I originally met Nadia for a real estate photo job. She owns an apartment in Nagoya that she rents out to travelers through the company AirBnB, and she wanted some photos of the apartment to use on her webpage. The first thing I noticed about Nadia was that she was very committed to growing her business (she just started the AirBnB a few months ago) and taking care of her little brother, who lives with her. The apartment was very nice. It was clean and homey and had lots of personal touches that showed Nadia's attention to detail. I'm sure the travelers who stay there are very happy. I told her she should charge more for all the work she has done in furnishing and cleaning the apartment.

The second thing I noticed about Nadia is that she was gorgeous, and obviously took care with her appearance. I asked if she would be interested in doing a photo session sometime, and happily she said yes. I was surprised to hear that she had not been professionally photographed before. So, we set a date and I visited her again about a month later. Her apartment was very light and airy, so we used it for the indoor portion of the photo shoot. Then, we walked around her neighborhood to find the last of the fall colors to use as a backdrop for some outdoor shots. Nadia seemed nervous at first, but as the shoot went on, she became more relaxed. I am not good at telling models how to pose, so I instead acted as a director and suggested situations--you are sitting on the sofa, reading a magazine, and thinking about things etc.-- and then just looked for the moments to click the shutter as she did her thing. Nadia was patient as I fiddled with my flashes and flash stands, trying different lighting situations and settings that I hadn't had a chance to practice yet. She also changed clothes and makeup several times so we could get different looks. I'm lucky that she knows what she's doing, because I know nothing about clothes and makeup. In the end, I felt very proud of the photos we came up with, and thought that Nadia would not look out of place in a fashion magazine. Of course, I still have a lot to learn, and Nadia, after seeing the photos, said they gave her ideas for the next session. So, I look forward to more sessions with Nadia that I can add to my resume before she is "discovered" and doesn't need me anymore.