Stuart Philpott on Buoyancy, Photography & Miss Scuba Models

After his makes an attempt to arrange an underwater modelling picture workshop within the Red Sea had been an epic failure, Stuart Philpott used his time in El Quseir to hone his topics’ buoyancy expertise.

My brilliant concept had spectacularly crashed and burned. Whether this was attributable to Harvey Weinstein’s antic shitting the information headlines, a scarcity of superior promotion or just a vote of no confidence relating to my very own photographic talents, the brutal info had been clear-my underwater modelling picture workshop had didn’t hit the mark.

Underwater Modelling

Models add a focus to underwater pictures. A cave entrance or shipwreck comes alive when a diver is within the body, torch beam illuminating a shoal of passing fish or highlighting the blades of a coral-encrusted propeller. We can relate to an image much better when there’s a diver or a snorkeler both silhouetted someplace within the background, or sharing centre stage with a dolphin or a turtle.

The photographer, working intently with a mannequin, normally plans out the composition – this isn’t really easy to do with unpredictable marine life, besides an skilled mannequin is aware of the place to go and the place to look. My concept was to supply quite a lot of fashions after which present the underwater photographers the easiest way to get outcomes.

Steve and Clare, the homeowners of Roots Red Sea (www.rootsredsea.com) based mostly at El Quseir in Egypt, supplied me the complete use of their amenities and three earlier Miss Scuba UK winners, together with Miss Scuba California, agreed to assist out as underwater fashions. All the best substances had been accessible, however the menu simply wasn’t proving to be well-liked. I had enquiries from each female and male photographers however agency commitments weren’t so forthcoming.

Maybe the idea of photographing fashions underwater was not PC anymore? But come on, this wasn’t a Playboy shoot, my concept was to take footage of girls – or ought to I say ‘divers’ – sporting scuba and snorkelling gear full with moist tangled hair, snot, slime, and so forth. How sexually express does that look, particularly with a regulator or a snorkel hanging out? The women weren’t being exploited. They needed to go diving and had been joyful to pose through the dives. That was principally the ‘bare bones’ of the week-long workshop. Going out as a bunch, taking footage, making a number of enhancements/enhancements and having a number of laughs alongside the way in which.

Maybe the phrase ‘model’ had been misinterpreted? But this clearly described what I used to be attempting to realize. In hindsight, utilizing ‘diver in the frame’ as an alternative of ‘model’ would have been a greater flip of phrase. I assume the thousand greenback query was, why then use attractive-looking ladies on the workshop? Let’s face it – scuba diving within the UK is predominantly a male-orientated sport. The harsher situations simply aren’t so interesting to the fairer intercourse, so selling ladies in diving absolutely can’t do any hurt, can it? I’m positive this topic is an enormous ‘hot potato’ of dialogue and there are numerous totally different opinions, however be assured my intentions had been true.

So I arrived at Roots Red Sea, feeling deflated and a tad embarrassed. Looking on the constructive facet this meant I had 4 underwater fashions just about to myself. Steve, pro-active as at all times, had deliberate in a two-day reef monitoring course with resident marine biologist Guy Henderson, which left me with about three to 4 days to kill. I had coated the Miss Scuba UK finals again in 2015 so knew the women might all dive. Hannah Higgins and Sarah Mariko-Winter backside had clocked up at the least 50 dives, and Alex Talbot Prior, the 2017 Miss Scuba UK, had logged round 20. Miss Scuba California, Marina Inserra, was an unknown amount, however she was working full-time at a dolphinarium in Dubai, so should be pretty competent within the water.

My largest mistake was assuming the women could be prepared for motion the second they jumped within the water. I took some check photographs throughout our warm-up dive and will clearly see this wasn’t the case and that we wanted to do some work. Being an underwater mannequin will not be straightforward. I believe it’s simply as troublesome as being on my facet of the lens.

Models must have good buoyancy expertise and pay attention to the environment, so no touching coral, no kicking up the seabed and regulate marine life actions. Usually once I go on an task I take advantage of somebody from the dive centre employees (this may be male or feminine) who’re very skilled divers and know the dive websites properly. Being 100% snug underwater is essential. The draw back to utilizing dive employees is that their gear is generally worn out they usually predominantly put on black-skirted masks and neoprene hoods.

