Bryan Lockyer Shoot

Last wk I mentioned I did a creative w/ photographer Bryan Lockyer. Today he sent me a few images that he worked on today and he'll get the others to me soon. I know he was a bit disappointed w/ the styling but overall I like the images he retouched so far. Can't wait to see the others!
*If you want to see the pics bigger just click on the image :)

P O S E D Blog & Magazine

Back when I was still in Shanghai a fellow blogger and makeup artist Sian Lidgate contacted me about writing for this upcoming Scottish fashion magazine and blog her and some photographers were creating. I thought this was a really great way to get some more international exposure so of course I jumped at the idea. At the time I was planning a trip to Beijing and a night at the Peking Opera which I thought would be a great topic for my first article.

They held the article for a few mths b/c they wanted to wait for the printed version of the magazine to come out. Unfortunately, that's been postponed a little bit longer but they have published my article on the blog and I can't wait to see it in print!

So check out my article for P O S E D Magazine & Blog!

Networking the Key to Success!

Last Weds. I had the pleasure of doing a creative w/ photographer Bryan Lockyer. I've never met or worked w/ him before so it was great to get an email out of the blue asking to work w/ me. Basically, his scheduled MUA had to cancel and he was looking for another MUA to replace her. He asked his friend Mackenzie James if he knew anyone and he suggested me.

What's crazy about this is I've actually never worked w/ Mackenzie or Bryan. Basically, when I got back from Shanghai I contacted a bunch of photographers I admired and asked for a meeting. Mackenzie was on of the photographers that got back to me and we really hit it off during the time I showed my book to him. He told Bryan my work was great and I had an amazing personality so that's why Bryan contacted me. It's important to remember those first impressions really are EVERYTHING sometimes and it's not even just about how good your work is a lot of times it also has to do w/ your personality and if the other person thinks you'll mesh well w/ their team.

So I was the first to arrive on set on Weds...this tends to happen to me a lot b/c of my perpetual need to ALWAYS be early lol. I swear if I'm going to be 2 mins late I'm calling the photographer to let them know lol! Bryan and I definitely had a long time to get to know each other b/c both the stylist and model were running late. The model was actually from London, ON so I can totally understand how this happened. I was just really happy to get to work w/ her as she usually only travels to Toronto for paid work. She's w/ NEXT Canada and her name is Virginia and she has a great look.

Because of Shanghai I don't really have many blond models so I was really excited to work w/ her b/c it fills a hole in my book. Whenever you accept a creative or any work that isn't paid it's important to remember what that shoot is going to do for you and how does it help your portfolio. No use doing a creative if you've already done that concept 3 times or you have multiple models in your book that have similar looks to the one being offered.

Once the stylist and model arrived we finally were able to get things started! The styling was exactly what I was expecting but what can you do sometimes that happens. Overall, I'm really happy w/ what I did as far as makeup and hair goes and I think the team was too. The look I did focused on a really dramatic purple and black winged eye w/ very sculpted cheekbones and a nude glossy lip...very 80's and very cool IMO! Hopefully, I'll get at least a few cool pics from the shoot to make it worth my while even though the styling was exactly what I was expecting. I saw some of the pics that Bryan took and they looked really great just off the camera so I can't wait to see how they look once they've been retouched. I definitely hope to work w/ Bryan again on some other shoots.

I think this could be an exciting time for me b/c I feel like all the groundwork I've been laying these past few mths is finally starting to fall into place. Photographers I met are starting to contact me, photographers I've worked w/ are passing my name on to other ppl in the industry, word is starting to get around about my work (hopefully all good ;) ). It takes time of course but this is how it has to happen if you ever want to make a serious business of this. In the end it's all about the NETWORKING!

Me Doing Makeup

Bryan Shooting Virginia on a Bridge
Virginia

Last Minute Fill In - Sears Catalog

So Weds. morning I got a last minute call to fill in for a half day Sears Catalog shoot. Days when I'm not working I can be a bit of a sloth so I didn't exactly know what time it was when the phone rang and I'm always paranoid that I'm going to sound like I just woke up (b/c I just woke up lol) so I did a few practice hellos before I actually answered the phone lol.

