It has crossed my mind that many people don't realize the ridiculous lengths that us models go to before we get in front of the camera. The endless comparisons women subject themselves to are just unrealistic (I am guilty of it as well) which is why I thought it important to show you that in photography, we always begin with an empty canvas. Nobody wakes up looking like a model. We are all just a canvas of God, who is constantly brightening and rearranging our colors :-) Here is where I begin when preparing for a photoshoot:
It starts with a clean face.
In the winter time, a pale face.
In this instance, it also starts with a wig cap (yes, the red was just for show). My hair is incapable of holding curl in outdoor conditions and I've always wanted to be a redhead so I figured why not?
Trying on the wig!!
Typically, my week before any shoot is just spent dreaming: thinking of ideas, putting outfits together, brainstorming locations with the photographer, ect. The night before this particular shoot, I tried on at least 20 outfits and exchanged photographs and countless ideas with the photographer. We must have gone back and forth for hours but this is my absolute favorite part of the process. It's our "creative brainchild". Matching the shoes, the hats, the gloves, coming up with photo story lines, posing ideas, hair ideas..you name it! Here is one outfit idea we actually ended up using:
After all of the planning is done in preparation for the shoot, we do makeup: False Eyelashes, penciled in eyebrows, bronzer and blush for color, the works!! Two of my "made up beauty tricks" have been lifesavers and I'd love to share them:
A) I mix lotion, BB Cream and Liquid bronzer (equal amount of each) and apply to my cheek bones before applying blush. This will give you a nice natural glow
B) I also put oil on my eyebrows before drawing them in. WEIRD RIGHT? I discovered this one time after waxing my eyebrows. They give you the tiny container of oil to get the excess wax off of your face. When I went to apply my eyebrows later, the pencil went on so smoothly! Just a little dab will do. Then I seal the deal with hairspray on my eyebrow brush.
And finally, we lug all of our gear to the shoot location and have at it!! This includes a full length mirror, multiple outfits, undergarments and accessories, camera and lighting gear, makeup for touch ups, water and snacks, comfy boots for long distance walking (not so easy in stilettos) and then we begin! Eventually, after the best photos are chosen and once the editing is done, we arrive at the final product with a sense of satisfaction!
There's no business like show business
There's no business like show business
