So, what are the best ways to elevate your junior’s photos during the festive period? Would you like it to get noticed by our team and clients? We’ll take a look at some ways you can do this.

Enjoying Christmas activities

There are lots of fun things your child can do at this time – from decorating the Christmas tree to filling up the stockings or writing Santa’s letter and leaving him some milk and cookies. During all these activities, you can capture their emotions and expressions, helping you build a super current portfolio with an Xmas theme.

Take images at their eye level

Your child is likely to be shorter than you in height so if you’re looking to take more engaging images of them, get to their eye level and explore not just Christmas time but other moments too through their perspective.

Festive outfits

There are so many cute outfits your child can enjoy to add to the magical festivities. We’re talking cosy sweaters, red and green colour schemes or Christmas-inspired pj’s. (Maybe you can get your adult version to match with them?)

Bonus ideas: Christmas-inspired earrings, hair accessories and socks.

Make their images dynamic

Instead of your bog standard poses, you can get your junior model to wrap up presents (that’ll help you out too!) and peek out from behind the paper or create a makeshift sledge which they can pretend to navigate. Wherever your imagination takes you, know that unusual and unique images will get your child noticed particularly at the end of the year.

Incorporate iconic Xmas lights

Whether these lights are illuminating in your he or outside on an evening stroll, take snaps of your child with them to enjoy the splendour of this holiday season.

Seeing that we’re in the Christmas spirit, we’ve had our child models get booked with big brands to promote this season such as Sophia and Freya. They were chosen to video call Santa for Sky’s holiday campaign. Here’s some feedback about their experience:

“For their very first job with Models Direct, Sophia & Freya had the amazing opportunity to do a video call with Santa at home. Prior to the project, they were not told and they were delighted to get to speak to Father Christmas.

I on the other hand was briefed by mail from the company and calls with production both the night before and on the morning to go over all the specifics and details for the day. Due to this, the call went really well and Santa was on the phone with both girls for 15 minutes and was very patient with them both as they were very excited. He took time to ask and answer questions and helped unwittingly get the girls to deliver some great content – they even discovered Santa can roll his tongue after asking him.

Afterwards, production made it easy to send over my content and we are looking forward to seeing the finished result. The girls can’t stop talking about it and can’t wait until they get to do another job. Thanks Models Direct!”

This is just one example but there’s plenty where this has come from if you head over to our feedback section!

Models Direct hopes that we’ve given you five useful tips on how to capture your child model’s Christmas images. If you’d like more tips, feel free to reach out to our MD team who’ll be more than happy to help and advice.

We’re hoping that this year is set to end on a good note. We want it to stay this way so we can truly get into the spirit of Christmas, spending quality time with the ones we love. However, amongst the frantic gift-hunting, Christmas dinner planning and entertainment for the festive holidays, what we’ll wear will also be a burning question. 

If you’re looking at what the key looks are forecasted for this festive season, Models Direct have it under one roof (well, packed into this blog if you’re unsure where to start). This time, we’ve kept it simple. Why? Because we know you’ll already have a million other things to be doing. So, without further ado, let’s go!

1. Red, green and white

The trademark Christmas colours can be easily incorporated into your wardrobe or makeup to exude the essence of the winter holidays. Picking an item shouldn’t be difficult and if you’re looking to avoid resembling your Christmas tree (or if you don’t, on the other hand), check online for anything that tickles your fancy from this trio of colours or all three if you fancy. 

2. Opt for something loose

As much as we promise ourselves we won’t tuck into too many mince pies or puddings this year, it always happens! And why not? Winter, celebrations and food are a great combination to enjoy some delicious food with family and friends. The obvious style choice this year is to go for something loose. You can hide any sudden bloating under a loose-fitting statement piece such as an oversized top or jumper so no need to feel self-conscious about eating anything that would normally be off limits. 

3. Shimmer and shine

For a touch of pizzazz and magic, a Christmas look is always great with some added glitter and sparkle. Apparel such as sparkly dresses or glittery tops (or even through your makeup) is now available in clothing lines. This year the theme is cute, straightforward winter wear that’s on-trend. 

Festive thoughts

Have you got your Christmas tree set up and ready? Crackers on standby, an unforgettable menu (including a little something for Santa too, don’t forget!) and party ideas planned for the festive holidays? If your answer is yes (or you’re promising yourself you’ll get it sorted as soon as!), we’d love to see some snaps of you, your family and friends if you’re interested in modelling. 

We don’t mind seeing different settings and backdrops but if you’re looking to officially sign up with our modelling agency, a plain, white background will be perfect. Thereafter, compiling a portfolio of all your looks and poses would be a great marketing idea to kick start, and if this includes those Christmas snaps, then get clicking on that camera!

If you like what you’ve read, stay in touch with us by subscribing to our social media platforms and our blogs for more of where this came from. 

