Hey Rosebud,
Teaming up with an outstanding group of creative minds, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with Kateryna Derechyna, a professional ballet dancer with The Washington Ballet. I have worked with lots of dancers, but never have I worked with a professional ballerina before. I was beyond excited to be apart of this project. My first impression of Kateryna or rather Kat was a very beautiful and gracefully structured woman. After all of the formal hellos we got right to the fun stuff,MAKEUP & HAIR! lol. Kat is a rockstar and her personality is vibrant, sassy, and carefree. Our hair and makeup sessions talks were to die for. We all had so many interest in common like makeup, music, and social life styles. It wasn't until Kat slipped on her ballet slippers and balanced perfectly still on the points of her toes, that I was reminded that "she's a real ballerina".
As a professional ballet dancer of course every move Kat made was amazing to see up close. I will say this, there is a lot of mental exercise that goes into ballet on top of the intense physical training. Kat was super impressive, she stayed focused and held her pose and balance for lengths of times I could never match (lol) all while making it all look very easy. She was all smiles and full of this "dancer's energy" that I've noticed in other dancers I've worked with.
But trust me hanging on set and behind the scenes with a professional ballerina and being one are two totally different things. As a team we collectively were inspired to show off our unprofessional dance moves to Kat. We all got a huge giggle out of our attempts at toe points, kicks, and twirls. The fun of dance filled the studio and the inspiring music kept our energy and creative juices flowing.
After a long 13 hour day of shooting some crazy great inspiring images, the entire team finished the shoot just as strong as we started. And a sense of accomplishment filled the studio! It was a true team effort and everyone involved gave their 150%. Hope you enjoyed this peek into my world as a makeup artist.
Model: Katyerna Derechyna
Hair Artist: Kyndra Turner
Makeup Artist: Ivory Perkins (self)
Fashion Stylist: Jennifer Elizabeth
Photographer: Naiffer Romero
BTS Photographer: Tom Turk
Naturally the summer months have me in full blown bridal mode. With bridal consultations and weddings, I've been a busy little makeup artist bee lately. However, when the time permits I have been working really hard with an amazing team to update and add value to my artistry portfolio. It's hasn't been easy but when it's good it's great and this past Sunday was great!
Teaming up with an outstanding group of creative minds, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with Kateryna Derechyna, a professional ballet dancer with The Washington Ballet. I have worked with lots of dancers, but never have I worked with a professional ballerina before. I was beyond excited to be apart of this project. My first impression of Kateryna or rather Kat was a very beautiful and gracefully structured woman. After all of the formal hellos we got right to the fun stuff,MAKEUP & HAIR! lol. Kat is a rockstar and her personality is vibrant, sassy, and carefree. Our hair and makeup sessions talks were to die for. We all had so many interest in common like makeup, music, and social life styles. It wasn't until Kat slipped on her ballet slippers and balanced perfectly still on the points of her toes, that I was reminded that "she's a real ballerina". 
As a professional ballet dancer of course every move Kat made was amazing to see up close. I will say this, there is a lot of mental exercise that goes into ballet on top of the intense physical training. Kat was super impressive, she stayed focused and held her pose and balance for lengths of times I could never match (lol) all while making it all look very easy. She was all smiles and full of this "dancer's energy" that I've noticed in other dancers I've worked with.
But trust me hanging on set and behind the scenes with a professional ballerina and being one are two totally different things. As a team we collectively were inspired to show off our unprofessional dance moves to Kat. We all got a huge giggle out of our attempts at toe points, kicks, and twirls. The fun of dance filled the studio and the inspiring music kept our energy and creative juices flowing.
As a team we shot multiple looks on different set locations. But hands down I'm sure my favorite image of the day, which I haven't seen completed in post production, would have to be from the dark dimly lit alley we shot in. This set was everything for the particular concept we were shooting for that set. It had texture, depth, darkness, haze and a rocking ballerina balanced gracefully on her toes!
Model: Katyerna Derechyna
Hair Artist: Kyndra Turner
Makeup Artist: Ivory Perkins (self)
Fashion Stylist: Jennifer Elizabeth
Photographer: Naiffer Romero
BTS Photographer: Tom Turk
