I introduced Bev to everyone, and she remembered Kendal from last year. Kara and I were sent to makeup and wardrobe, where they had a barber waiting for me. The barber compared my hair length with what it looked like from my shoot in the UK. She then gave me a haircut and Bev was brought back to confirm my hair was the same.
I was then ready for makeup. While I was getting my haircut, Kara was doing her first set of shots. We were in an old building that had previously been a warehouse. It had fifteen-foot ceilings with exposed timber, and the outside walls were brick. It would have made a great loft to live in. The room was divided up so that two photographers could be working to get the catalog and Internet work done quickly. Bev was overseeing the whole shoot.
While my makeup was being applied, Adrienne was sitting next to me, explaining what they were doing.
“The first thing you always do is apply a moisturizer,” Adrienne coached.
I’d never had this done first. Young skin can get away with not doing this step, so the makeup gal was just going to start working.
“Why do we need a moisturizer?” I asked.
“Two reasons. The first is the more you put makeup on, the more likely your skin will start to dry out. Dry skin leads to damaged skin. This is your livelihood, so you need to protect your best asset. The second is because it makes putting on makeup easier.”
Adrienne sorted through all the moisturizers and selected one for me to use. It was a rich facial balm. Once the moisturizer was applied, the foundation seemed to glide on more smoothly.
“They use a foundation to cover any large pores or small lines. You can tell if they have the right color foundation by taking a long brush stroke and applying it across your cheek. If you can’t see it, you have the right one. You need a touch of concealer to even out your skin tones under your eyes,” Adrienne pointed out.
She had an eagle eye on the makeup gal and had her adjust the concealer.
“Now we’ll apply powder to set the makeup. This will also prevent any glare under the lights.”
The girl did the powder, and then Adrienne had me stand up and step back from the mirror.
“Stand back and look at the overall effect. I think it looks good,” she said, smiling at me. “Now we do what’s called ‘lifting.’ This is where we look to see if there’s any part of your face that needs more definition. Because we’re looking for a natural look for a sporting goods shoot, you don’t need anything dramatic. We’re going to use muted eyeliner to draw out your beautiful eyes. I think a little lipstick will brighten your lips just a touch,” Adrienne directed.
When they were done, I was happy to see I looked natural. I was just a little better version of myself.
Bev had me start with hunting gear. You’d be amazed at how many different clothing options there are for the sport. I spent the morning with Bev and Adrienne. Bev got into the spirit of teaching me when she saw Adrienne was giving me tips. She showed me a bunch of stuff, like the different diffusers on the lights, and the different effects you could achieve with lighting. Shadows can be a photographer’s worst enemy. That was why most shoots are indoors: it allows them to control the lighting.
I noticed Kendal and Tiffany were both paying rapt attention to what Adrienne and Bev were teaching me. Learning the why of things made it easier to understand what was going on. I was finding I needed to learn a lot to become more than just a living clothes mannequin. A good model could assist in the shoot, and help the photographer. After all, who knows your body better, or the best way to display it?
Adrienne taught me how to make subtle suggestions. She had Bev take a set of shots, and then made a slight change in lighting or how I was posed. Then she would show me the difference. Bev didn’t seem to mind us eating into her time, because Adrienne kept the pace moving, and I think Bev was learning some things that would make her a better photographer.
I was also being taught what makes a good photograph. This was where Tiffany and Kendal really paid attention because they had to approve the work.
I was surprised when Bev called a stop because it was lunchtime. The morning had gone fast, and I was really enjoying myself.
I had to chuckle when I went to eat. Instead of cigarettes and coffee, they had actual food! I was happy to see a salad, steamed broccoli, a plain baked potato, and a steak. Sandy Range must have arranged this for me. Over lunch, Adrienne told me she’d be working with Kara the rest of the day. I understood because Kara was working for Adrienne. I was under contract with Ford for this shoot.
Bev made the other photographer switch with her. At least Kendal stayed with me. Tiffany and Tyler went to the other set to watch Adrienne work with Kara.
My new photographer, Martin, was an arrogant ass. I acted like a professional and did my job, but I could tell Kendal wanted a piece of him.
For the afternoon, I was doing sports gear; clothes and equipment for baseball or rugby, for example. Towards the end, I had to put on lacrosse shorts and a t-shirt. These are fitted and made with a gel layer to help distribute impact, very similar to what I’d wear for football. I came out and Martin gave me a dirty look.
“Go back and take the padding out of your shorts. We’re not doing this so you can fool the ladies,” he snapped.
“I think you just crossed the line with that comment,” Kendal said.
Her jumping to my defense slowed me down from pounding him; he was on my last nerve. Because of the outfit I had on, there was no way to hide my assets; it was just part of being a model. It was very bad form for a photographer to comment on a guy’s package, and their attempted enhancement of that area, unless he knew for sure. I had seen other models do it before, so I knew it happened. The proper action would have been to go talk to the wardrobe person instead of embarrassing the talent on set. A two-minute discussion could have avoided a confrontation.
“There’s no way he’s not padded. If it’s all him, then I want to see it,” he shot back.
Normally I would just drop my drawers, but this man had pissed me off. Apparently, it wasn’t just me: suddenly Kendal was in his face, letting him have it. I think she’d been taking lessons from the mama bear—my mom. Soon everyone was over to my shoot to see what was going on. Kara winked at me when she saw my outfit. It really didn’t leave much to the imagination.
When Bev found out he’d requested to see my junk, Martin was suddenly ‘having a bad day.’ On big corporate shoots, you were required to be extra careful about sexual harassment. Add to that I was a minor, and you were in borderline going-to-jail territory asking to see my stuff. I grinned when Tyler went into lawyer mode. She’d made me some money in New York for something similar. In this case, though, I wasn’t looking to get payback for anything. I liked working for Range Sports, and Bev was good people.
Martin was finally convinced to ‘shut his damned mouth’—Bev’s words, not mine. Tiffany and Tyler decided to stay with Kendal for the remainder of the day. With Martin being civil, the rest of the shoot went smoothly.
WHEN WE RETURNED TO the ranch, Sandy wanted to go into town to eat and then go dancing. I was the only one who was willing to go with her. Kara was having problems with the time difference and needed to get some sleep. I tried to get Kendal to go, but she told me she was being a good girl on this trip.
I went and put on a pair of vintage jeans and a Jade t-shirt. I figured my outfit would be good enough this time. I was not going to be teased about wearing ‘fancy pants’ by her friends. Sandy was wearing jeans, too, so I was feeling okay with my choices. When we got to the restaurant, I was pleased to see I knew everybody. Sandy’s best friends Olivia and Joanna were there, plus the brother/sister snowboarders Bud and Laurie. I counted the girls, and then looked at Bud.