MODEL BLOG : Becky Holt

Only my third Blog so bare with me guys still learning, but would love some followers... come on guys let’s do this! 

Disclaimer:  You must be over 18years old to view the images in this blog

I’ve chosen to start ‘MODEL BLOGS’ which will contain behind the scenes  footage from shoots I’ve done and interviews, tips, finished images, ideas and more. 

I’ve chosen to start these series of blogs with Model and good friend the amazing Becky Holt (www.twitter.com/beckyhmodel  /  http://www.facebook.com/search.php?q=becky%20holt&init=quick&tas=search_preload&search_first_focus=1300478585096#!/group.php?gid=133229972102 / doesn’t yet have a website...although should have very soon).

I’ve shot with Becky now around 6 times or more, and are always super impressed with not only the images I gain but her work ethic, dedication and outstanding knowledge always amazes me, she’s constantly improving who she is and her work. Several of my fans and friends always ask “when are you next shooting with Becky” – everyone loves her images and her style, she’s infectious brings out the best in everyone!

Becky is a 23 year old alternative glamour and fashion model from Poyton, Cheshire,  with only 2 years modelling experience – she’s outstanding, you’d believe she had 10 years plus experience... a must book for all Photographers!  Currently has bright red half shaved hair but this changes all the time, as Becky is also a hair model for House of Fraser! During our last shoot Becky mentioned going Blue/Green soon so look out for these images too – I’ll no doubt drag her back to my studio for a few shots of that.

Our latest shoot is one which I’ll be discussing, it was on Saturday 12^th March in my studio in Ashton with amazing makeup artist Sarah Meredith (www.twitter.com/sarahjanemua) and a guest appearance from a stunning 13ft Albino Python courtesy of a loan from Aquatic Fanatic Reptile and Pets (http://www.aquaticfanatic.com/) thanks guys!

Meet our friend for the day

Who says Models Don't eat haha

In Hair & Makeup with Sarah M

I started the day with a short interview with Becky....

·         What’s your favourite food?

I love wagamamas chicken kauts curry! It’s amazing.

·         When did you start Modelling and why?

I started in November 2009. I just sort of fell into it. I’d always loved being in front of the camera. I’m very confident and it seemed the perfect job to do.

·         What’s the best shoot you’ve ever took part in?

I really loved shooting with Marc Labrie and Calvin Ayre. They came over from the USA and we shot in amazing London mansion. The same one Kate moss and marylin monroe had shot in so i felt really privileged to do it. It was an amazing day. They loved my red hair so much the changed the whole concept of the shoot to suit me.

·         What advice would you give any people wanting to become a model?

To work with the best and put all your efforts into each shoot. Be confident and strive to achieve the best results.

·         Who’s your favourite famous Model?

I love Agness Deyn she’s stunning.

·         What’s the favourite brand?

 I love all saints and religion clothing.

·         What’s your favourite thing you own?

My white blackberry torch I can’t live without it

·         What you up to this weekend?

I’m dancing for Suede night club with my addictive dancers.

·         When and where is your next shoot?

My nest shoot is with Danny Desantos at his studio in Manchester for syndication

·         What’s the best ‘freebies’ you’ve ever been given on a shoot?

When I shoot for Aveda I get loads of free hair stuff. It’s awesome.

·         Who’s your favourite worldwide famous or not, photographer?

Sara Callow!! best tog ever!!  Sara:  Laughs, Smiles

·         Facebook or Twitter?

@beckymodel twitter defo!!

·         What’s your favourite drink?

Mojitoes... so refreshing!!

·         What’s your favourite thing to do besides modelling?

I love dancing and socialising.

·         If you could change anything about yourself what would it be and why?

I’d like to change my figure... I really need to tone up... other than that I’m fine.

·         Do you have any pets and if so tell us about him/her?

I have two cats Mimi and Maw Maw... I love them soo much!

·         What’s your favourite magazine?

Bizarre

·         What’s your favourite website?

www.asos.com

·         What in the near or far future is the one thing you really want to achieve?

I’d like to achieve complete happiness. I’ll be happy when I have a beautiful country home and gorgeous family :-)

The aim of the day was simple, have fun, relax and create stunning images as a team.  Although we went into the shoot with a Shoot Plan, Becky and me never stick to it, we simply bounce off each other in order to create our work together and today was no different.

But unlike ANY of Becky’s other shoots I started the day by asking her to do some Beauty shots of herself but with a twist.  My ideas was to have minimal makeup (as Becky usually has very smokey eye makeup etc for all her shoots) hair pinned back in a very sophisticated way and have simple stunning head shots, however, not just this.  I asked Becky after the first couple of shots to start to pull faces that she felt represented her personality.  Becky is such a confident, fun, loving person I wanted to create a shot series of her that brought this out and yet showed her true beauty with the minimal Hair/Makeup. 