Thankfully it was only 8:45 am so even if I was still in bed I didn't look too bad...unlike the time when a photographer called me for a last minute paid test shoot on a Tues at 11 am and I was still asleep and somewhat hungover lol!

Apparently the regular MUA sliced her hand the night before while doing dishes. She thought it was going to be okay but while she was doing the first girl it started to split open and bleed...not good. So of course I jumped at the opportunity to fill in for this. Sears is a great client to have afterall.

I literally knew nothing but where I was going when I left for the shoot (hell I didn't even have time to shower). I thought I was doing hair & makeup but when I got there I found out it was just makeup. I was sort of relieved b/c it was for the bridal portion of the catalog but kind of disappointed too when I realized doing both would have doubled my rate and I saw how simple the hair was that they wanted. But I guess b/c of the time constraints they thought it best to bring in both which I can totally understand (the original MUA was going to do both Hair & Makeup).

The one girl was already done so I only had two models to do. They were so easy and gorgeous. Great skin...god that makes things so much easier and quicker. Seriously, working in Shanghai made me forget how easy my job can be when you have a model w/ great skin (unfortunately a lot of models their did NOT have nice skin).

It was a super easy shoot though. Seriously, only two outfit changes and literally only 2.5 hrs of work for me. What a change for catalog shoots...again very different from Shanghai. In Shanghai they sometimes want 50-75 looks in one day!

So hopefully I'll get some more jobs again soon. The Toronto International Film Fest is going on right now and seriously it's one of my fav. times in the city. There's just a different energy and I love it! Who knows maybe I'll get a job assisting someone for that or something...I mean those things are always booked last minute. If nothing else I think this mth will be good for creatives. Troy Moth is back in town and we're already planning a few things and Todd Anthony Tyler is coming back to Canada at the end of the mth so that's very exciting too!

Another Brother Gets Married!

So my other brother Colin got married a little over a wk ago now in Montreal. This one was a little less hectic then the last one for the simple fact that I only had one wedding to go to in one city lol!

It was so nice to get away to Montreal for a few days and overall the weather was wonderful. It did rain when the reception was almost over but at least it held out during the outdoor ceremony...although it was a little hot out there I must admit lol...esp. since I was one of the Chuppah holders during the ceremony (my brother converted to Judaism for his wife).

It was a small wedding and overall fairly laid back and simple which is exactly what I would expect from the couple. It was great though b/c w/ it being so small there was a great sense of family and friendship that sometimes gets lost during bigger weddings.

I got to Andrea's (the bride) house early on Sunday morning to do the makeup. Again another first...it was my first Jewish wedding I'm always use to Saturday weddings lol. There were 4 bridesmaids and Andrea for makeup. Andrea's bridesmaids were all really pretty and easy to make up like Ania's bridal party (my other sister in law). What was great was that Andrea has an interesting mix of friends that come from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds so it made it a lot of fun for me doing the makeup b/c I got to play up different features w/ different girls.

Her one friend Fang (who is Chinese) worried that I might not be able to put makeup on Asian ppl...that idea was quickly put to rest when she found out I lived and worked in Shanghai for over 6 mths lol!

For Andrea's makeup I wanted to keep everything fairly clean and simple b/c I know she wouldn't be comfortable w/ much more. Andrea has very pale, cool skin so I decided to use purples and greys for her eyes and they were the main focus. I also used a rather bold false lash that really brought it all together. It was so funny b/c to me it was obvious that the lashes were false but so many ppl actually thought they were real b/c you couldn't tell where the fake ones were. That is one of my biggest pet peeves in makeup actually. I can't stand when there is a space between the false and real lashes. The key is to get them as close to the real lash line as possible. I also like to take a mascara wand w/ a little mascara and then really blend the real lashes into the fake lashes so you really can't see the difference. For lips and cheeks I kept it really soft and natural w/ some soft pinks.

When I was in Shanghai I had a traditional silk Chinese dress made for myself so I was so excited to get the chance to wear it at the wedding. It looked amazing but I can tell you silk is not the best material to wear when standing outside on a hot and sunny day holding up part of a Chuppah lol!

Here's some pics from the big day!

The Happy Couple!

Colin, Andrea & Myself
Andrea & Her Bridal Party

The Couple Laughing During the Speeches - I Love This Candid Shot!
Close Up Pic of My Dress & Make Up