Beechwood Shopping Centre
Saturday, 23rd February 2008
SEXY, sassy and ready to sparkle in front of the camera, dozens of young people stepped into the spotlight as the search for the Face of Gloucestershire got underway.
The first of four photo shoots took place recently at the beautiful Beechwood Shopping Centre in Cheltenham as the race to find the county’s cutest guy and girl hotted up.
The Citizen and Gloucestershire Echo has joined forces with sponsors Blushes and Beechwood Shopping Centre, to find the male and female Face of Gloucestershire 2008. The competition, which is also being run in association with Rah and Apero, is open to all aspiring models aged 18-25.
The winners will enjoy a wealth of fantastic prizes, a modeling contract – and of course the accolade of being the Face of Gloucestershire 2008.
At the Beechwood Shopping Centre, top professional photographers Heidi Cartmell and John Moore photographed some dazzling entrants. Heidi runs her own photographic agency, Secret Me, as well as jointly running the Two Front Teeth photographic agency with John, who also runs his own agency, John Moore Photography.
They joined forces at the Beechwood Shopping Centre for the shoot on Saturday, February 23. Heidi said the day had been a great success with some stunning entrants.
“We had a few who immediately stood out and a few who had obviously done it before and were looking for a modeling contract.
“We also saw a few people who seemed to come alive in front of the camera – there were certainly a few surprises.
“Some were a little bit nervous but we were able to get the best out of them and we took a range of shots of each person to make sure we got the best picture.”
One of the entrants, Carla Wales, 22, of Tuffley, Gloucester, said: “It’s an experience so I thought why not. You don’t know how well you’ll do unless you try”
Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres, who lives in Hewlett Road, Cheltenham, said: “I’ve done hair modelling before and I heard about the competition through a friend. I thought I may as well give it a go.
“I’m not a stranger to the camera and its fun.”
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Hannah Shanks, 22, who lives near Cheltenham’s town centre, said: “My friend sent me a message on Facebook telling me to enter because I’ve done a little bit of modelling before which I really enjoyed.”
Jeff Heath, 23, of Cheltenham, said: “I’d heard about it and then I was walking through the arcade and saw people having their pictures taken, so I thought why not.”
Michele Pemberton, from Apero Events, said: “The response has been absolutely fantastic. We’re all delighted to see the enthusiasm people have for this.”
Pictures will be published in The Citizen, Echo and online on April 2nd.
A text vote will then decide which 24 finalists go through to the next heat. After another round of text voting, the final 16 left in the competition will be announced on April 17, when photographs of them will be published daily.
The finalists will then go head-to-head in the battle to secure the title of The Face of Gloucestershire between April 21 and 27 with a grand finale including a catwalk display on May 11th.
To watch the video from the first photo shoot CLICK HERE |