We then moved on to the art nude shots and some boudoir shots but then came the Latex shots something very new to me but was so much fun, especially watching Becky trying to get into some of them with her talken-powder.  The amazing Latex pieces were on loan from the lovely Stacy Black at Eustraphia (http://www.facebook.com/people/Becky-Holt/533556411#!/pages/Eustratia/103369093073851 ). 

We finished the day with the big shots, that is with the snake.  Becky loved the 13ft Python, as did I, so that made life easier.  Becky comfortably posed away with the beauty and got some amazing shots.  I was pleased that I got to shoot this with Becky, I knew she’d been looking to do a snake shoot since she started modelling in 2009. 

Next shoot I’d like to convince Becky to try is with a tranchilla... something Becky and me are terrified of!  Worse of all the shot I’d like to get includes Becky putting the creature on her mouth!  Watch this space J

Hope you enjoyed reading this blog and looking through the images and videos, please share and follow for more inside information on shoots with the SCP (Sara Callow Photography – www.saracallow.com) team.

K.O.S Boots Shoot

It’s been a funny old experience this last week, with the first shoot for the first client for my new, joint  Photography Company:  Kiwi:Fuse (http://www.kiwifuse.co.uk). 

From the cold and windy Moors to an amazing show room with top stylist, Gemma Sheppard (http://www.twitter.com/sheppardstyle) this shoot was an all round brilliant day.

The client is, Red Alert ( http://www.redalertagency.com/) a top Fashion Agency based in Manchester and London providing some of the biggest shops for example ASOS.com and Selfridges, with the best designer fashions. 

The morning started at 10am, everyone at Red Alert was very professional, as usual, their offices and showrooms where a bee hive of people working hard, but we got to work as soon as possible.  After a short run-down meeting with the companies partners, I picked up the day’s model from Manchester Piccadilly the stunning Emma Green (http://www.emma-green.net) and introduced her to the team at Red Alert. 

After intros we headed over to the ladies wear show room, now this was heaven, I’m definitely looking forward to their Sample Sales.... anyways, here we were able to choose from whatever clothes we wanted to go with the boots we were commissioned to shoot, K.O.S Boots (http://www.kosboots.co.uk). 

The clothes were all, Super Trash, Rare or Maison Scotch.  The best part about all this was Gemma, the funny part however, was that Gemma was only visiting Red Alert viewing their lines, but very kindly agreed to style our shoot, so spare of the moment and yet ideal timing and a pleasure to meet and work with.

I simply watched in awe at Gemma doing her thing (Video to the right - apologies for some of images being landscape which should be portrait) and Emma changing from outfit to outfit.  Just over one hour after intros we were walking about the show room, with mountains of clothes and accessories, back to the main show room for Red Alert where the K.O.S showroom is held to pick up the 12 pairs of boots we would be working with. 

We left Red Alert at around 12.45 with a car full to burst of some of the most stunning clothes, accessories and boots I have ever seen and headed off to my studio in Ashton-under-Lyne to meet with the day’s Makeup Artist, Sophie Battersby (http://www.make-upbysophie.co.uk/).  I have worked with Sophie on a few projects and I am always amazed at the quality of her work, a true perfectionist and a pleasure to work with. 

Whilst Sophie worked her magic, I began setting up the studio lighting, backdrops and reflectors, in this case being used to deflect the light.  I choose to shoot dark slightly shadowed effect very simple yet effective.  Having set up a deep grey backdrop two reflectors and only 3 lights, I was ready and waiting for my model, brew time, nice break before the chaos starts. 

TIP: never use or buy Black backdrops, you can create a better effect with grey, black shows up too many marks, if you insist on using black, make it black velvet rather than a black paper backdrop, as they’re a waste of money guys honestly.

Despite beginning my day at 8.30am it was now 2.40pm and everything was finally ready to begin, Emma looked stunning simple Smokey looking makeup with deep red lips, hair sleeked back with her fringe down and poker straight. 

For the studio shots I choose the black and gold simple, yet stunning, tight fitting dress from RARE.   I choose this dress so as not to take any lime-light away from the products.  Also knowing already how I wanted to edit (more on editing and using Photoshop in my next Blog) the shots I know the more skin rather than clothing the better.

Within no time at all the day was going, all sunlight fading, and yet we were due to next shoot on The Moors.  We left the studio in a rush to get out to the correct area of The Moors before Sundown, this was a 40min drive from my studio so peddle to the metal we headed out.

Although very cold and very windy on The Moors, I was very impressed by Emma’s work ethic.  We had nailed the shots of the boots on location in only 45mins, just before the sun began to set, only hiccup there was I spoilt my own pair of K.O.S Boots, by stepping on hollow ground, which was full of mucky water... gutted, however they came clean with a spot of Vanish the day after. 

