An Unusual High School Senior Concept -Drawing Underwater

Yes, you can use waterproof paper and ink in your pool!

I did a recent high school senior underwater photoshoot, and one of the concepts she wanted to try was to doodle on paper underwater. I had never tried paper underwater before, as it usually soaks up the water and smears the ink.

I did a little research and found waterproof paper was actually available. I purchased a pack along with a set of pens with waterproof ink to use with the paper. Imagine my excitement when the paper and ink arrived and I had the opportunity to try this unique idea out. I took a piece of paper and the medium-tipped ink pen and started doodling and drawing on the paper.

My stick figure is not considered fine art, but it definitely worked for the experiment. I took the paper to the sink and ran water over the drawing, and to my amazement, the ink did not wash off or smear. I thought perhaps I could actually come up with a way to photograph paper and ink underwater!

I contacted the senior and had her send me pictures of the doodle drawings to be used in the photos. I then copied the drawings with my laser printer onto the waterproof paper. I wasn't sure this would work, since the laser cartridge was not waterproof ink. To my amazement and joy, once again, after taking it back to the sink, the ink did not smear or wash off.

I copied 10 pages of waterproof paper with the senior's doodle drawings, and thought about how I was going to suspend them in the pool for our photoshoot.

I took fishing line and a small fishing weight, tied the line to one end of a wardrobe clip and the other end to the weight. I dropped the weight into the pool and allowed it to sink to the bottom. The paper floated to the length of the fishing wire and stood up so I was able to photograph it properly.

When it was time for the actual photoshoot, I took a folding table and metal chair and placed it upright on the bottom of the pool. I had to allow the air bubbles to release from inside the table so it wouldn't float back to the surface.

I had the senior sit in the chair underwater, and she took the waterproof pen and a blank sheet of waterproof paper and began doodling on the paper. I captured other floating doodle pages as she was drawing, and we were able to fulfill her concept successfully.

Yes, you can draw on waterproof paper using waterproof ink underwater in a pool. If you have a unique and/or crazy idea that would be fun to try out in a pool, reach out and let's try to make it a reality.

At Aqua Fantasy Portraits, I'm always trying to come up with unique concepts to try in the pool. It's just one of many fun things we do with underwater photography.

0 Comments

Client Spotlight: A Session to Remember

An Unusual High School Senior Concept -Drawing Underwater

Leave a comment

Archive