Avenues of the Diamond (University Series #4)

22

The next day, I had to leave early for a shoot. Giselle sent me some sample photos I could imitate. Ang sabi niya, pwede siyang mag-hire ng photographer para sa 'kin pero ang sabi ko, I wanted my sister to take them. Last Christmas, ang regalo ko kay Naomi ay lens ng camera niya. Clyden also gave her some light equipment she could use. I wondered how much kaya 'yon? 

"I prepared so hard! I'm so excited!" Naomi said while setting up her tripod. She really hung some pieces of cloth around so the background would look white. Inalis niya rin ang mga gamit niya at nagmukha na ngang studio 'yong kalahati ng room niya. She looked so passionate about photography. 

"I already did my makeup. Hindi ko alam ang susuotin ko so I brought a lot." I placed the hangers on the mini sofa. 

"Wear all of them so you won't look the same in the photos. Let me fix your hair a bit. It should look a bit messy for my concept." Naomi went to me and tied my hair before plucking out some strands to look a bit messy. I curled it earlier. Humaba na ang buhok ko at lumagpas na ng balikat ko. I wasn't planning to cut it short anymore. 

I sat on the stool and retouched my makeup a bit while she was setting up the studio. She gestured 'okay' and looked at the screen of her camera. Umayos ako ng upo at ginaya 'yong pose ng babae sa sinend ni Giselle na photo. I put my leg up and leaned my elbow above my knee before staring at the camera with fierce eyes. I parted my lips and moved up my chin a bit for the next pose. 

"Great! Now try smiling! Laughing, whatever!" Naomi said. "They need to see how you would look like in every expression." 

My first smile was a bit awkward, so she scolded me for it. She played music while taking photos so I would 'get in the mood.' It really helped me. I sang along with it and ended up laughing when she said a joke. After taking a few more pictures, I changed my clothes. This time, it was a fitted dress hugging my body. Naomi gave me an apple I could hold, and I had to figure out what to do with it. 

"Where did you even get this apple?" I asked, confused. She just laughed and asked me to focus on the shoot, so I did. I pretended to take a bite, so it emphasized my lips. I also took off my hair tie and moved my hand up, looking at the fruit with seductive eyes. I tried so hard for it! I was praying that it would actually look good and not weird! 

"That's great. Loosen up more," Naomi said while looking at the screen of the camera. "They turned out good, but I know you can do better than this. Go and unleash yourself. You're still a little awkward." 

I felt like I was the younger sister here! I can't believe she was actually scolding me. Ginawa ko na lang ang sinabi niya at inisip na we were both professionals. I should act like a professional kahit hindi pa. I shouldn't act like this during an actual shoot, or everyone would get disappointed in me. 

After taking photos, Naomi told me to practice my 'walk.' Ni hindi ko nga alam na kailangan ko pala 'yon ipakita sa kanya kaya niya 'ko pinagdala ng heels. I wore Clyden's gift and lumabas kami sa long hallway. I used to wear heels a lot so it wasn't really a problem for me to walk in those. Naiilang lang ako dahil may nanonood. 

"Your walk looks so plain, like you're walking in a mall," Naomi insulted. I scratched my head in embarrassment and tried again. She got pissed after, so she made me watch runway shows for me to imitate.