I have been back for a little over a month now, and I had some very hard, strict goals set in place for myself upon arrival. I was determined to gain representation from a modeling agency by the passing of my birthday. Check. I had a vision of revamping my portfolio with two to three new photo shoots before March. Check, and check. And I have my first paying gig by mid-March. Although the gig hasn't presented itself in physical form yet, I know this too will be checked by it's due date. It can be difficult at times to wade through the lies, the scams produced by sycophants looking to gain from the desperate and naive. Luckily this isn't my first rodeo, and one thing I bring to the table along with fierce, unwavering determination is the experience of a woman who has seen those soul suckers before. I'm onto the game, and I don't have time to waste. As Jay-Z so succinctly put it, "I'm on to the next one".
Speaking of the shoots to revamp my book, I had the unlikely luck of striking gold on Model Mayhem for the first one. I do hold an appreciation for Model Mayhem. I think they offer a great service to those starting out especially. And for veterans, it's always nice to have a place to meet like minded individuals to share the fruit of our efforts with. It can be very hit or miss on this site in planning a shoot. First off, the obvious: you are planning to combine artistic forces with complete strangers with whom you most likely will only exchange brief emails with before the encounter. Second, and what I think the biggest risk of it can be, is the chance of being stood up completely without warning or consequence. But alas, it is free, and as they say, you get what you pay for sometimes. In this beautiful instance, though, I got more than I could have hoped for. The team, who consisted of photographer Russell Spears, make-up artist Jessica Steinke and hair extraordinaire Lacey Alagia, blew my mind with their abilities, vision and overall warm presence. Here is just one shot from that incredibly fulfilling Sunday:
And in my opinion, this isn't even one of the best shots we got, which makes me feel so blessed and excited to get the rest this weekend! All in all, I am off to an unimaginably strong start, and it's only up from here. All the way to the top. Thanks for joining me. You are in for a real treat.
