Life Through an Underwater Lens

Everything looks different underwater, and photography takes on completely different challenges. This past summer I had the amazing opportunity to try my hand at underwater photography. I was working for the wonderful Claire McAdams, and we went on this adventure together. It was completely different than I had expected and much much harder. Luckily we had some amazing models, and I was shocked by their ability to look so beautiful underwater. I had trouble even keeping myself underwater long enough to capture whatever beautiful pose Brooke had come up with. We shot for 3 full days, and I eventually got into the swing of things. I had one full day of shooting where I was behind the camera and Claire assisted me. Once I came up with a concept to guide the shoot I had a blast.

As you look through these images I want you to imagine that you are on an elaborate ship. At the beginning the colors are bright and the atmosphere is joyful. However, this doesn't last for long because the ship begins sinking and it becomes more and more obvious that we are underwater. As the ship sinks, people hold on to their lavish belongings as they fight the sense of being engulfed by water. As the images progress I wanted it to gradually become about the sense of being underwater. Underwater photography has a very haunting quality to it, and I really wanted to embrace that. While the first few images are light hearted, I wanted to embrace the sense of unease that comes from taking pictures where a camera is not meant to be.

Another quality that I really wanted to explore is that of disproportion and distortion. I want to trick the eye, and cause you to question where a picture could have been taken. For some pictures that meant making it look more like ocean water and for others that meant shooting at angles that confuse the eye. In water the model has the ability to hit positions that are not possible on land, and because of that there are so many options. I don't want it to be obvious how or where I captured these images, I simply want you to use your imagination to explore the world I have tried to create.

As you explore these images, I ask you to step away from reality and embrace the things that don't seem possible. Come along for this journey and enjoy the story I am trying to tell. I have absolutely loved every step of the process as I have created these images, and I hope you enjoy what you see. Use your imagination and enjoy!