Throw Back Thursday

Dive New Zealand interviewed Jose G Cano during a meeting in Auckland, New Zealand in January  2018 and later by phone and email.

What is your background?  How long have you been in New Zealand, and in Nelson? Why there?  

I am originally from Spain where I worked in the fashion industry. But after some years I wanted to see the world, so I sold everything I had and bought an old sailing boat, where I went to live and sail.
My travels brought me all around most Mediterranean countries, the Red Sea, and south to Eritrea, Djibouti and finally crossing the Indian Ocean, stopping in Sri Lanka. The Red Sea South of Egypt was deserted at the time because of the wars, especially in Sudan, so there were no tourists at all. I had also the opportunity to dive at the underwater settlement Jacques Cousteau built in Sudan. It was absolutely magical as he was an inspiration as a kid for me.
(http:// www.messynessychic.com/2013/05/27/remains-of-an-underwater-habitat-leftby-1960s-sea-dwellers/).

Then I landed in Thailand where I stayed for 10 years before coming to New Zealand with my wife on a campervan holiday looking for a place to live. Nelson’s climate reminded me of Spain and with a nice balance between small and big town.

What got you started at underwater photography? Were you a traditional photographer before your current work? What is your professional background?  

My professional background is completely different. I studied business administration and went to work in a chain of department stores. But I felt it was not what I wanted to do and that’s why I left Spain in search of a more adventurous life. Photography was always my hobby, and while living in Thailand I did documentary work for NGOs and commercial work. But before that, when I started diving in Spain and bought an Ikelite housing for my then Nikon camera, that is when I got hooked in underwater photography.

"Suddenly I felt that I could cancel, somehow, gravity and time, or at least, slow it"

What inspires you?  What sort of images are you seeking to capture?

Photographically speaking, I am more interested in the people as models. They are more versatile and expressive than fishes and corals! So for years I would stay in documentary and studio, where I was doing lots of dancers. During one of those shoots, I asked myself how I could slow the beautiful movements in order to capture them. Then my underwater experience came back to me, and I started photographing dancers underwater. The beauty of dance and the bodies while underwater was an explosive mix of inspiration and awe. Suddenly I felt that I could cancel, somehow, gravity and time, or at least, slow it, so my series Aqua Ingravitas was born. (http:// www.josegcano.com/aqua-ingravitas/)

"As a child I would sit in these sacred spaces and look at the epic paintings and sculptures of Angels and Demons, Warriors and Madonnas.  Now I think they look quite similar to some scenes out of The Lord of the Rings"

A lot of your images seem influenced by renaissance art?  Is there a reason for that?

The beautiful cathedrals and churches of Spain, with their amazing baroque and Renaissance frescos was truly inspiring for me. As a child I would sit in these sacred spaces, in silence and look at the epic paintings and sculptures of Angels and Demons, Warriors and Madonnas. Now I think they looked quite similar to some scenes out of The Lord of the Rings!

What do you have to teach your models about being photographed underwater?  How long does it take to get them to learn what they need to do to be ready to start modelling underwater?  

Most people think that they need to hold their breath very long but this is not the case. They need to be relaxed, and let the air go, or they cannot sink. So, 15 or 30 seconds is all we need. After that it is difficult to be relaxed and they get exhausted, so that’s what we teach them: how to sink effortlessly and safely.

How do you choose your models? For their appearance? Or their ability underwater?  

To feel comfortable in the water and of course being able to swim is a first selection point. Fortunately in New Zealand most people have been in contact with the sea since childhood so it’s easy. Then my favourite group are dancers, as they have an extremely demanding training and develop an enormous grit. They are conscious of every inch of their bodies and have graceful movements, and with them you have the perfect underwater model.
And, as you cannot communicate when we are down, I explain to them before what we are trying to achieve, the mood, the story we are telling, and they “act” the shot or the movement. Of course, we have a series of hand signs for safety and also for my assistant to communicate to the model when she resurfaces.

"It’s as if they cast a magic spell on me, forcing me to bring them to life."

How do you go about your set design?  Do you design the costumes?  

I am 90% a visual person so it all starts with things I imagine, or scenes of movies or contemporary dance performances. Then images appear and take hold of me, and I can only get free of them if I photograph them! It’s as if they cast a magic spell on me, forcing me to bring them to life. Then, with my wife and volunteers, we create the dresses, headpieces and all we need for the shoot, with simple materials and lots of acquired Kiwi ingenuity!

Where do you do your photo shoots? Do you do some in uncontrolled environments such as the sea or a lake?

I have done this in the past, but the main problem we have is with water clarity and also changing weather. It makes it very difficult to plan a more complex shoots with models, costumes etc. Working on an underwater studio pool, here at Kashiwa Studios allows us to shoot all the year in a controlled environment. It also allow me to use powerful studio lighting which makes an enormous difference.

Can you talk about some of the technical 'secrets' you employ? Many images are dream-like. Is that just because they are underwater? Or is there more to it?  For example, the iridescent effect?  

The iridescent effect was achieved with a couple of cheap black lights, the same they use in clubs. The use of studio lighting I think is my main difference as it increases the quality of underwater photography enormously. As there are no books, or much information even on the web about this, I had to resolve the technical issues. For example, wireless doesn’t work underwater, so I have to create my own UW trigger or, resolve the connectivity so we could work connected to a computer at the surface.

But, if there is something that I would say that is the most important that would be lighting. Learn how to light, observe how the light reacts and changes underwater, because this is the main issue. As for equipment I have two Canon 5DIV bodies and two main lenses, a 17-35 and a fix 24 mm from the L series of Canon. I also have two housing, my trusted Ikelite and another Aquatica. I use Profoto strobes as they can handle a lot of heavy duty work. A MacBook pro laptop completes the equipment list. Dave from SeaTech in Auckland is the man I always go to with technical, nearly impossible, demands, and he has been always able to resolve them or point me in the right direction! But I will be revealing all my secrets this year during a workshop I will be teaching so everybody can learn the tricks.

www.josegcano.com
As this interview was being recorded Jose advised one of his images on ghost nets done in collaboration with US environmental artist Christine Ren, had just won an award by the United Nations environment Program in association with the Global Partnership on Marine Litter.