Underwater- Behind The Scenes

(all images shot by Mr. Grant)

It was not dressed right for this shoot. I should have been wearing a wetsuit. Do they make maternity wetsuits? Needless to say it wasn't my most flattering look for meeting new clients BUT turns out they weren't expecting me to be in a prom dress.

It was cold outside the water and in. It was overcast. No direct sunlight. All of these conditions did make me shuffle a bit and go to game plan B. I have shot underwater before but only once and so this was definitely an experimental shoot. This was known by all parties involved. I knew that once I was in the water and could meter and play around with the equipment I would have a better idea of what I could control and what I couldn't.

Knowing that I couldn't use any directional natural light really make me focus on getting a variety of different activities and varied positioning...from near the surface and some a bit deeper near the floor of the pool.

Gear:

  • Aquatech housing
  • borrowed canon camera and 24mm lens (that fit the borrowed housing)
  • dry 5d for out of water shots and candids
  • plenty of  CF cards
  • ankle weights, waist belt w/weights and goggles
  • oxygen tank, provided by clients (to be used if they wanted/needed)
  • thrift store suit and wedding dress. NOT what they are wearing on their wedding day
  • towels
  • tea (provided by our hosts. bless them)

That's all there was too it. We jumped in, played around with a few ideas I had and then crawled out an hour and 20mins later.

The colder I was the harder it was to hold my breath for long periods of time...but the adrenaline of shooting made it much easier than I had anticipated.  And the weights were magic! As first I was nervous that I was going to feel like a trapped pregnant lady, stuck at the bottom of the pool....but it wasn't the case at all. They helped me stay down just enough that I didn't have to fight to stay down while trying to get the shot.

After we were out and the camera was taken out of the case...not a drop! It was dry dry dry and I feel a little bit in love with Aquatech. Santa?......

I did edit these image more than I usually do. More cropping and cleaning and color adjusting...but it was fun. I loved the more fine art feel to this shoot and enjoyed my computer time with them afterwards.

The color balance was tricky. While I was shooting I could feel most of these turning into BW images. I knew it would help with the color issue and add to the moodiness that already existed.

I have to thank David again for letting me borrow his gear. He pretty much outfitted me with the housing, camera, lens, weights and googles. Amazing and so kind.

Now...who else wants to go for a swim?

Failop + Mike's Engagements

Sometimes holding your breath and jumping is the only way to get in.

As I see it, all of our options for the most happiness come with great risk.

Although, risk never seems quite so scary when you are doing it in tandem. When we were young we needed hand holding to the restroom. As teenagers we doubled dated. Now we are adults. Some decisions are ours alone... BUT isn't it nice that some of the big ones we try and do in teams? Marriage and hopefully parenthood. I look at single moms and dads with great awe and respect. I want to drive around and tuck every single pregnant mother into her pillow nest before she sleeps. I know how blessed I am. Pillow tucking is no small task.

During this engagement shoot I looked at Failop and Mike with that same awe and respect for holding their breath and jumping (especially since it was their idea!). What a fun adventurous couple. Were we freezing? Yes. By the end of the shoot had all our minds numbed to the point that Grant our trusty assistant was a bit nervous? Yes. Was it super awesome and a welcome challenge? YES YES YES.

Thanks to Faliop and Mike for being up for some mild torture. Thanks to brother and sister in law for handing over their gorgeous home and pool...and for the hot tea after we had lost our minds. Thanks to Dave for lending me your Aquatech case and equipment and for trusting me to submerge it all under water. And thanks to my assistant, production manager, lifeguard, chauffeur, father to my unborn daughter and husband. Strapping weights onto your pregnant wife's body and sending her into a watery abyss isn't the easiest thing for even a fish like himself. I would have probably died 8 or 9 times by now if it wasn't for Grant.

Their September wedding in Malibu is a party I look forward to.

Behind the scene shots and tech talk coming up.

The 16 Laws of Island Princess Mode

1.  no makeup 2. no blow dryer

3. eat 1 whole papaya a day..with lime

4. no waking up to alarm clocks, only rosters

5. you are welcome to make some loose plans BUT if they don't work out you really could care less

6. sunscreen is a must (you aren't as dumb as you were at 16)

7.  carrying around plumeria blooms to smell at random is acceptable

8. it is impossible to OD on guava juice

9. NO happy trigger finger. photos may be taken if they mean something or randomly occur.  Life does not happen in front of or behind a screen.

10. leaving the north shore is never a good idea. rethink ever staying on the southside (even if for a night)

11. underwear is optional and discouraged.

