Shooting Chique in Meili Style

It's always a great feeling when a client contacts you saying that you have been recommended for the job. Meili recently has put together a team of people who are performing top level work. Finding a stylist in Beijing is a challenge with an international eye so it was a great pleasure to work with Meili (http://www.meilistyle.com) and see her bring up the brand to a new level. It was also great to finally work with Chique. It's also great when a client tells you that they will be happy to use you again. All in all a perfect day!

A Model's Plight: Chasing Down Tearsheets

Getting new photos in a models' book is one of the most important things to the career and evolution of the fashion model. The book is like a CV, showing all the work experience and "level" of the model. Clients looking at the model's book can understand if this model is a working model, if she/he has enough experience to handle the job, and of course, what they look like on camera. 

Many times models travel to a country and stay for 3 months, and then return to their hometown or move on to another market, leaving their past agents to collect any photos/tearsheets that they maybe have done, but had not published during their time in that country. This can often be a nightmare as agents have a new batch of girls coming into the country and have already forgotten about the last model. As their business is on turnover, they are not concerned with "the last batch", unlike in markets such as Europe, where the models may return periodically, Asian markets often have the models leaving and not returning again. So the question is, how does the model manage to collect their tearsheets?

First, as a model, try to get as much information about the client, the name of the client, or photostudio as possible. We all know it's not professional to take the contact information of the client, photographer, etc and may make your agent mad if you do so--they may think that you will work with them directly. However, in markets such as Asia, I would recommend most definitly to get the telephone number/email of the assistant, photographer, or the photostudio, and then if your agent doesn't follow up, I most certainly contact them. For example, I have been chasing these photos here for 6 months because I knew the shooting was so successful and great photos. Asking my agent repeatedly, he got no results for whatever reason. I finally asked him to give me the contact of the client so that I could try. The client finally gave me 3 photos from the shooting for my book.

Persistance. The only way is to keep asking your agent. Keep it in their mind--they have so many girls to take care of you will need to send them a reminder. If this is not successful, then go for the client and write them a sweet note thanking them for the job and asking if you could receive any beautiful photos from the shooting. If they were to ever ask you to work with them directly, you can simply refer them back to your agent for any job booking. This way you avoid any conflicts and return the client to your agent for work matters and you still get the photos for your book.

Models Should Support Young Designers

(Models viewing the ESMOD Beijing Mobile Event Guide sponsored by 360Fashion at the Fitting)

Many times in my career when I started, I worked for free for this exhibition of that upcoming designer, or this editorial for that big photographer. As I progressed in my career I had less time due to bookings, and passed through a period where I was no longer doing free things for anything, that's called the money making period: when you are hot, you have to grab it all. Then you come to the top of the piramid and you are financially stable, with your clients, and booking less but for more money. This is the stage where it's time to start your next life projects and thinking, and to give back. Never forget the exposure that xyz designer/event/magazine/photographer gave to you when you started, and now it's time to lend your name to support with attention, contacts, and notoriety the next generation.

I know some models just want to go to they gym or laze around in the sunshine (never!) all day dreaming lazy dreams of beauty, but it is in these moment that I promise you we are actually thinking, planning, diving deep into the soul to know what we are to be doing. 

So it is with great pleasure and honor that I participated in the ESMOD Beijing graduate class of 2011 fashion show. Let me tell you! The quality of the designs were stunning. I have a few pieces that I would love to buy and I like all my outfits (of course since I"m the princiapal model I got my pick). The whole fitting was so super professional and many of my model friends from the New Silk Road Modelling School greeted me with "Anina!!!" and we instantly hugged (even though we cant really talk to eachother there's that model-bond). Sitting on my friend's lap I show her my photos I'd been snapping during the fitting of her and the other models. We laugh and she QQ Weibo's me and another girl Sina Weibo's me (there are so many social networks in China). I still cant write in Chinese....at least they can read my English.

It's fun the imagination of the graduating class's imagination. Some highlights to entice you to stay tuned. You can see the article written, but it's in Chinese. The fashion show was covered by the whole Chinese media as ESMOD is a very prestegious school from France. 360Fashion are the proud sponsor, with the ESMOD EVENT GUIDE MobileMags fashion app you can download from the gallery and check out all the designers directly in your mobile phone!

Model Tip: Strutt your Stuff, Getting Ready for Fashion Week

It's getting to be fashion week in China and soon there will be so many casting and fittings and big competition between the Chinese models, the western models, and everyone else. Body size will be a major issue along with height and makeup. How to know what the designers want and how to get that job?

