Marie at the Beach

I had the opportunity to go to Costa Rica for a few days for a collaborative shoot with a couple of photographers and seven models to do some swimsuit shoots on the beach. Unfortunately, Costa Rica is moving into its rainy season and we never got a full on sunset. The skies were usually overcast and the winds were strong creating some strong surf. My strobe got sucked into the water, so I had to work with existing light, which is something I seldom do. But it was a great exercise for me in terms of just giving in to the moment and working with what you’ve got. And to be honest, I think they may be some of the most interesting images I got on the trip. It’s just not a way I’m used to working. 

Both Marie and I were both in the water and had to be careful given the surf. I didn’t want to lose my camera, so I was constantly moving and jumping up and pulling the camera over my head to avoid it getting in the water. So I can’t say that my focus was always sharp. I couldn’t direct Marie given the circumstances and the noise, so I just let her do her thing and moved around to capture her as best I could. I shot mostly swimsuits on this trip, but Marie was up for doing some artful nudes instead of typical glam and threw herself into it. 

I don’t think any of the images in this post are cropped. This is the composition straight out of the camera with quick edits in Lightroom. We were shooting against the light at the beginning and everything was very grey: grey water, shadowy black rock, black sand, overcast sky. So I edited those in black and white. When we changed locations and I got her in better light, the colors started to pop so I kept those in color and added a little vibrance.