LDHQ: Behind the Scenes

When we first moved to Okinawa, I discovered a modeling agency just down the street from of our home. I figured it wouldn't hurt to put Leyna into their database, so she's been in there since the minimum age of 10 months old. It wasn't until last October Leyna was chosen for a photoshoot for Nissen, an online retailer of Japanese clothing. I was eager to see the resulting photos, but since there's so many children in their catalogs, the agency doesn't track down which one your kid would show up in, so it'd be up to us to order catalogs and hope to find her in one at some point. Well, we never ordered their catalogs but just the other day I was lucky enough to stumble upon her photos on the company's website. The clothing line is for this year's Summer Collection.

Now that these are released I can show you some behind the scenes fun. The day started early and they shuttled all the lil models to a beach resort. All lot of waiting goes on throughout the day between the changes of wardrobe, locations, and models. So basically the main task is to keep the kids occupied, happy, and tear-free in preparation for only the few minutes they will actually be behind camera. Leyna did a great job of lounging around.

This tiny hermit crab kept her entertained for a long time.

Leyna watching them get ready for the first kids .

Leyna and the 2 other models for the day.

It was finally Leyna's turn. Leyna never let me put her hair up before, though I always tried, so I was anxious to see what would happen when they did it!

Amazingly she kept her pigtails in the whole day! phew! I couldn't take photos during the shoot since I was busy directing her - keeping her smiling, getting her to look this way n that, having her chase me around etc. A minute of smiles and done. They said she did great for her first time!

Right back for a wardrobe change.

Keep em happy with sweets!

Round 2 went great. Then back to waiting and enjoying the beautiful weather...

Round 3. This was my favorite outfit for her =)

Final outfit. The hat made me nervous since it has a strap underneath her neck and she's very sensitive to anything touching her throat. Hopefully the other lady could keep her distracted!