12.  it is normal for your mind to wander in and out of island princess mode when keikis are on the mind.

13. getting a tan on your back may be difficult when lying on your stomach doesn't really work

14. floating in rivers is a must!

15. eat breakfast outside. no exceptions.

16. getting in the ocean at ke'e beach, right as the sun sets, wrapped around your big strong man ...seals the deal. island princess forever.

(we fly home tonight. and no...I don't want to talk about it.)

Surprise Friends

The day before we left for our babymoon (which was my birthday), we recieved this amazing gift in the mail. It came from the other side of the world, from clients who have become friends.

No such thing really as "surprise friends" but sometimes my excitement from friendships formed from client relationships surprise me like a gift I love to get but never expected.

Like we needed a thank you for being flown to Australia to shoot Dave & Mel's wedding...but they are just those type of people. Always giving thanks and appreciation.

We love the poster and your friendship more.

(umm and how good will it look in our new place?!)

I have the BJITW.

Island Modus Operandi

We snuck off to Kauai...and I didn't even mention it on my blog. For shame.

After the last month, I barely had time to think about it and after a day here am still trying to get into island mode. Constant to do lists swirl in my brain.

The weather has been perfect and we've already eaten at Ohana Diner & Ono Burgers....not to mention the above breakfast 2 days in a row.

...plus 2 eggs this morning cause grant said I needed more protein.

I feel thankful..

especially after sleeping 10+hrs last night.

Modernica

We just bought these amazing fiber glass molded chairs yesterday at a preview sale at Modernica in LA. (by "we" I mean G-rant...since I am in SF)...but I was helping via phone! If you live near LA and are in the market for some great modern furniture, check out their site at www.modernica.net and go to their factory sale tomorrow!

We bought 6 chairs at 40% off their regular price. Major win.

(I also have no idea how this post will look since I'm doing it from my iPhone).

Home Birth

Theo's Birth video from hailey bartholomew on Vimeo.

Disclaimer: This video shows breasts and breast feeding but is otherwise discreet. You will probably cry and will watch it on repeat.

This video has made the rounds on the internet..and for good reason. It is magic. Anytime Grant and I feel stressed out about the "unknowns" we snuggle up and watch this. We both cry (even though we have watched it numerous times) and our anxiety is replaced with a surge of excitement and energy.

We are choosing to have a home birth.

Our midwives from the Sanctuary birthing center are amazing and enlightened. They are knowledgeable and warm. Our experience with them has been reassuring and extremely positive. We leave our pre-natal appointments and both feel satisfaction and contentment. I feel taken care of. Grant feels taken care of and I have no doubt our little lady feels the same.

We know that no matter how much preparation or planning we do...our baby girl may have other plans for her birth. We both feel strongly that the best thing we can do is stay flexible and open minded. So far so good and I feel so grateful for the peaceful feeling this desicion has left on me.

As much as we love Theo's birth, we have no preconceived idea of how our daughters birth "should be"...rather we feel it "will be" how it needs to be and we can only do our best to prepare mentally and physically for her grand entrance.

We are reading some amazing books that once I have finished, and formulated my opinions of each, I will share.

Yesterday one of my best friends gave birth to her second child, a dashing fellow named Major. His delivery was beautiful and empowering and full of love...and it was not at home. I am overwhelmed at the sacrifice mothers, fathers and families give in order to let a little human have a chance at life. I draw so much strength and goodness from the women that have gone before me and have shown me IT IS POSSIBLE. No matter how you choose to birth, I am in awe that you choose at all.

We welcome positive and encouraging comments.

(read about Theo's birth here. I follow gregarious peach's blog and it is one of the highlights of my day.)

Not So Bad...

(photos taken by Rochelle Kramer)

Photos of our new home. Not my photos or our furnishings...but after the dramatic goodbye I wanted to let you know how excited I am to be in our new space. We love it.

Goodbyes

Today is the last Friday we will sleep in our 1st home. Tomorrow the movers come. And then the next day happens...not here. I love change.  I do. I love newness and the unknown and the excitement of "firsts"....but I get very attached. Even to things.

Once the divorce/annulment to my 1st husband was finalized, I moved out of the home we had bought together. Alone. But alone was good. That home had become a sanctuary for me  during the months of our separation. I was living alone there, by choice. When the time came to sleep my last night and say goodbye, I was beside myself. Those walls! That doorknob! Those windows! That one step on the stairs! They had held me up. Kept me in. Protected me. I was leaving a space that knew what the last year had been for me...when most people had no idea..and still don't. I wanted to tear down the structure and pack it with me on my way to NYC. I wanted my old friends to come with.

