All About Underwater Photos

My water history:

Having grown up on the Washington coast, I’ve been in and around water my entire life—swimming in pools, lakes, rivers and the ocean. I joined the swim team as a springboard diver when I was 16, placing 5th and 6th at state my junior and senior year. I began lifeguarding and teaching swim lessons when I was 18 years old, and have continued to teach swim lessons for pools as well as privately (going on 17 years which is CRAZY). I started surfing around the same time, which is also when I started playing with underwater and ocean photography with a small waterproof point-and-shoot camera. In my early 20s I was the aquatics director for a Boy Scouts summer camp, training and managing the life guards and their merit badge classes (including canoeing, rowing, small boat sailing, swimming, lifesaving, BSA lifeguard certifications, and swim lessons). I am currently a water aerobics instructor at my local YMCA, and am the dive coach for the Aberdeen High School boys and girls swim teams.

Before the location, after you book:

When it comes to underwater photos, there are many different ways to go about it, and because of that, we’ll start with a phone call where I ask exactly what it is you’re looking for.

Kids playing in the water? Swim team? Mermaid? Couples photos? Portraits? Fine art? Wearing an old wedding dress?

After this phone call, I’ll be able to give you a solid idea of what to expect as far as number of photos. You know how in the film industry they’ll shoot 3 hours of footage for a 10 second final product? Underwater photos can very much be the same thing. If it’s a fine art shoot, we’ll be hitting the same pose over and over and over to make sure we nail the shot before moving on to the next. In this situation we’ll get 1-5 photos. If it’s candids of swimming and playing around, we’ll get more, but they wont be set up and curated.

All of this we’ll go over beforehand to see what the best option would be moving forward.

At the location, before the shoot:

My number one priority is ensuring the safety of everyone involved in the shoot. I do this by beginning the session going over breath work and safety measures—listening to your body, knowing when to take a break, staying calm (especially if you’re wearing clothes that can get caught in your legs), etc.

We’ll get in the water and practice without the camera, just using goggles and getting a feel for the water. I’ll walk you through getting in position in the water, holding it, then incorporating poses and movement. The poses will be very basic while we get warmed up and comfortable.

If you’re not a super experienced swimmer, that’s totally fine! If you happen to have clear nose plugs, bring them. If you don’t know how to swim, also totally fine. We can stay in the shallow end and still get beautiful photos.

The shoot:

Once we’re warmed up for the camera and ready to start shooting, we’ll typically start in shallower water with the simple poses we practiced. The housing case that holds my camera is extremely limited on what I can see as far as reviewing photos. It truly is a “don’t know what we got until I get home to my computer” situation. I will also be looking through my camera viewfinder, which also limits how much of your details I can see in the moment—this is why it’s so vital that we practice beforehand because once the camera gets out, my brain will be in safety mode and “keep everything in the frame” mode.

Limited control:

There are a lot of things that we wont have control of. It’s not like regular portraits where the photographer can give you instant feedback and direction, or look back and review the photos to really analyze, and then, you know…you can’t breathe…

If we’re in a pool, sometimes they get murky depending on how busy it had been. I have lights that can help shine through the water, but it’s just something we have to work around sometimes. I try to choose locations that are crystal clear, but if it’s been stormy or windy lately, that can also kick up sediment and make it hard to see if we’re at a lake, river, or ocean.

Public places can get busy. People generally see the photoshoot happen and keep their distance, but the occasional child with lots of curiosity and energy can make their way over. How do I handle this? I talk with them and explain what we’re doing and make sure they help us to stay safe.