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Nude In Water Studio Photography
Over many years I have always enjoyed creating images using a nude in water, whether outdoors on location or in the studio. First starting with the beauty photography, where water is one of the most commonly used elements to show a healthy moisturised skin I then moved on to beauty nudes where it was just as useful and later on with some glamour photography as well.
Water has a chameleon like quality and is a very versatile tool for the photographer to exploit because of the way it can be used to change the feel of an image from fresh and energetic to sensual, sultry or peaceful, so while there are definitely some tricks to learn it offers many benefits and is also one of the more cost effective props you can use in your photography.
Just for starters, think of all the locations you can choose to photograph a nude in water including waterfalls, streams, lakes, rivers, the beach, swimming pools, jacuzzis and hot water pools etc. Many of these are also surrounded by interesting landscapes or buildings that offer a useful backdrop to your images.
Another great advantage of working with water is that it often brings sense to the picture and gives your model something specific to do, which always helps to create more interesting images if the model feels engaged in the shoot but not in a way that makes her feels awkward and self conscious.
When shooting a nude in water at a studio it’s obviously important to take a few precautions, especially if you are using flash, so you should make every possible effort to maintain a safe distance between any flash packs and splashing water or even an excessive build up of moisture that could be dangerous. Above all make absolutely certain that any lights are securely positioned so they cannot fall in any water. You have a responsibility to ensure the safety and wellbeing of those who you are working with.
Another factor to consider is the temperature of the water, which ultimately has to be comfortable and safe for the model. That means it can’t be so hot that it burns, but equally if you are shooting outdoors remember that a frozen landscape with rushing water may sound fantastic but there’s a good chance you’ll end up calling the emergency services when your model starts suffering from hypothermia… In the meanwhile you’ll probably have nothing but a couple images of a model in pain with bright pink skin covered in goosebumps.
When shooting a nude in water, remember that you have incredible scope for experimentation such as altering the movement of the water and playing with the shutter speeds to achieve varying degrees of blur and movement. Then you can apply oil to the skin and also look at how the water interacts with other elements in the image such a frosted sheet of glass or the pebbles on a beach. The opportunities and choices are incredible.
You can see a couple examples of images I have done with a nude in water at my website.
