Scales

Tender moments

If the ocean could talk, what would she say to us? What secrets does she hide deep down under miles of dark water? Photography is a wonderful tool when it comes to storytelling, and being able to bring a camera underwater and create in a world with no gravity adds a dimension to creativity allowing the viewer's imagination to really play with a story. And with that said, mermaids are the most fitting character to bring a message to the public’s attention. So, if she could speak, what would she say?

Lighting

Light changes everything and how fun is it to turn blues into pink and a mermaid into an elegant delight. Light brings life to everything in sight and the ability to see it move and create with it is what makes photography so beautiful. On the same line advanced underwater lighting can turn a blue, flat image into a deep photograph. Light adds dimension, color, it brings attention to form, and shapes every line. Playing with light underwater is for me one of the most interesting challenges. You need the right gear and a little bit of fantasy to overcome problems that you would never have out of water. 

Pearl white snakes

Giving the mermaid a role was simple and it made so much sense. Finding ways to give her a voice that spoke about every issue happening in the ocean was more challenging but so inspiring and as an underwater photographer I really got to push my own limits. Day in and day out thinking of concepts that were not just beautiful but also meaningful and working with incredible talents.

This is how the photography series Trashed Beauty came to be in collaboration with Ten Morrow, one of the most creative women I've ever worked with. This collection represents the life that is ruined by pollution daily in and around the ocean. To photograph this art series we collected trash from friends and family. Every piece was cleaned and sanitized and then divided it by kind before adding it to the wet stage. Every photograph mimics what it would look like to be trapped in a garbage patch, besides the last two that are staged in an oil spill look alike. 

Dragons

The real legend of the seas, more monster than elegant beauty. More chaotic than peaceful. The siren is one of the many monsters the sailors feared while venturing into the unknown high seas. And if while diving you’d stumble upon one, what would she do? She’d probably retaliate and turn on divers for all the horrible things we are doing to the ocean. Silent. Efficient. On a technical level this photograph was a challenge. The model wasn't tied too deep but between equipment failure and the cold California water we didn't have much time to execute the underwater photoshoot. It took two different tries and a fun precaution trip to a hyperbaric chamber.  The post production on this photo came to the rescue where the real underwater lighting in murky water failed. 

The world's best treasure hunt

I grew up fascinated with the scaled down dinosaurs that still roam our planet. The variety of species in which snakes and lizards, frogs and salamanders, have evolved in and their ability to hide makes finding, observing, and photographing these animals simply so exciting. 

Often the search can be unsuccessful, and still the process is just as fun as finding the targeted critter.

Every photography holds a story, an adventure lost in nature, away from everything