From all of our team here at Models Direct, we wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year!

Let’s dig out some stunning colours then take some incredible new modelling photos that will really stand out.

Winter can be a great time to really make the most of bold shades and to take some gorgeous, clear images that will have you glowing out at us and our clients when we look at them.

The bleak backdrop of outdoor spaces and the cool light of winter will make strong colours really pop out and if you them choose carefully to match your own skin and hair tone, then they can look absolutely fabulous!

You don’t have to go too heavy with the colour – just an accent here or there can really make an incredible difference.

Try icy blue, scarlet red and tangerine orange, for example….

Or tones like sunshine yellow and viva magenta – all of these colours are bang on trend this season and just perfect for winter.

Hold them up next to your face and your hair to make sure they don’t bleach you out or clash with your own colouring, and, if they look great, think about teasing them out further with a touch of lipstick or dab of eye shadow.

Strong colours look especially amazing in winter outerwear, which means you don’t have to spend a fortune if you don’t have something already.

Think woolly hat, soft scarf or even just gloves or leg warmers – all teamed up with other of your existing garments in gentle, neutral tones or even black.

Some of these shades will also work well with the more traditional, earthy tones of autumn.

And to keep well within budget if you want something new, why not rummage about in charity and second-hand shops or click through vintage websites and apps?

You are sure to pick up a bargain or two.

Then follow our suggestions for taking and uploading your new photos and either update your e-portfolio if you are an existing model or – if you are considering joining us – send us one of the pictures along with your form.

We love to see our models having fun with their photography and using deep colours in the winter months is a great way to do so!

We’re heading right into the festive season and with so many exciting days ahead, to mark the end of the year. Models Direct thought we’d write about a special day that’s set to be fun and dedicated towards a charitable cause for children worldwide. Kids, parents, guardians, neighbours, everyone in the community, climb onboard!

Back in 2012, Save the Children UK – one of the UK’s top children’s rights charity – responded to help children keep safe, eat well and get educated, initiated an annual event to raise money for the children who need it most around the world during this festive period.

It’s shocking to think that about 19.5 million people are projected to be in crisis in Nigeria alone.

Therefore, with an event like this, where anyone and everyone is welcome to take part, just wearing a funky jumper (be it old, pre-loved or borrowed) for this one day and helping to fundraise and donate as little as £2 (or less if you wish) towards the charity, will help a child in a different situation. And if this day doesn’t suit you, it could be another day of your choice in December. If you wanted, you could share an image of you in your wooly knitwear on your ePortfolio to remember your day!

Last year, an amazing total of £5 million was raised for children and an extra £2 million was topped up by the UK government. Our modelling specialist team wanted to write about this festive knit event because there’s always time to give back positivity and hope to the world.

Models Direct has worked with charities such as Centrepoint Charity, which provides accommodation, and health support programs to help homeless young people get back into education, training and employment. Our modelling projects have been meaningful, with powerful messages so it’s been an absolute honour to connect our wonderful models to sensational clients.

This is what we do as the UK’s top modelling agency that shuns showcasing models and doing nothing about it! We promise to put our models forward whenever a client calls for their look. However, we also reiterate when our models register with us that we cannot guarantee work and that the final word always rests with our prestigious clients. We do remind our models to keep their online portfolio up to date and their body measurements too so that if a client wants to have a look at them, they have the most recent image to help them determine whether to take the model selection process to the next stage. We also recommend to keep all personal social media accounts professional in case our clients decide to embark on a exploration journey which happens more often than not with the ease of accessibility of literally everything now! This doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun though! It does mean that it has to be within reason and demonstrate the story you want to convey to your audient. In this case, a lovely warm jumper with flashing Christmas trees will do!

As a roundup, this December, wear a funky Christmassy jumper and get into the swing of having festive fun whilst raising money for children around the world. This time wearing a Xmas knit you wanted to avoid will have more purpose and give you a sense of reward. Don’t forget to fill us in if you’re a model in our books, and if you’re a newbie, it’ll certainly be one to add to the new portfolio collection!

The build up to the big day can be frantic, the pressures are on to make everything perfect, the decorations, the food, the gifts and of course still look your best for all the festivities, why do we stress ourselves out to create the model Christmas??

Expectations: 

Family and friends can have big expectations at this time of year, especially if you are the one who generally hosts Christmas! It’s important to have realistic expectations and not strive to have the most Instagrammable day – it’s not about that! It’s good to keep a perspective on things and realize that it doesn’t matter if the decorations are not perfect or the dinner is at a later time, or family or friends have decided not to stay this year, try and lower expectations of others and particularly yourself!

Money:

The subject of money can be stressful at any point of the year, but particularly at Christmas. We have a tendency to over spend to ensure all family and friends have the gifts they want and all the added extras, but is it worth it?! To remove some of the financial stress Christmas can bring why not consider doing things a little differently and limiting the spend on gifts or doing a family Secret Santa. Put the focus of the festive time on quality time with your loved ones, play games, laugh and listen to one another, this can be far more valuable to children and family members than another toy or novelty gift.

