Need

Photo by: Michael Barton Art

What do I need,you may ask?  I NEED more paying gigs.  I am doing my best to get "out there" but I need to work.  Lets be honest, the recession hit EVERYBODY hard... no question. And me,well I was one of the 99rs.... yup,one of the ones that lost a job ( Kitchen and Bathroom/ Interior design, if you are interested) because the small company I worked for, couldn't afford me full time....then they couldn't afford me part time,then they couldn't afford me at all,before going out of business totally.  So I applied for other design jobs ( few and far between) I applied for retail jobs, admin jobs,fast food jobs.  I sent out applications every single day. In that 99 weeks of unemployment I got exactly 5 interviews.  Sad huh? But certainly not unusual.  I did manage to get a very part time job with a friend that is a chiropractor. ( 4-10 hours a week) And I still work every once in a while for him, when he needs me.  I used up all my unemployment insurance, and racked up more bills than I like to think about....and now that I am working MORE steadily,I am doing my darndest to get them paid down ( hard slog, that...missing out on lots of stuff I would LOVE to do,places I would LOVE to go...but that is life)

So now, I am working regularly as an art model, traveling all over the Chicagoland area,and totally enjoying it.  But lets face it... I need more.more art gigs,more photography gigs...a girl has gotta pay the bills,you know ?

I know that I do not fit the shape, the age, the look of what everyone needs / wants. I TOTALLY get that.  But for anyone looking for a mature ( emotionally as well) tattooed( they don't HAVE to show, depending on wardrobe) easy going, hard working, consistent model that can  hold a pose, do my own hair and makeup when needed  and won't give you the diva attitude, ( always willing to listen and work with you) I am the one you want ... contact me! Don't wait!  ( shameless self promotion? Absolutely...somebody has to! LOL)

Econica, a first look

Photo by: Michael Barton
Dress by Econica

So I did my first shoot with a piece of  Econica's clothing line ( this is a piece I had recently ordered from her- not one of the ones she is sending me- which is still a mystery, as to WHAT she is sending me. I am truly antsy to find out- I know I will love anything she does though )
I wanted to do the shoot, to give her a base point, so she could tell me if she wanted anything changed stylistically or  lighting wise. ( or any other way)  Before I got a whole bunch of stuff, and shot. I want her to be happy with the images,and I want them to be usable for her upcoming stand alone website.

So what do you all think?  How is this for an online  catalog ? What changes do you think I should make for the next shoot? By the way, this is her " Long pullover tunic dress with pintucks and asymmetrical hem"     The sleeves are a touch longer than normal, as I like them long.

I am truly excited about this whole prospect.

Summer Bookings

Photo by Michael Barton Art

Summertime is usually when bookings ( at least for me) tend to pick up.  Which makes sense. People can get out of the studio,and if they don't have a studio to work out of,outside is  a good call for a great many types of shoots.

That being said, I am always looking for bookings.  For alternative local  bookings please contact me through this blog ,or though my FaceBook page, at ChristaC1313
For more lifestyle , Editorial or Fashion type shoots please contact my local agency , Kingdom Model Talent Agency at info@kingdomtalentmgmt.com
And international opportunities  ( UK or Europe) (Though keep in mind, I am not able to travel for the most part... so clothing or accessories would have to be sent to me ) Please contact  The Twisted Agency at info@thetwistedagency.com

So far, this summer, the following dates are booked with photographers. ( I have other dates booked for Art / drawing modeling, which do tend to book out, so please don't wait too long, or the summer and nice weather will be over .  That would indeed make me sad)
There are also a couple other concepts that don't have specific dates at the moment, but are going to happen... that would include at the least a Fairy Shoot  and a Tattoo/ Phoenix shoot with another tattooed model.  So again,don't wait!

April 25th-McCarrel Photography-High fashion Cats
May 30th- G&D Studios- Cowgirl and nerd pinup
May 31st- Absinthe Moon Photography- Black Metal Glamour
June 14th- Thom Rouse for The Clothed Image Catalog
June 29th- Larura dark photography- Ethereal Wolf

So if you have an interest in booking something, please contact one of the above e-mails, depending on what your concept/need  is.

