Cover Photoshoot

Yesterday I had the opportunity to assist another friend, Gabi Gregg, with styling on a cover shoot with Universal recording artist and friend, Suai. The shoot was for African American Family magazine, which is a Detroit based magazine. Although I struggled to drag myself out of the bed, after a mere three hours of sleep, I hopped in the shower, threw on some black leggings, a hot pink tank, black jacket, grey sweater, and finished it off with my new favorite Miss Sixty pumps. I packed up a bunch of jewelry for the shoot then Enterprise-Rent-A-Car came to pick me up and I was on my way. After a pit stop at Starbucks, to get the last little bit of sleep out of my veins, I reached the location.

The shoot was held at Cliff Bell’s in downtown Detroit. Located very close to the historic Fox Theater, Cliff Bell’s is a charming hidden gem with the feel of an old school Harlem jazz club. By the time I arrived, Sual was already in her first outfit which was a gorgeously sweet floral dress, given to her by a local designer. She paired the dress with a black leather belt and we choose my vintage layered gold necklace to finish the look. She rocked hot pink Louboutin pumps, which were killer on the feet but added the perfect finish to the summer cover look.

We headed down to the set and after a couple of shots, I was under-whelmed by the photographer, as she moved quite slow and offered Suai little to no direction. Very nice girl, whose birthday was the day after mine in the same year, but it was clear that she needed a bit more experience. She checked the camera after each individual shot, which really slowed this whole process down. The art director and editor were also present and their three-man team was fun to work with and was very open to our input. It was a great opportunity for me to use my fashion sense combined with my knowledge of photography.

For her second look, Suai paired a feminine pink top adorned with crystals with a black pair of skinny pants. We wanted to go for an edgy look so she borrowed a pair of Miss Sixty shoes and we threw loads of bangles on her wrist, we finished the look with a layered chain belt. During the second part of the shoot, Suai serenaded us and showed us why she was indeed a signed artist. Her voice and stage presence are AMAZING!