Week 4: Photo Shoot in the West Village

Hi again!

A lot has happened since I last wrote, but I think the most interesting thing to describe is the photo shoot I went to last Tuesday. I went downtown to the West Village with the creative intern, Hannah, to Industria Studios. Inside Studio 6 was a wide open space with big windows and panels set up in various corners. A long table had a great breakfast spread and later, gourmet lunch. There was an area sectioned off with bright lights for makeup, manicures/pedicures, hair, dressing, etc.

The shoot we got to spend a lot of time watching was men's sweaters and coats. It was only two models standing together in front of a gray screen. Stylists and creative directors surrounded them without shoes on (as to not dirty the backdrop that continued below their feet). I thought it was so interesting how models have

to be okay with other people doing everything for them - meaning that they can't fix their hat themselves (for example); someone has to take his or her shoes off, run over, and fix the hat without asking the model "May I?" There were constantly people re-tousling the models' hair, re-pinning their jackets (with paper clips and binder clips in the back!), and re-tying their shoes.

Music was playing in the background to make the posing more fluid for the models. I heard that this particular photographer, Peggy, is known for making the models feel very comfortable. She had a small rolling chair behind the camera and was dancing from her seat in between every shot. At the same time, she continued to glance over at another screen that showed her previous shots to see what they'd look like in print. (She's the one standing in light green).

One interesting thing to see was all of the different posses that were there. I'd guess that half the people at the shoot really didn't have a function at all. Maybe except for getting the photographer Li-Lac chocolates when she wanted them.

All in all it was a really cool experience. It did involve lots of sitting around and waiting for hair and makeup, but while waiting we got great food and I was able to talk to some of the models. The guys were both really down-to-earth regular people - not what I would have expected. It seems like we put models up on a pedestal, like a separate type of human... no more for me! One of them was telling me about how he sweats profusely when he has to do sweater shots outside during the summer.

Anyway, this is an outing I'll never forget. I feel so lucky to have been included. I have my supervisor, Lauren, to thank for that.

Thanks for reading!

Keri