Wet Work

The first time I saw this concept the layout was presented as a pencil sketch. Sketched layouts are great because they give you the essence of the image but leave plenty of room for evolution as the project moves forward.

I have an underwater housing for my DSLR system making it the logical choice. Cold temps and poor water clarity precluded doing this as a single capture so more than one piece was needed. 

The scuba diver had to be comfortable, and in the end he would stay under for almost two hours during the hookup portion of the picture. We shot the diver, underwater line, and fish in a nice warm pool.  

The lake bottom came from an early scouting trip and was the style basis for the image as it has nice light and drama. Often one image sets the tone for light and perspective. Other parts matched to it later as the picture evolves.

We shot the fisherman and his boat in another lake. Capturing everything above the water and the waterline itself in one element. Art Director and clients in a pontoon near my position, me in the water shooting, freezing, and loving it the whole time.

This kind of project requires lots of help and many resources. We had two divers, a fishing guide, assistants, stylist, AD, clients, in total a crew of eleven had a hand in this piece.

In addition to people, boats, and lakes there is an important safety component involved anytime you go underwater. Things happen, and people will often push themselves further then they should during a shoot like this because of the novelty of it all. The second diver was a safety diver and had final say over the duration of the hookup portion.

It is great fun producing a picture like this. As always the final outcome needs to meet my standards and in this case a cool project well executed made all of us happy.