My Showreel.

My Showreel

My showreel is similar to a mini documentary based on my fashion shoot talent discovered and performed at University of Winchester. It is designed to be like a mini CV in which I can show some of my work as well as explain what it is that I can do. It also gives potential employers the chance to see who I am and how I come across as as a person. I decided to focus my documentary on my fashion director role as this relates to the majority of my fashion shoots. But I was also the editor of the fashion magazine, Absolute:ly and I produced a lot of work based on hair,makeup and fashion as well as my photo-shoots. I have included a few of these in my video to show that I am versatile and can use the programmes fireworks and photoshop to produce magazine spreads as well as organise and direct photo-shoots. 

The photo-shoots that I directed were all of a very high standard in terms of the final images and clothing distributors, hair and makeup artists. I managed to get Adidas, Tiffany Dresses, and local fashion designer to provide me with expensive clothing for a few of my shoots which I was over ally impressed by; especially as it was for free and some of the clothing was worth over £600! This goes to show that if I was working for a larger magazine with a budget I could really impress the editors with the companies I could get to provide me with clothing. 

I also managed to get makeup artists from Champneys Salon, Benefit and a local vintage artist to style the models in the correct way for the shoot. I used to research how I wanted the models to all look individually and then find a makeup artist that could pull of the look that I wanted. This really made the whole style come together as the models needed professional makeup to look good in front of the camera. This was also provided for free and I am grateful for the makeup artists who took a few hours out of their time to do this.

Similarily, I had hair stylists from Toni and Guy, Rush salon and a local popular stylist from Winchester. The stylists curled, straightened or crimped the models hair and created an up-do or style to go with the specific theme. I was really happy with the way in which the hair linked to the specific shoot specifically the 'Gatsby Shoot'. With the 'Gatsby Shoot' I was adamant on re-creating images from Malcolm X and Audrey Hepburn to contrast with Jay Gatsby and the flapper dress style that the women wore in this era. Therefore when selecting the models I needed to have in mind the hair styles that I wanted to make sure the models had the right length, colour and thickness of the styles intended. Some of the images from these shoots are pictured in the video.

I was also the editor of the fashion magazine, Absolute:ly and had to decide which content should go into the magazine each week. I needed to make sure that there was at least one piece of work for each category on the magazine being updated and that everyone was keeping up to the deadline with their work. I also used to use Twitter and Facebook to promote the magazine and work that was being put on the website.

I found using the DSLR cameras quite tricky at first as I hadn't had a lot of experience with them due to being on features the majority of the time. But with a little bit of practise you start to work out how to use it. I think the picture quality of the DSLR's is fantastic and makes the work look so professional. I decided to keep my video CV shorter as I didn't want to include everything I have learnt and can do over the past three years as this can be kept a surprise and gives me something to talk about in an interview. I was also wary that editors may not want to watch minutes and minutes of footage, so if I could just get to the point and show a teaser of my work it may encourage the editor or interviewer to watch it. I enjoyed making the documentary and worked with a couple of other colleagues to help me produce it. This shows that I enjoy working in a team but also can produce good quality work alone such as some of my features work present in the video.

Editing the documentary took a long time as I am not used to using Final Cut Pro as often as the likes of Photoshop and Fireworks, however I managed to add in some effects, change the volume of the sound track and add in a few zooms and effect as well. I didn't want to make the package too fancy as this would take the attention away from my work and the things that I have achieved.

I sent a link to Maya Oakley who is the fashion stylist that I interviewed and she said that my work was 'brilliant both photographically and in terms of companies, hair and makeup artists' that I managed to arrange. She also said that I could produce something spectacular along with a budget and a magazine name under my wing. I am looking to go along to one of Maya's shoots to see the way that she directs and organises them to pick up some tips and see the way it works.

I have learnt a lot over my three years at Winchester and have managed to choose an area that I would like to work in. I tried out other aspects such as the news reporting and have managed to decide that it wasn't for me. I have produced some brilliant work for a student and am overally proud of my photo-shoots and the way that I planned, organised and directed them all. This video is just a few bits of my work but I have so much more to show and offer. I think that it is best to keep the rest for the interviews when your work, attitude and the way you come across really matters.