Creating the Perfect Underwater Toy Photography Scene: Nemo and Dory Swimming Among Jellyfish

mitchelwu
Feb 16
2 min read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFYO7XfRry4

"Finding Nemo" was one of those magical movies that my daughter and I watched many, many times together as she was growing up. I've wanted to recreate this memorable scene for years using underwater toy photography. These are a couple moments from the film which inspired my image:

Nemo and Dory among jellyfish film reference

Underwater toy photo of Nemo and Dory toys among jellyfish toys

When I finally expanded my backyard studio to include the Toi Pond, the jellyfish scene from "Finding Nemo" was one of the first ideas I added to my underwater toy photography shoot list.

For those of you with kids, or are fans of the Pixar movies, you might remember that the jellyfish scene doesn't even feature Nemo. It features Nemo's Dad, Marlin, and Dory. The jellyfish scene was just one of several memorable adventures Marlin and Dory faced during their search for Nemo. But two factors led to my replacing Marlin with Nemo - first, Nemo is the undisputed star and protagonist of the story, and is much cuter and likeable than his neurotic Dad. Second, I've never actually seen a Marlin action figure out there, so it was a moot point anyways.

Here are the toys I used to create this image. Links to these toys, as well as the jellyfish, can be found below.

I ended up using two different company's toys for this shot. I used the above Dory on the left, from Swimways, because she was much larger than the tiny Dory on the right, from Revoltech. And I used the above Nemo at right, from Revoltech, because of it's amazing detail and articulation. My goal is always to create the best story and image possible, and to that end, these two toys worked beautifully together.

I used the same gear and process as I did with my earlier underwater shot of Scuba Max and Ratzo the octopus. There is a link to that comprehensive behind-the-scenes post below.

I consider water below the surface the equivalent of atmosphere, so I am always thinking about how to add character and personality to that atmosphere. In this case I wanted the surface of the water, when seen from below the surface, to appear as if there were waves above (which there were), adding motion and light patterns to the surface. I created this effect simply by splashing water on the surface.

side by side photo of photographer creating practical effect splashes alongside final toy photo

So that's one more bucket-list image checked off the list! Let me know in the comments if you have any questions on my gear or process. Thanks for checking this blog post out!

Gear Links

DJI Osmo Action 6 - https://amzn.to/4jI3DIz

Telesin Action 6 waterproof case - https://amzn.to/49Bjvrn

DJI Osmo Action 5 - https://amzn.to/3Ni6NXg

Telesin Action 5 waterproof case - https://amzn.to/4sHqYxX

Neewer mini aluminum tripod - https://amzn.to/3KH1qQd

Suptig underwater light - https://amzn.to/3YGFvfB

Seavu Seeker Marine Kit - https://seavu.com/product/seeker-marine-kit/

Toys

Revoltech Nemo - https://amzn.to/4tU2rGL

Swimways Dory - https://amzn.to/4rBJoiV

Jellyfish - https://amzn.to/4tCoMIy