Our Gemma gets glammed up professionally; story and pictures

Nov 6 2008 by Gemma Castle, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

Multi-media Examiner journalist GEMMA CASTLE is used to being the face of the paper on its video news bulletins. But how would she enjoy a glamorous photoshoot? Here she describes the experience

IT was Saturday, the time 4pm, and I was on my way to Fusion Studios in Manchester.

I had been offered a free makeover and photoshoot as part of a promotional deal they were giving away and I thought to myself; why not?

I was actually very excited; after all, I’m yet to come across a teenager or young 20-something woman who doesn’t enjoy an afternoon of pampering and being made to look glam with a professional makeover and hair stylist.

When I arrived I was immediately welcomed with a glass of champagne.

However, that glass soon turned into two or three before I had even got started, after finding myself waiting around to be taken into hair and make-up.

Although I found the staff to be fairly friendly I would recommend going with a friend or your mum, as there is quite a lot of sitting and the staff often seemed more interested in talking to each other than you.

However, once I was finally taken into hair and make-up, things did start to pick up and run pretty smoothly.

We discussed ideas on how to best style my hair and how I preferred my makeup to be done, but I made the very wise decision to put my trust in their hands and let them do what they saw fit, after all, they are the professionals.

I particularly loved the way they styled my hair; before this I never thought it could look so big and thick!

And as someone who is generally not very good at hair styling I was surprised at how simple and uncomplicated it seemed, merely involving a few heated curlers and a lot of back combing.

However, I should note, I am yet to try this myself!

The makeup used was MAC, which you’ll find is used for most, if not all, fashion photography shoots, as it is quite heavy and ideal for a professional photoshoot.

When they finished glamming me up I was taken upstairs to the studios, where my shoot (the real fun) began.

Having done a bit of modelling in my teenage years I wasn’t a complete stranger to the bright lights of a photography studio, so I found myself quite at ease.

Although the photographer guided me on certain poses it seemed to come quite naturally and I soon found myself feeling comfortable and confident.

I was photographed in four of my own outfits. I purposely chose very different clothes, so my photos would look as varied as possible.

Part of the promotional deal included nails, hair and make-up, a photoshoot, champagne and one complimentary print of one of the photos taken.

Any other pictures had to be paid for, and that’s where the real cost came in.

All in all it was a really enjoyable afternoon, I’m pretty pleased with the photographs and is a great freebie to be snapped out of their hands.

If you simply fancy a fun day out with some good photographs at the end of it then this is definitely a good place to go. I have no doubt it would make a much- appreciated Christmas gift this year.