Family:

As we all know, we don’t get to choose our family, so if you’re not one of the lucky ones who get’s on with yours than spending the Christmas period with them might be pretty hard work! To ease this try and remain calm with any difficult comments or moments and don’t rise to them, defuse the situation and keep the atmosphere easy and upbeat. Christmas isn’t the time to discuss any deep rooted family issues, even after a couple of Christmas drinks it’s best to keep to positive conversations.

If family time is very stressful for you or your partner for any reason than try and keep it to a minimum so you don’t get worked up over it. You can still see family members at some point, but maybe you can pop round for a tea and a mince pie or drop the gifts in rather than spending great lengths of time with them.

Organisation:

For some organisation and forward planning comes naturally, however for others it’s much more of an effort to avoid the last minute panic or getting everything sorted. If this is you, then start by doing little things earlier than usual towards the big day and you will start to feel more in control. Work out what’s important to you and prioritize, that way you will ensure the  most important tasks are done and you can relax a little in that knowledge. It can be useful to make a list of everything that needs to be done and then make a plan of how and when you will do each thing on the list. Also allow time for yourself to relax, you don’t want to be burnt out by the 25th!

The key is to keep things simple, it’s a magical time of year, but can be difficult for many reasons, so be kind to one another and don’t strive to have the biggest and the best of everything! Stay within your limitations and accept help when offered, family and friends like to help, so make Christmas a joint effort rather than taking on the whole burden yourself!

Models Direct were delighted to send models and Ice Skaters Tyler, Amy, Naomi, Joseph and Chloe for a very skilled shoot at BlueWater Shopping Centre last week.

The models were dressed by stylists from Topshop and had their make up done by House of Fraser Make Up Artists!

Once ready the Models Direct team heard that the models were met by the photography team and fantastic direction was given so the models could be photographed while showing off their skills on the ice! All the models are experienced Ice Skaters, this is something that was requested by the client from the beginning –  additional skills as a model are always useful.

Check out this behind the scenes video of our skaters!

Models Direct’s models reviews of the assignment below:

Model Fee: £200

“Had a fantastic day yesterday it’s my first assignment I have been given, I was a little nervous but the day was amazing! my make up and clothes were perfect. Everyone was so polite and made sure we all had what we needed. I had a really fun day and met some amazing people.” – Amy

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqM3QXHDm5O/

“Hi guys!!
I just wanted to say a huge thanks for such an incredible day. I enjoyed myself so much!! as this is my first proper modeling job/shoot I could not have asked for a more lovely and kind, caring and really bubbly, smiley team. The photographer’s were really clear and understandable which is always great and the whole set up and organization was very welcoming and very professional. I can’t wait to have more work with you and to go ahead and gradually build up my modeling career.
With Very Many thanks.
Lots Of Love, Naomi Eleanor! Xx“

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqM6QYUjF71/

“Had a really fun day, spent all day shooting for Bluewater on the ice rink. Amazing people and everyone was so professional. Can’t wait to do it all again!
Waking up at 3 in the morning to catch the bus just to find out it has been delayed!
Ended up being 40 minutes late but everyone made me feel welcome and not to worry about it. Went for a walk over to Topshop to find out our outfits! Loved the styles of the outfits I was given. Made me open my eyes and go for colours I wouldn’t usually go for.
The ice rink itself was such fun to skate on, with the Christmas tree in the middle making it an amazing background.” – Joseph

“Yesterday, myself and 4 other lucky models were asked to take part in an ice skating photo shoot at Bluewater Shopping Centre down in Dartford.
After a warm welcome from the team, we were treated to getting our make up done by House of Fraser and had the personal stylists from Oasis and Topshop dress us.
The day could not have gone any more perfectly. I met some amazing people and Charlie at Models Direct organised everything so smoothly and was extremely helpful. The crew on the day were also extremely attentive.
This is my third project with Models Direct, I had such a great time and can’t wait for the next one!
Thanks for everything guys.” – Chloe

Whether you are looking for a quality piece to wear year after year or simply something super fun and glitzy to get you through the party season, then check out the Models Direct team’s  favourite top three, high street dresses!

This mega sparkly dress from #Topshop would be sure to draw attention and make you feel  super glamorous. We love the colour , length and  overall sparkle of the dress ,  it’s a must have for sure!

The Models Direct team also really like this black sequin dress from #Warehouse – bit more of an investment piece, but we think well worth it!  This dress could be something you choose to wear to several different events, very versatile and super sophisticated.

If you are looking for something super special this Christmas and a piece that will last you for years, then this classic red dress is very beautiful! Amazing quality and  suitable for all seasons, it’s a wardrobe staple from #L.K Bennett.