F.A.Q.

- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS -

WHERE ARE YOU BASED ?

I live in Sanur, Bali (Indonesia).

I can move all over the island and around. Usually, the pool sessions are held in the southern tip of Bali (from Ubud to Nusa Dua). To organize a pool photo session further north than Ubud, just ask me.

For ocean photo sessions, the main spots are : Gili Islands (Lombok), Nusa Penida , Padang Bai and Amed. But if you have an other place in mind, tell me !

HOW MUCH IS A PHOTO SESSION ?

DO I NEED TO KNOW POSING LIKE A MODEL ?

Of course NOT !
I will do my best to make you feel comfortable and I will guide you to find poses that beautify you.
No worries : even if my camera is quite big, it’s easy to forget it underwater!

DO YOU ALWAYS DO A PHOTO EDITING ?

YES ! Retouching is an integral part of image creation, as much as shooting. All underwater photos are carefully edited to reduce the distortions and the water greenish veil, restore model colors, clean the suspended dust, remove lamps, grids, tiles, misplaced bubbles, etc.
For the beauty editing, I usually work in a rather minimally invasive way : removing small temporary imperfections, reducing signs of fatigue…

CAN I GET THE RAW FILES ?

I always provide finished pictures.

You will be delivered low-res and high-res photos.
→ Low resolution images are intended for your social networks. They are compressed to reduce download time.
→ High resolution images are intended for your prints or books. They are much heavier.

HOW LONG BEFORE I RECEIVE THE PHOTOS ?

As I told you, post-production is a big job !
My maximum deadline for delivering the pictures is one month. But, depending on my workload, it can be really sooner !

CAN I ORDER FRAMED PRINTS ?

Yes, of course !
I'm working in collaboration with a very good printer in Bali. Just tell me what you want, and I will tell you the possibilities for sizes and prices.

CAN I OFFER A SESSION ?

Yes ! I can provide you a gift card.
Just tell me which kind of session you want to offer, and if there are options to add.

DO I NEED TO BE A STRONG SWIMMER ?

No, not at all, because sessions can be held in relatively shallow pools. However, it is important to be comfortable underwater.
For ocean sessions, it's better to be in good physical condition, because it's quite tiring. Nevertheless, no need to be an athlete !

DO I NEED TO BE GOOD AT APNEA ?

No ! I don’t need you to be underwater for longer than a few seconds.

Usually, the main difficulty encountered by my models is not to stay underwater for long, but to succeed in descending ! I will give you some keys at the beginning of the session to help you manage your breath.

DO I NEED TO BE ABLE TO OPEN MY EYES UNDERWATER ?

For the aesthetic of the pictures, I don’t really need your eyes to be open or you to look at the camera (most of the time). But it’s still better if you can do it (at least a little bit), so you can position yourself in space and know where your partner is…!

For ocean sessions, you can wear a mask if the salt stings your eyes too much : if you choose to wear regular clothes, it can create a surreal mismatch that can be very interesting.

CAN I USE A NOSECLIP ?

If you are very uncomfortable with water in your nose, I can provide you with a very discreet nose clip that I will then remove during post-production.

WHAT KIND OF POOL IS THE BEST ?

If you’re more of a « Let’s have fun and improvise ! » type, then any pool is good ! Even a paddling pool of 50 cm depth can sometimes be enough ! Moreover, I have backgrounds that we can use if we don't like the tile.
But if you have quite precise ideas about the photos you want to get, then we will look together for the best place (length, depth, coating…) to make them. For example, if your are dreaming about pictures where you are standing up or swimming vertically, then we will probably rent a pool with a diving pit.

DO I HAVE TO BRING MY OWN CLOTHES ?

WILL THEY BE DAMAGED ?

As you wish !
You can bring your own clothes and accessories : the photos will be even more personal.

So far, I have never noticed clothes being damaged by salt or chlorine during a single session. But I think it's better to prepare yourself psychologically for the idea that this could happen ! (Especially white clothes that can turn slightly yellow).
I can also lend you some outfits : dresses, tops, kimonos, lace bodysuit, swimsuit… Most of them can fit from S to L. Do not hesitate to ask me beforehand.

If you are dreaming about wearing a mermaid tail, I can rent one for you. (Also read this post.)

I'M PREGNANT : IS IT SAFE ?

Yes ! It’s as safe as a regular swimming session ! An underwater photo shooting is by no means comparable to a sports freediving session : a few seconds of immersion is enough to capture beautiful images!
In addition, I recommend that pregnancy sessions always take place in shallow water, so that you don’t tire unnecessarily.
If you’re concerned, please feel free to ask me any more questions before or talk to your physician.

SWIMMING BABY : IS IT SAFE ?

Yes !

Please read this article before : "Baby swimmers".
If you’re concerned, please feel free to ask me any more questions before.