First, you need the perfect Casting Dress. It should be black and slim. If you hips are a bit bigger, wear a bra to increase your bust size and choose something with a slight A-Line.

Second, your makeup should emphasize your eyes but not be too heavy. Shadow with some brown or line it with some black, but make sure your features stand out with any spots covered up, dark circles whited out, and some gloss on your lips. If you have a round face, contour under your cheekbones with a slightly darker base or powder, if you have a long face soften it with some rose on your apple cheeks.

Third, she shoe is so important. It must be high high high. It must be black. It must be comfortable to walk in, it must give you support, and it must be fashion. No exceptions to the rule, you must make sure your shoe fits you Cinderella.

Fourth, cream for your hands, cream for your legs, cream for your hair, you should sparcle and shine. Don't forget to moisturize your feet, hands, lower legs, and thighs the night before your castings so that the skin is popping and smooth. Get a petticure, a manicure, and make sure you have rubbed off all that dead skin from your heels.

Fifth, relax and do some walking at home. If you have a mirror, great, if not get a friend to come and watch eachother. Feel what it feels to walk down the runway. When you are in the casting pretend you are on stage at the Chanel show in Paris. Cop an attitude they want to see power down the runway.

Model Controll: What to do when they are going to destroy your body?

Your body is your way of making money and you have to keep your hair, nails, face, skin, shape in top condition if you want to be paid the big bucks. Destroy your hair? No hair jobs (and they pay those box covers!). Destroy your nails and forget about that editorial beauty shooting or that potential watch campaign! Get fat and forget about walking for any fashion shows, you've just upgraded to catalog model only--in the USA! Yes, your body is your temple, so what to do when you are on a fashion show and they are threatening to destroy your livelyhood with fake nails.

It recently happened to me that I was on a makeup artists fashion show and they had a nail artist there who proceeded to GLUE with superglue, the fake nails to every girls hands. I dont speak Chinese but I could tell from the supermodels faces and their tone of voice that they were all pissed off about it, so what to do in this situation? Be the sacrificial lamb or raise your voice?

Normally, the nail artist would do the following:

1. Use adhesive tape to stick down the nail. This is the normal, professional way to do it. And put them on after all the girls have dressed so that they do not fall off while getting changed.

2. Drop ONE small drop of glue on your nail and then press it down--this is not optimal but minimizes the damange. What the nail artist here was doing was FULLY COVERING the back of the fake nail and fully covering the real nail with a TON of glue as if they were going to stay on until the next milllenium. NO WAY.

Why was the glue method not good? Because it will be very hard to get off--you have to soak your nails in acetone for over an hour, and it will strip off the top layer of your nail leaving your nail looking uneaven and weakend to crack and break--not good for beauty shootings.

Model Goal: Getting into Photographer's Printed Books (Zack Image)

Photographers need to print books--I dont know why but believe me there's some editor somewhere who has their coffee table book on their coffee table. Some art directors somewhere have a bookshelf full of photographer's "portfolio's in print". I think it is because with a book photographers have the ultimate controll on the color saturations of their photos and can also go down in history and prove their manhood/womanhood or show to the world--I dont know--but they are nice to look at while you are waiting for the castings. For a model, you can believe me, you have just made history if you have the honor of getting your photo selected to be in a top photographer's book. They really only select the best of their best photos, so if it's you, girl you are boomin' and can show it to your children when you have them and say to yourself, "I have arrived to be timeless."

I am really honored to be included in Zack Image's book. He's one of Beijing's top photographers and it's really hard to get to shoot with him as he's really picky. I've only shot with him three times! Why? Because he only likes long hair. I managed in this photo to get away with being shot with my short hair, otherwise he always puts the long hair on me. I love going down in history and he even gave me a copy for my nostagic records.

Perfect Model Style Beijing, China

Russian models have a lot of Russian style. But this girl really blew me away in her awesome red and black pattern angora dress with funky overcoat. Great look i'd love to have myself in a cool location.

China Fashion Week ss2011 in Full Swing

Not being able to be in two places at the same time, I missed the DLD Conference in Beijing and the big casting for China Fashion Week. There are clients that know me so I'm still busy so it's straight to castings I go with my various bookers like little red ridding hood.

China Fashion Week SS2011

It's China Fashion Week and this year the word on the street is that they are using less foreign girls and more Chinese models. So the competition is fierce between foreign models.

The Odd Chinese Girl with Red Hair

Because I'm well known in China, the Chinese models know me. I always try to speak the little chinese I know with them, and they think I am a cute little doll. I'm like the odd Chinese Model with Red Hair.