Esther Abrami

As an artist, how do you stand out from the crowd? As I stumbled through hashtags on Instagram one day, blindly searching for inspiration, I spotted Esther. Drawn in by her captivating modelling, I discovered the rest of her portfolio reflected her life as a phenomenal violinist.

With a fondness for classical music, partially born out of Mozart in the Jungle, I was blown away by the sounds in her videos. Esther is a multi-award winning violinist, having trained at and represented London's Royal College of Music around the world. Her modelling portfolio and extensive social media following has seen her become an ambassador for brands including GEWA, D'Addario Orchestral, Yves Saint-Laurent & Lancome. I figured she must get requests from photographers all the time, so I needed to catch her attention.

So I sent her an email asking if she'd like to play a violin underwater. Miraculously, she replied 'yes'.

I set about finding a team to make my vision a reality. I had a distinct idea in mind and began my search for a designer, a makeup artist and a lifeguard. A recommendation from friend and photographer Ana Isabel led me to Mishi May, a dress designer and seamstress with one of the most incredible portfolios I had seen. Her couture fashion & bridal wardrobe has been adorned in editorial shoots such as Walter's Wardrobe, so I never expected her to agree to collaborate with me, let alone send three incredible dresses she believed would look best underwater.

Even rarer than underwater photographers and models are underwater makeup artists. Everything changes beneath the surface, from colour to clarity, so finding someone experienced and willing to experiment was key. Thankfully I found Kerstie Ann, a local makeup artist & hair stylist with years of experience working for brands including Bobbi Brown, Lancome and Clarins. She made herself available to craft two looks: a natural one for the dry shots and a stronger, bolder one for under water.

Next I needed an extra pair of eyes and hands. Having someone watch out for Esther's safety in the pool, besides myself, was a priority, and time would be tight. I was very lucky to be recommended Matt Worthington, a local multi-award-winning filmmaker who also happened to be a lifeguard. Perfect.

Last but not least, I needed water. Landlocked about as far from the British sea as I could get, I had searched for a suitable pool for months. The hunt was surprisingly difficult. I found pools that were public (no privacy), unheated (cold), outside (no privacy & cold), expensive (£120+ per hour) and further north (very inconvenient for us both). I even scoured Google Earth for houses with covered pools I could potentially ask to rent. Then one comment led me to The Poolhouse near Sandy. Advertised only on Facebook, it had evaded hundreds of my Google searches, until now.

The morning of the shoot finally arrived. As we made our way to Sandy, Esther quickly replaced one of the strings of the violin I had bought on eBay a few weeks prior. There was no way her 300 year old Carlo Giuseppe Testore of Milan was going anywhere near water.

With makeup applied, hair styled and dress donned, we made our way to the pool. We still had 20 minutes until our slot started. Just 30 metres from the poolhouse, a plateau of daffodils and trees stood in the spring sunshine. Listening to Esther play amongst the flowers as I photographed her is easily one of the greatest highlights of my photography career. Almost no sooner than we had started, did we have to stop.

Within just 18 minutes, I photographed all the pictures in this album. Now was the time we had been waiting for.