KISS Model Search Finalists

People believing in you is a funny thing to wrap your head around.

As some of you might know, my main job is working as a Deputy Editor of KISS magazine. On occasion, I accompany the lovely Beta to photoshoots, where I learn all sorts of on-the-job tricks (one big one: stand-alone ladders are amazing, particularly if you are shortie photographer snapping a gazelle-like model).

For a while now, Fashion Ed Corina (who blogs for Stellar mag here) and Ed Sarah have been encouraging me to do a shoot myself. I was all “No way Jose” – I need to practice more, get better gear, and generally learn how to not suck so much before my pictures can be splashed across 25,000 copies of anything.

And that was that, until I returned from my Bali hols. While sifting through a gazillion emails, Corina appeared behind my desk and coyly says, “Guess what you’re doing on Friday?”

Which is how I found myself with 10 gorgeous KISS Model Finalists, shooting a pretty Sartorialist-inspired fashion story, the results of which are below and in the current issue of the magazine.

Throwing me into the deep end and seeing if I would swim, or sink in a sea of badly composed, dodgily exposed shots is not a risk a lot of people would take, and I can’t thank the girls enough for pushing me in. Ladies, you are legends; thank you for being so encouraging and supportive.

And now, for the model finalists – the winner gets a contract with 1st Option, which is pretty sweet. In no particular order, here they are…

Zoe: