Randal Ford‘s work can be found in the newest issue of Time Magazine. Ford’s images illustrate a happy couple on the beach for the article “The Childless Life”.

I Love Texas Photo chatted with Ford via email about the production and creative process.

Where was this cover shot? Did you scout a few locations? What made this spot ‘the one’?
We shot in Long Island at Catalina Beach Club on Long Beach.  We wanted a simple beach with soft white sand and this fit the bill.  As a Texan I was surprise by how blue the water was.  I’ve shot in LA on beaches and never East Coast beaches so it was a pleasant surprise.

Walk us through the creative process. Did the composition come from Time’s creative director or did you make suggestions? Did you all have this overhead shot in mind from the start, or did you try a variety of things and then this one was the winner?

Time called on a Monday and wanted to shoot on Thursday.  Because of the pre production involved we actually pushed it to Friday and used Thursday as a test day.  We brought the talent in studio and tested poses, angles, and landed on the overhead.  For me, the overhead really showcased the connectivity between the couple and emphasized the story; that not having kids can still mean having a family.

The prop stylist is pulling the beach cart and that idea was actually his! He delicately pieced together the mess of a cart for us and it turned out great.

Do you have outtakes you can share with us?

These were the 3 scenes we shot in the morning.