It’s troublesome to spotlight the mannequin’s eyes when they’re utilizing a black-skirted masks, and sporting hoods makes the general really feel of the image look chilly. This is ok within the UK or colder water locations, but when I’m selling the Caribbean or the Red Sea, it doesn’t look so good.

Several years in the past, I gave a dive present presentation about entrance cowl footage. This described the do’s and don’t’s of underwater modelling and talked about the very best gear colors to make use of, masks sorts, physique place and even how momentarily holding your respiration could make a distinction.

When I take advantage of flash weapons, it’s the yellows, oranges and pinks that come to life and if color co-ordinated with matching fins and even a stripe or nifty design on a semi-dry swimsuit, this all provides to the completed image. We additionally mentioned the significance of fine communication. I take advantage of a number of further hand indicators simply to information the mannequin into the best place, transfer up and down barely, and so forth., I’ve learnt that the digital camera dome port acts like a mirror and displays my meant composition. This offers the mannequin an perception into what I’m attempting to realize.

Our first couple of dives at Roots Red Sea’s home reef didn’t yield many outcomes and this was in all probability right down to me not explaining what I needed clearly sufficient. I generally take it as a right that fashions can assume the place instantaneously with none prompting. Then I remembered protecting a tech story at Divewise in Malta.

Owner Alan Whitehead had used a Go-Pro to report the entire coaching dive after which performed it again within the classroom later. It was a lot simpler to clarify an issue when you’ve got footage or a video as a back-up. So I made plans to take a collection of in-water check footage after which assessment them at Roots Red Sea’s lab-come-presentation room after the dives.

I picked a spot on the north wall the place there was a cluster of fairly pink and white smooth corals. The plan was to take some face-on photographs displaying the significance of arm and hand positions.

Then we moved over to a statue in the course of the bay simply to follow maintaining legs collectively and pointing fins downwards. I selected a pinnacle positioned on the south facet for the remainder of my workout routines. It sits at a couple of most depth of 18m and is about 4 metres happy with the seabed. Resident marine life consists of shoals of anthias and glassfish. The point of interest is a brilliant pink anemone full with a household of very photogenic anemonefish.

The women took it in turns to hover subsequent to the top, firstly with fins pointing down for a portrait shot after which posing both head or facet on to the anemonefish for a panorama composition. We tried hair tied again after which flowing (apparently tied again is extra trendy {and professional}, and though arty, flowing hair seems to be out dated and really Nineteen Eighties) and eyes and head pointed on the topic, wanting away and at last wanting on the digital camera lens. Most fashions will mechanically look into the digital camera. But if I’m taking a shot of a fish within the foreground, the mannequin ought to be wanting on the topic not on the digital camera lens, in any other case the composition seems to be complicated. When we reviewed all the photographs afterward, the women might clearly see the variations and what labored finest. Facial expressions can even make a distinction. Even when a regulator is in the way in which, a smile can nonetheless be seen on the corners of the mouth and within the creases of the eyes.

As a particular deal with, Steve made preparations for us to go to ‘the rock’, a dive website positioned simply off the coast of El Quseir and solely accessible by boat. This gave me an opportunity to play with torches – though barely too small to have a lot impact, the beam of sunshine managed so as to add some further magic to my footage. This dive website is loaded with anemonefish in addition to the complete vary of predators together with lionfish, octopus and moray eels. I managed to get an ideal shot of Hannah full with floaty ankles. Her yellow masks actually did make a distinction.

My authentic plan was to incorporate some snorkelling and breath-holding shoots within the workshop. Most diving programs educate the fundamentals of snorkel clearing and duck diving, however this doesn’t make divers proficient snorkellers. We spent a number of hours in Roots Red Sea’s swimming pool going over some breath-hold expertise which included static work and swimming lengths underwater simply to construct up confidence ranges earlier than going within the sea.

