Underwater photoshoot safety

A beautiful underwater photo is usually the result of many short breath-holds, repeated again and again. That repetition is what makes shoots risky. So is the shared focus on getting the shot, which pulls everyone's eyes away from the person holding their breath.

None of this means shoots are dangerous when they are planned well. It means safety has to be someone's job, not everyone's afterthought.

Why shoots are harder than they look

• Posing is work. Divers Alert Network notes that any physical effort uses oxygen faster, so safe breath-hold times are often overestimated. Kicking down, holding a pose against buoyancy and fighting a costume all count.
• The holds add up. Repeated breath-holds without full recovery are a known risk. A Singapore General Hospital emergency doctor, writing for ActiveSG, lists repetitive breath-holding among the behaviours that lead to blackouts.
• Blackouts are quiet. The same article notes that a swimmer who blacks out often shows no struggle. Underwater, it can look exactly like a model holding a pose.
• Everyone is watching the picture. The photographer is framing, the assistant is holding a light, and the model is thinking about their hands. Nobody is watching the breath-hold unless that is their only task.

The roles on a safe shoot

Agree who does what before anyone gets wet.

• The model decides when to come up. Always.
• The safety watcher watches only the model. Not the photographer, and not an assistant holding lights or reflectors. They watch every take, and for at least 30 seconds after the model surfaces. Divers Alert Network notes that a blackout can happen just after surfacing.
• The photographer directs the shot, keeps the takes short, and accepts that the safety watcher can stop the shoot at any moment.
• One person in charge of safety, usually the watcher, whose "stop" ends the shoot without discussion.

In deeper water, experienced shoot teams add people rather than cutting corners. Writing for Divers Alert Network, photographer Rod Klein uses at least two assistants in the deep end or the ocean. One watches the model; the other helps with the camera and general safety.

MFI, Mermaid Federation International, takes this seriously enough to train for it. Its Photographer of Mermaid Safety specialty focuses on safety procedures for underwater portrait shoots. Its Guardian of Mermaid Safety specialty focuses on safety guarding for mermaid performance. If you are hiring a photographer or a safety person for a mermaid shoot, it is a good question to ask whether they hold either.

Before the shoot

• Choose the water. A pool with clear water, a known depth, easy exits and a rail or edge to rest on between takes. Start shallow with anyone you have not worked with before.
• Check the model's comfort and skills. Rod Klein advises an in-water check of every model before shooting, even experienced freedivers. A model who has never posed without a mask should practise that in shallow water first.
• Talk about health. A cold, blocked ears or tiredness are all reasons to postpone. See Health checks before you start.
• Test the costume. SSI warns that long dresses get heavy fast and wrap around the legs; Wetpixel's contributors note that large dresses make it harder to surface. Try every costume in shallow water. Never wear anything the model cannot get out of quickly.
• Think about hair. Long hair can cover the face and catch on things. Practise managing it before the shoot.
• Agree the signals, in a briefing, with everyone present. At least: OK, not OK, up, one more, and finished.
• Plan for warmth. Cold shortens shoots and slows people down. Klein suggests water around 30 to 32 °C for models working without thermal protection.
• Write a short plan for an emergency. Who goes in, who calls 995, where the first aid kit is, and how you get someone out of the water.

About weights and air

Some shoots add weight so a model sinks more easily. Every kilo makes surfacing harder. If weight is used at all, keep it to a minimum and agree it with the safety watcher. It must come off in a second. Water Safety New Zealand advises a quick-release belt, and dropping weights the moment you struggle.

Some deep or professional shoots have a safety diver hand the model air between takes. SSI describes shoots where the model breathes compressed air as stunt work, needing solid freediving training and extensive scuba experience. That is a different kind of shoot, for trained professionals only.

During the shoot

• Warm up gently with a few easy, short dives before the real takes.
• Never over-breathe before a take. It delays the urge to breathe while your oxygen keeps falling. See Breath-holding and shallow-water blackout.
• Short holds, then a proper rest. Rest at the surface until breathing is fully back to normal, and rest longer as the shoot goes on.
• Count the takes. Ten "just one more" takes add up to a long, tiring session.
• Keep the way up clear. The photographer and crew never swim above the model or block their path to the surface.
• Regroup often. Klein suggests the team surfaces every 5 to 10 minutes to review images and adjust, instead of drifting from take to take.
• Watch the eyes and nose. SSI notes that water in the eyes, nose or sinuses can trigger panic in less experienced models. A nose clip helps some people.
• Stop when the model is tired or cold. The last shots of a long shoot are the risky ones.

Common mistakes

• The watcher also holding a light, a reflector or a second camera.
• Directing the model while they are still underwater, so they stay down to listen.
• Over-breathing to "get a longer take".
• Moving straight to the deep end with a new model.
• An untested costume, or a weight the model cannot shed instantly.
• Running long because the light is perfect.
• Outdoor shoots that ignore the weather. In Singapore, leave the water at the first thunder. See Pool or open water?

For organisers and venues

Book enough time for warm-up and rest; a rushed shoot is an unsafe one. Provide shade, drinking water and a warm place to recover between sets. Make sure the safety watcher is named, briefed and has nothing else to do. Our guide A mermaid at your event covers the venue side in more detail.

In our lessons

Lessons at The Dancing Mermaid are mostly one-to-one and never more than four, and every breath-hold is watched, one student at a time, in the shallow end. In lessons, a separate photographer takes the photos, so her eyes stay on the water, not on a camera. On a dedicated shoot, the rules above apply: the watcher does nothing else.