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beauty
HOLLY
MCDOWALL
build upon their skills no matter
what stage they are at.” With
an invested interest in several
areas of the modelling industry
Holly recognises what qualities
define an established model,
“What makes a good model is
confidence. You have to be able
to put yourself forward and do
whatever the photographer
asks you to do, even if it seems
silly. You have to be willing to
get up at five in the morning
for a shoot and you also need
to be disciplined and look after
yourself. To reach a certain level
you really need to commit to
the industry and be professional
in everything you do.”
Despite her shy exterior,
Holly relaxes quickly as the
team work on her hair and
make-up. In the setting of a
photo shoot she is at home
and, in this relaxed environment
she is not afraid to speak up
and enjoy a joke. As her eye
shadow is applied, Holly opens
up about her past struggles with
confidence, “The biggest hurdle
for me has been confidence
because I am naturally a very shy
person. I used to have a stutter
when I was younger and I lost
a lot of confidence because of
it. I do still get nervous when
working on big photo shoots
but modelling has helped me
gain confidence in working with
adults and meeting new people.”
As soon as Holly is in front
of the camera she transforms
into an all-powerful force. She
moves with the photographer,
capturing each frame perfectly,
responding to direction with
ease. Having worked on some
unusual photo shoots and
catwalks in her year of working,
Holly has grown stronger
and developed not only as a
model but as a person, “For the
Scotland Re:Designed opening
catwalk show, the models had
to learn dances beforehand
with a choreographer. These
sorts of challenges build upon
your experience. As a model
you will be asked to do unusual
things that put you out of your
comfort zone, things that some
people would get embarrassed
about but you just have to suck
it up and get on with it.”
Having to dance for her first
runway show introduced Holly