Goals

Photo by: Michael Barton Art

It is good to have goals... in life,in business, in anything you do. It gives you that next level to reach for, the next step to take the next direction you need to push for.  I ,for the past 10 months,have kind of been treading water.  Mostly because of the unfinished state of my tattoo. I haven't been PUSHING. I have been doing shoots as they come up, and not really searching for them. I have been doing lots of Art Modeling,because then it is the purely up to the artist at hand if the tattoos are to even be included in the piece. ( not to mention that it is paid)
 
As I look at the tattoo being done in a couple weeks,what ARE my goals for this year? What is my next step.  ( and some of these I have touched on before,but here, I clarify them in my own mind)

1. To be in a print magazine,that can be found in a bookstore or newsstand.  ( or even more than one) A Tattoo magazine, a photography magazine.  Something that anyone could just buy, or subscribe to and have it come in the mail)

2. To be in one of the amazing online magazines, like Dark Beauty, or Giuseppina Magazine that focuses on amazing art photography.

3.To get a cover, of any magazine.  ( I know better than to be picky)

4. To work on more collaborations with clothes designers, accessory designers. I will be working with the amazing Econica very soon, but I want to do more

5.  More paid bookings.  ( MORE is such a nebulous word, what does it mean...for me,MORE is at least one paid shoot a month, every month...maybe even 2) This is, after all how I pay for groceries.  I LOVE TFP type shoots, mostly because it seems that there is more give and take between the photographer and myself, there is more of a willingness to just see where things go. BUT running with what is needed for a specific use, or the photographers vision, or a companies vision, that is good as well.  I need more bookings.

6. Stretch more, explore more,do more that I have not tried before.  Things like underwater photography, wind / motion/ fabric photography, Extreme make up/ body paint photography. Editorial photography, couture photography.... the list goes on of things that I want to try, things I want to do.

Realistically, will  all of this happen this year? Probably not, but if they don't, they roll over to next year, and if they do... well then ,I have to set higher goals for myself !  

  

Versatility

Photo by  Jack Hall ( Plane Courtesy of the Gauntlet Warbirds)

There are some models who specialize in one or two genres of modeling.  I myself want to do and experience as many different types as I can .  This particular shot is from my very first true retro  pin up style shoot, that I did my own make up and hair.  ( I had tried once before, but didn't quite get the feeling)
I had done pin up before, but it is a lot easier to get the look when your wardrobe, hair and makeup are all done for you.  Those Victory Rolls? That was an hour of cursing and fussing and fighting with my hair to do ( after looking at lots of pictures and you tube videos  . That make up? That was watching over a dozen youtube videos and finding appropriate reference material to study.

That's the thing, I suppose.  It is easier to stick with one or two generes, you get to know them, you are comfortable in them.  Switching it up, requires research on poses to wardrobe to make up to hair to facial expressions,every time you do something different, you should study and prepare.... and if you aren't, well, prepared to do that with every new style, then be safe and stick with the ones you know.

I like to be constantly learning, and I like to research, so doing different things,is fun for me.  I don't want to get stuck doing just one thing... I want to try it all ( or at least all I am suited for) from lifestyle to glamour. Pin-up to fetish. Art to Commercial. Tattoo to Editorial. I want to do it all, and I seem to be steadily working toward that goal, and getting acknowledged for it.      

Commercial VS Art Modeling

Photo by: Cadence Gamache ( Now Mccarrell Photography) 

                           

Photo by: Michael Barton Art

 I ,personally want to experience and try my hand at as many different aspects of modeling as I can.  One difference that many new models don't seem to get is the difference between ART modeling and COMMERCIAL modeling.  These two pictures are a good example.

Now that is not to say that commercial modeling cannot be artistic, or art modeling can't be commercial- that couldn't be further from the truth . But on the whole there are things that go into different categories,  that are styled differently,and done differently. Be aware.
One key is  lighting, as you can see is very different, the finishing is very different.  The general purpose,of course is very different.

Obviously Art Modeling is all about the image, and can be moody, and heavy on shadow ( or not,it is of course ART after all)  It can be simple, or not, depending upon the artist. It can be heavily phtoshopped, or not at all,depending on the image, the model sometimes,unrecognizable as the model, or sometimes even as a human figure.

Commercial modeling is to showcase either clothing, or the model themselves.  The shadows tend not to be as deep, the skin is flawless, the background may or may not be more simple, however.  It is the kind of photography you typically see on billboards, in magazines, in model portfolios.  It is retouched,cleanly, and again the focus is on the model.

I enjoy doing both.( though to be honest, I probably enjoy art modeling a touch more.... but I think that is indeed the artist in me, and I know I enjoy making darker images more)   I enjoy looking at both...but KNOW what your photographer does best, and know what type of image you need for submissions or portfolio or whatever you are planning to use your image for.  Educate yourself about what you need.