Whilst shooting on The Moors the light was changing rapidly so I was forever changing my Camera settings, and ended this part of the shoot using my Flash Gun despite all efforts to work without it.  Think for my next location shoot along these lines I’ll be buying a power supply for my lights.  However, this would of course draw even more attention to the shoot, we’d already caused a stir on this usually empty stretch of nothingness.  It was funny how many cars suddenly slowed down as they saw Emma trying to change in the middle of The Moors – some rather amusing behind the scenes photos of this. 

We then drove from The Moors back to Manchester town Centre, approx 1 hour drive to try to complete the day as planned, shooting in a bar.  However, by the time we reached the centre it was way too busy, being a Friday night the after work drinkers were out in force.  So instead we ended the day there, on a high as the day was although a stressful day, a very successful one.

One week today this all took place, and several texts, tweets (http://www.twitter.com/SaraCallowPhoto or http://www.twitter.com/KiwiFuse)  and meetings later the final 20 images to use will soon be chosen, and hopefully be seen as the company Brand images across the country, so watch out for our combined efforts.

My next shoot for Red Alert will be of their showrooms for their website upgrade, which has been scheduled for next week. 

I have really enjoyed working with Red Alert and am very much looking forward to working with them on future projects for their lines, including our next shoot for K.O.S, the ecommerce shoot so you’ll soon be able to buy these amazing boots on line ladies, these boots are a must have, amazing! So watch out for the must have pair of boots, I’ll be sure to give out the link to buy as soon as they go on sale.

Here are two finished images ready to use for Brand Advertising:

Finally Started a Blog

Having been in the Photography industry only 3 years, I'm a baby who's still learning, however, I feel I have knowledge to share and so have chosen to start a blog. My aim is simple, show you who I am and share with you my knowledge and learning of the amazing world of Photography.

Anyone who loves Photography will tell you, you never forget your first camera!  It was a hot morning in Florida, US on the 7th May 1994.  Not just any old morning, but the one which I turned 7.  We were currently on holiday in a stunning Villa in Florida with lots planned including my first trip to Disney World!  We were one week into our three week trip and I'd woken up excited that it was my birthday, as you often are as a child, but little did I know what a difference this day would make.

My present from my Mother and Father was a small basic film camera, my first!  I remember the paper it was rapped in the amount of batteries it took to run, everything.  This one day in my history would later define who I was here to become, as from that day on, there was no stopping me taking a photo. 

I once remember visiting Canada for a family reunion, my first visit to this beautiful country.  I had with me a film camera and was currently going through a stage of photographing anything I thought looked good, I even remember photographing a slug near a river at the reunion site whilst everyone else was enjoying a BBQ.  The only problem with my sudden impulse photography was, that back then there was no such thing as a Digital Camera.  I was allowed to take with me six 36 exp films, well what a bad move on my parents side.  I used all six and of course this meant I wanted the photos printing, resulting in a rather large bill for my parents, however the images to this day are still up in frames at my parents house in my old room.  Even then I think my parents could see my Passion. 

I went from there really, collected several boxes of photographs and eventually digital files, all of which are still stored safe....it's nice to look back from time-to-time.

It came to that time of life which most teenager's hate, where do I go from here.  It was time to choose what to do at college after high school.  Having received an unexpected B grade (my only good grade, as I'm more of a practical person) in Media Studies I had chosen to study it further.  However pier pressure kicked in the day before my course was due to start and I changed my plans and became a sheep... not an actual sheep, but a 'follwer'.  I didn't want to do a course non of my friends were doing so close to the deadline I moved to the ILEX Legal Secretary course to be with friends.  Looking back now had I gone with my gut I would have had qualifications in the correct industry which in later life became a huge part of me.  I'll never forget this fact as it's a lesson learnt and one which I share with young fans I talk to on my Facebook account (Sara Callow Scp II).  Always follow your heart!

I realise I'm now babbling, but hey, it's my first blog, I'm a newbie.  Anyway, in 2008 after pursing a short lived modelling career, I finally decided to learn more about the technical side of photography, rather than just clicking a button on an automatic camera and assuming that's a good photo.  I was again bought a present from my parents which would change my course into history, a full lighting kit, backdrops and of course, a camera, a Canon 450D. 

Looking back at these images now, I laugh, there hopeless, terrible lighting, bad choice of settings and over edited, all round bad photos.  It wasn't until a model friend of mine introduced me to a man I now consider an adopted Grandad, Mr Jim Carter.  Jim has been working in the industry for over 40 years and although old school, was full of knowledge which I was lucky enough to be taught.  I began using Jim's studio on a regular basis learning as I went, and in that first year alone I still can not believe my growth. 

It had begun, Sara Callow Photography was upon us and was going nowhere!......