Sunrise by the sea with Hana Sezer

Hana Sezer and I picked a perfect sunrise at Washaway Beach, and whilst we couldn’t quite figure a way down to the secluded nudist beach from the cliff tops, we caught the most perfectly surreal sunrise. After the sun rose high enough, we walked to Castle Rock Beach for a morning swim in the sweltering heat.

Initially, Hana and I had done a quick test shoot for my zine, and whilst we liked the images, we agreed that they weren’t our strongest work. — There’s no harm in trying! To get the finalised images for issue one; I did over fifteen shoots and then only picked a handful of those. I love shoots where you learn about each other but are not quite what you wanted. It’s like having a dance partner; you may vibe with someone, but the movements are awkward; you step on each other’s feet, and it’s clumsy, but you gave it a go! Photography is so much about nonverbal communication, and it’s almost impossible to know how one will perceive that til you’re doing the work. Finding people you align with and click with can be hard, and people take the lack of magic as a sign of failure. I don’t publish every shoot here, only a tiny handful, and there are some models I’ve worked with a tonne, and we still haven’t quite nailed it. I don’t have any insecurity there; just trust in the process. Fortunately, this little shoot was fantastic, and I am excited to be able to show you.

The wardrobe is Hana’s own, with the bikinis from Sommer Swim and One Piece from Gooseberry Seaside.

Shot entirely on Canon SLR’s using 35mm film with no retouching. Film stocks consist of Kodak Gold, Kodak Portra 400, and Washi X 100.