I moved. And survived. And thrived even! In a lot of new places with lots  of new things.. and people..to hold me up and keep me in.

And here I am again...kind of. I am moving out of a home I love but this time I am taking a human with me... AND that has made all the difference.

This house has seen me single and trying to decide if I could be brave enough for marriage again. It's seen me married and really wishing we had 2 bathrooms. It saw me with hands shaking holding a pregnancy test waiting for 2 lines or 1..alone in our one bathroom full of light.

This house has kind of seen a lot.

I had a friend remind me in an email this week that being sad to move on is a good thing. It means I was happy here.

Here are some of our "What about" memories we emailed to each other one day this week...

Grants:

What about all the notes around the house? What about our view of the studio's water tower in the sunset from our back porch? What about the yellow floor you painted? What about the kitchen faucet that runs for another 6 seconds after you turn it off and how you learn to play that dribble to get the right amount of water. What about the candle wax on the carpet from a romantic evening? What about the duct tape you used to build that fort? What about the constant sound of a lawn being mowed? What about your babies thinking we lived in some sort of toy house? What about fighting over how much curtain to leave agape so that enough air comes in? What about our lean-to mirrors? What about all the "organizing" I did for your wardrobe while you were out of town and then you couldn't ever find anything?

Mine:

What about standing on the front porch with our three imaginary kids waving goodbye as you leave us for work? What about staring at your shoes every time I am on the toilet? What about asking you to take down the sweater box 100 times a week?..and then wanting you to put it back up? What about covering up the hard drive lights every night before we sleep? What about the earthquakes and me thinking they're never a big deal? What about when Tiffany lived out of a suburban outside our bedroom window? What about when that one girl threw-up in our bathroom? What about the tiny plastic bottle of liquor we found on our front lawn? What about watching the lost season finale cuddled in our love nest on the red couch? What about finding out I was a mom in the bathroom and then staining your shirt with mascara from crying so hard? What about hanging our colorful lanterns in our blue alleyway? What about that day I tried to take the mail out of the mailbox and lifted the whole box off the house? What about the UPS guy?

We lay awake the night before and named about a 100 of these.

On to the last of packing. We have a new house to move in to!

PS. kind of love the iphone shot of me so hungry I was eating cinnamon toast and popcorn simultaneously. This was pre-pregnant mind you.

Candice + Jared's Wedding

Jared is one of our closest friends. He  is the brilliant illustrator behind my logo and our wedding invite/postcard. I was so happy for Candice and him..I felt like a proud parent.

What I wasn't happy about was the fact that Wayfarers wouldn't let me past the last pew during the ceremony. Thank goodness for my 70-200mm lens.

You can spy Grant as one of the groomsmen...and if you ask me there are two sets of twins at this wedding..

We just love them both so much.

The ceremony took place at Wayfarers Chapel which was designed by architect Lloyd Wright, son of Frank Lloyd Wright. The natural light during an "inside" ceremony was perfection. An artificial-light-free wedding, thank you very much.

Summer + Tyler

I like Summer's feathers. I need to wear more feathers.

Tyler and Summer are two of our good friends and we took these shots for them in under 1hr.

If you have a simple wedding planned or only need coverage for an hour or two and live in southern CA, let me know.

Sometimes short and sweet is all you need.

Workflow

I have had a lot of questions about editing and digital workflow lately. Check out my formspring to read a general description on what happens to my images after I shoot....and i'll just say now (so you're not disappointed)...not much.

I'm sure there are a million fancier workflows but I guess I'm just not that fancy.

If I change too much I feel like I am being dishonest. Like my photojournalism teacher scribbled on the board the first day of class 10+yrs ago:

"All photos are lies."

I do kind of feel bad about that, so I try not to perpetuate the problem.

Remember from now on I am taking all questions here: http://www.formspring.me/rachelthurston

Thanks and love.

Tristan

Until recently this little guy loved to give me scowls. During this shoot he was on a roll...and because of it I didn't get diddly squat of him.

He loves eating so I thought what would be better than him with a giant bowl of something to chow on?

I'm just grateful we got 2 shots. I am also grateful he has passed the grumpy-with-auntie stage. Now when he sees me he coos at and rubs my belly..talking baby talk to Thumbelina.

Sunday night while looking at my bump he asked, "Hold her?" while he made a cupping shape with both his hands. I just about tore her out of there so I could give him what he wanted.