Blogger shows how to take the perfect water portrait with a paddling pool

A blogger has revealed her trick for taking those classic floating water photos surrounded by flowers for those who can’t afford to travel to an exotic destination - a kiddie pool.

Laura J Hyatt writes about travel, fashion and lifestyle on her blog Heroine in Heels and recently decided to recreate the stunning travel photos seen all over Instagram.

Hyatt used a Nemo children's pool to get the shot (Laura J Hyatt)

Blogger shows how to capture the perfect water portrait (Laura J Hyatt)

Rather than splurge on a flight to the Maldives, the blogger simply improvised - blowing up a children’s swimming pool, purchasing some fake flowers and recruiting her mother to take photos of her from above.

The result is photos that look influencer-worthy but were really taken in the comfort of her garden

However, even the DIY-version of a water portrait requires some planning, according to Hyatt, who shared her tips for getting the perfect shot.

Bigger isn’t always better

According to Hyatt, she overestimated just how much water would be required to fill a children’s pool.

Flowers also tend to float away when given space to, which meant either having to buy way more flowers or find a smaller space.

A too-big pool meant Hyatt had to buy another one (Laura J Hyatt)

She ended up buying another smaller pool for the shot.

Use warm water

Hyatt informed her followers that water straight from a hose is usually “bloody freezing”.

From both a safety standpoint and a comfort one, she recommends adding boiling pans of water - after she nearly fainted after submerging herself in cold hose water.

Not all flowers float

If flowers floating out of the frame wasn’t enough of a hassle, Hyatt also learned some fake flowers don’t float.

Flowers floating away is a chronic problem (Laura J Hyatt)

According to Hyatt, fabric-based flowers float better than paper-based ones - and you should always buy more than you think you need.

Get help

For Hyatt’s water photo shoot, she had her mum stand in as the photographer, as she realised her tripod and Canon remote app wouldn’t get her far when submerged in water.

She also enlisted her mum in helping to keep the flowers from floating away - an apparently reoccurring problem when posing among them.

Do it in the shade

According to Hyatt, cloudy days are best for these types of photo shoots, as “bright sunshine shining on water does not work well for photography”.

The final step is a bit of Photoshop editing and viola!