Sarah had introduced alongside a brand new swimwear vary from a well known high-street model and needed to get some promo footage. But the wind was blowing onshore creating fairly a swell. There was a small boat moored in the course of the bay and I assumed this is able to make backdrop for some footage moderately than simply having an empty blue vista. Instead of utilizing a snorkel, Sarah was simply going to take a deep breath and swim beneath the boat. This meant I might get a transparent shot of her face.

On this event, I used to be additionally breath-holding so we each duck dived on the similar time and met someplace within the center. We tried numerous totally different angles and compositions. The waves actually stirred up the silt, which created a layer of murky water which meant I needed to spend fairly a number of hours post-processing, however the completed shot didn’t look too dangerous and Sarah’s swimsuit undoubtedly stood out.

As to be anticipated, Roots Camp’s top-rate hospitality stored everybody in effective spirits. Late afternoons had been typically spent sitting across the pool. There was even time for some sunbathing. The week completed off with a beach-side barbecue and some ice chilly beers simply to drown my sorrows. Although my workshop had been a disappointment, I had learnt a priceless lesson. If I used to be ever going to strive once more, I ought to first ensure that the underwater fashions might really mannequin.

If the workshop had attracted extra consideration, I’d have been left with a logistical nightmare. This was totally my oversight and no fault of the fashions. There was even some speak about writing a brand new PADI Underwater Modelling Specialty course define. I definitely had sufficient materials, sensible and displays to fill a two- to three-day course. But would there be any curiosity? I additionally made one other shocking discovery.

The excellent mannequin – with large spherical eyes, pouting lips, white tooth and vibrant complexion – that will pose for me all day lengthy might flip barely aggressive, particularly when hassled by photographers. Yes, the one-and-only Amphiprion bicinctus, aka two-banded anemonefish!

FAQ

Q: What was Stuart Philpott’s authentic plan in El Quseir?

A: He got down to run an underwater modelling picture workshop at Roots Red Sea dive centre, utilizing Miss Scuba UK winners and Miss Scuba California as fashions. The concept was to show photographers the way to work with fashions underwater to enhance composition and storytelling of their pictures.

Q: Why did the workshop fail to draw members?

A: Despite robust preparation, the workshop struggled attributable to poor timing, lack of promotion, and presumably the notion of the phrase “model.” Philpott later mirrored that utilizing the phrase “diver in the frame” might need been higher.

Q: What did Stuart give attention to as an alternative?

A: With the fashions already current, he turned the week right into a coaching alternative to enhance their buoyancy, positioning, and consciousness underwater — important expertise for efficient underwater modelling and images.

Q: Why is buoyancy so necessary for underwater fashions?

A: Good buoyancy permits fashions to hover gracefully with out damaging coral, disturbing the seabed, or always adjusting place. It additionally ensures easy, natural-looking poses that improve the general composition of pictures.

Q: What images suggestions had been highlighted through the coaching?

A: Philpott emphasised utilizing bright-coloured gear (masks, fins, fits) to make fashions stand out, avoiding black-skirted masks and hoods that obscure eyes, and working towards facial expressions. He additionally demonstrated how small changes to arm, hand, and fin place might enhance pictures.

Q: What workout routines did the fashions follow?

A: They labored at Roots Red Sea’s home reef and native pinnacles, working towards portrait and panorama poses close to anemones, utilizing torches for artistic lighting, and experimenting with tied-back vs flowing hair. They additionally reviewed images post-dive to analyse what labored.

Q: Did the workshop embody snorkelling and freediving?

A: Yes. Philpott included pool-based breath-hold coaching earlier than taking fashions into the bay for freediving-style picture classes. This allowed for clear photographs with out regulators or snorkels obscuring faces.

Q: What sudden discovery did Stuart make?

A: He realised that his “perfect model” was not a diver in any respect, however the two-banded anemonefish (Amphiprion bicinctus). With its large eyes, vibrant options, and fixed presence, it posed superbly for images — although with a bent to get aggressive when hassled!

Q: Could this idea grow to be a proper course?

A: Philpott famous that he had sufficient materials to create a two- or three-day PADI Underwater Modelling Specialty. However, it stays unsure whether or not there could be demand for such a course.