Rockclimber

"We need a female rock climber who already uses our product... oh, we'll need a female marine archeologist, too."

I had to find and photograph both a female rock climber and a marine archeologist who not only wore contacts but was already using the client’s product. A stunt woman's association in LA recommended a champion rock climber who also worked in film.

Lori recommended Red Rocks, just outside of Las Vegas, and she hired two stuntmen to help with the climbing. We scouted all morning until we found the perfect ledge 300 feet above the ground for her to hang from. During the shoot, we were all tied together for counterweights. She was even able to change wardrobe behind a bed sheet by lowering her to a small ledge below.

The scuba diver ad had its own complications because I had dived a dozen times but had never shot underwater. Bob Ballard (of Titanic fame) found a female marine archeologist who recommended the Cayman Islands. I hired an ex-Navy Seal as an assistant/technical advisor who owned 1 of only 10 underwater camera housings available for medium format film which I specifically chose for the double page spread.

We met on Grand Cayman Island to scout shipwrecks and resolve the technical problems; reloading film without decompression, using 5 foot wide strobe brackets and a flash meter - all underwater. We practiced on the beach with a plastic message board and simple sign language to communicate. During the shoot strong currents forced me to wear 40 pounds of weights and be tied down to the wreck itself - not the safest thing to do. Two hours later, I knew we had the shot.