Photographer Spotlight: Kip Dawkins Gets Wet to Get the Shot

Kip Dawkins is a professional photographer specializing in commercial advertising and editorial work. Kip has worked with a diverse range of top clients including Discovery Channel, AT&T, and Bloomingdales. His work has been published in Whole Foods, Veranda, Traditional Home, Architectural Digest, Washingtonian, and Better Home and Gardens. He has received numerous industry awards including the Gold Lion at Cannes and most recently two DC Addy gold awards in 2014. His work can be found at KipDawkinsPhotography.com.  

A recent image on Instagram caught our eye, a tethered camera on a tripod…in a pool! We followed up with Kip’s assistant Jenna to find out why Kip got wet to get the shot.

                                   

Can you share some backstory surrounding this shot and setting up in the pool?

What you can’t see from the first Instagram image is that Kip was actually in the swimming pool for the shot. The whole purpose of Kip being in the pool was to get the distance from the chairs that they needed and the height they needed.  They were in Palm Beach, Florida in August doing a shoot for a luxury outdoor furniture company. It was about 105 degrees everyday without the heat index so getting into the pool was not the worst sacrifice to make!    

What do you find are the benefits to shooting tethered?

Kip always shoots tethered. It makes it easier for both Kip and the client to see the image instantly. Kip says he doesn’t even look through the camera much anymore. He uses live view to look at the images as he’s shooting.