New Years is about keeping resolutions and one resolution Jennifer and I made together was to travel as much as possible to the iconic locations that make Florida unique in all of the world and photograph them.
First on that list was a small town of nine human residents that also is home to citizens unique to this location: Mermaids!
In 1946, former U.S. Navy Frog Man trainer Newton “Newt” Perry developed a system for breathing under water through a long hand-held air hose that allowed performers complete freedom of movement without the inhibition of scuba diving equipment.
He scouted locations in Florida to build his vision of a unique theatre where audience members could view performers underwater and found, off a dirt road amidst wild forest and farm land, the Weeki Wachee spring that feeds Weeki Wachee river.
On January sixth, we followed in the footsteps of Elvis, Don Knotts and generations of little girls from Florida and around the world who dreamed of one day being a Mermaid driving past orange groves across the beautiful Florida countryside to Weeki Wachee.The grounds are charming. Not the all out-assault to the senses of the major theme parks but beautifully landscaped grounds that hold outdoor theatres for animal shows, a dock where you depart for a boat tour down the river, and free-roaming peacocks. Across the river lies the brightly colored water park. We missed the animal show because we attended the two shows depicting what we went to see: Mermaids.
We knew the shows would be fun but we had no idea just how amazing it would be. The performers are as talented as they are beautiful being able to hold their breath for nearly three minutes and to dive 175 feet into a spring blasting water at the rate of 117 million gallons a day.
First we photographed The Little Mermaid Show based on the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale.
The story ranged from cute with characters that included the Little Mermaid’s best friend Chester, the wisdomous deep sea turtle, to sentimental and romantic with this adaptation of a classic fairy tale.
Of course, the real draw for us was watching these phenomenal performers in their beautiful costumes swim and perform in this surreal underwater world.
Then we photographed Fish Tails: a salute to the history of Weeki Wachee and demonstrations on just what is required to be a mermaid.
When we got home after a great day (stopping along the way to get oranges from a local farmer, of course. It’s that time of year) I was excited to load all of our images from the SD cards to discover…uh…they’re all very blue. Blue skin, blue water, blue everything. At first I was worried about having cards full of images we could not use. I warmed the color temperatures up (viewing objects underwater completely drains them of all of their warm color. We are hardly the first photographer’s to run into this problem), converted some to black and white, and what I thought was a day of missed shots quickly became some of our favorite photographs.
Many I warmed up just a tiny bit, bringing out some of the colors but keeping that blue underwater look.
Others I converted to black and white, using warm filters to give them a high-contrast nostalgic look. We’re thrilled with the results and hope you like them too.
If you live in Florida, or are visiting the state, do not miss this attraction. It is high on our list of favorites and a unique part of Florida’s history. Plus, it is important to show your support to these dedicated and talented performers. Weeki Wachee is having a hard time financially and it would be a terrible loss to Florida’s unique character if this attraction were to shut down.
In the mean time, enjoy the gallery and either email us or post your comments on individual photographs to let us know what you think.
~Morgan
Tags: Florida, Mermaids, Photographs, Weeki Wachee, Weeki Wachee Springs
