D and I often talked about how cool it would be to try an underwater shoot so that we could do fun flying kung fu photos. We never thought we’d get a chance to actually do it but a happy set of connections put us in touch with someone with a private pool we were able to use. D rented the appropriate camera gear, and Lorelai and I made costumes.
We modeled our costumes after a series of White Snake, Green Snake CG photos that were done in China. We wanted them to be flowy in the water so we made them mostly out of chiffon. We did 2 versions: one with a super long skirt and no ribbons, and one with a shorter skirt and long ribbons.
We did a practice run the week before the shoot, which I highly recommend if you are ever going to do a water shoot and have no experience. It was a good to be able to test out the costumes and make-up, and to get used to working underwater. It took a while for us to get the hang of getting into position and getting into a pose (all without drowning ourselves!) I think this is the hardest photoshoot I have ever done and I was so exhausted after, but the results are so amazing and totally worth it. D did an amazing job shooting us and editing the photos after.
First Worn: Photoshoot 2013