from the inside of massive, curling waves, has died after a surfing accident in Indonesia. He was 44.

Jones had gone out into the ocean Sunday morning during a trip to the Mentawai Islands off the western coast of Sumatra when his surfboard fin cut his femoral artery, said his father, dentist Dr. John Jones. The femoral artery is a large blood vessel in the thigh that delivers blood to lower limbs.

“He was a humble artist. His pictures were incredible,” his father said in a phone interview from his Honolulu office on Monday.

Jones’ Instagram account shows stunning images of waves curling around him from above while he crouches on his board. In some shots, a sunset or sunrise is visible through the curved wave opening in front of him.

Surf photographer Woody Woodworth, who said Jones took the best overall surf photo he had ever seen, said cuts from surfboard fins are common.

Some surfers like to keep their fins sharp because they believe doing so will help them ride waves more precisely — but a fin can be like an axe or a cleaver when combined with a wave’s power, he said.

“All the fins that I see are certainly sharp enough with the force of a wave, and pointy enough with the force of the wave, that slicing into somebody’s leg would be very easy,” Woodworth said.

The elder Jones took photos for surfing magazines starting in the 1970s, but mostly shot from the beach or snapped pictures of other people in the water. Not his son.

“He was interested in taking pictures while he’s surfing,” he said.