The last time I had my hair and make-up done for a photo shoot was before my high school prom. I went to Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, California to get my face painted at the Laura Mercier counter at Bloomingdale’s, then got caught in horrible traffic on the way to get my hair done. It turns out it was Bill Clinton’s presidential motorcade blocking my way. Go figure.
Yesterday I got geared up to have my hair and make-up done again, but in a slightly different context and a very different style. The fanfare was for my first official photo shoot as the Face of Ascot.
The shoot was for S Magazine, one of the sponsors of the modeling competition I randomly won at Royal Ascot in June. Their fashion editor brought me in to model for a spread on fall fashion in one of the September issues.
Having no prior experience modeling for magazine photo shoots, I arrived at the offices not knowing what to expect.
I was met by one of the fashion editor’s colleagues, who showed me into a studio where the editor, make-up artist, and photographers were waiting for me.
Work began on my hair and make-up as soon as I arrived.
After two hours behind a flurry of moisturizer, powder, blush, mascara, eye shadow, hairspray, giant Velcro curlers, a crimping iron, a flattening iron, and just about every other hair and make-up accessory imaginable, I emerged from the chair looking more made up than I have in a long time.
Hair and make-up done, the fashion editor took me to the dressing room and had me change into the first of five outfits for the photo shoot.
By this time the PR woman from Ascot had arrived to supervise the shoot and take notes for future activities.
I put on the outfit, in this case a red-and-black checkered dress with a giant black belt and 5″ black heels, all of which were a bit too big.
I had always wondered how they get clothes to fit models so well when they do photo shoots.
My answer came in the form of the fashion editor coming at me with an arsenal of giant safety pins. A few cinches later and the dress looked like it was custom made just for me.
Dressed and ready, we walked down the street to St Dunstan-in-the-East, a beautiful old church garden in the City of London where the shoot was to take place.
Originally a Saxon church, the place of worship was built and re-built over centuries until the last remaining building was bombed during the Blitz (yes, my inner history nerd read the informative signs before the shoot started).
What remained was a few exterior walls with gorgeous Gothic arches and a small open park with fountains. All this was set among the towering steel-and-glass skyscrapers of the City.
Being in the City made me pause for a moment to laugh at the dramatic (and completely unintentional) transition my life has taken in the last year from being a banker to being a fashion model. I can only describe it as absolutely bizarre.
The make-up artist touched up my hair and make-up while the camera crew set up for the first shot. Unfortunately, the camera software went awry and then the replacement camera had battery problems.
It took about 30 minutes to solve the technical difficulties, during which time I huddled under the cameraman’s jacket for warmth and dealt with the curious stares of passers-by.
Technical problems solved, we started the shoot. I was a bit nervous at first, as I had no idea what to do or how to stand. After a while, though, I got into it and started to have some fun posing for the camera.
After shooting the first outfit, we looked around for a place where I could change into the next one. Unfortunately, the only place we could find was a large bush in the front of the churchyard.
With the assistance of the fashion editor, I ended up changing in the bush (with quite an audience of chubby City boys getting a special lunchtime treat).
I emerged from the bush in outfit number two, a plaid shirt with a giant bow and a plaid skirt. Pinned and touched up, the shooting began again.
Repeat this process three more times in different locations throughout the park, and that was my photo shoot. When we finished we headed back to the studio.
I changed into my street clothes and pulled my now frazzled and unruly hair into a ponytail.
Afterwards we all headed to a local pub for lunch. I didn’t realize how hungry and exhausted I was until I sat down to eat. Who knew modeling was such hard work?
The result of all my posing should appear in the magazine the second week of September.
My next photo shoot is in a few weeks with Models 1, a top UK modeling agency. They were also a sponsor of the competition, and I’m excited to work with them.
I guess I’m going to have to get used to having my hair and make-up done more than once a decade now. It all still seems so surreal.
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