The surf world has lost one of its great characters. Hank Foto, born Brian Stephen in Southern California, died August 8, 2026, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 62. Since news of his passing spread, tributes have poured in from across the surf world, remembering Hank not simply as a photographer, but as one of those larger-than-life characters who helped define an era of surfing. See Brian Bielmann’s memorial here and below. View this post on Instagram For decades, Stephen documented the sport from inside the action. He began taking photographs in high school before making his first surf photo trip to Bali in 1983. A few years later, he was working at Surfing Magazine , eventually moving to Hawaii full-time in 1990. His longtime friend and fellow North Shore photographer Brian Bielmann interviewed Hank for FreeSurf Magazine , describing him as a "war torn, surf veteran gonzo-photographer." Hank’s own recollections in that interview paint a picture of a life lived at full speed.…