MANILA, Philippines—On Monday afternoon, “Your Songs” held a press conference at the City Best Chinese Restaurant on Tomas Morato (thanks so much to our friends from the press for spending your precious time with us, as well as to the owners and staff of City Best for being so amazingly hospitable). We showed a mock-up of the website for the concert and shared our concept with the media people present. I did a Q&A with the reporters as well as a few quick one-on-ones … and smiled. A lot.
One part of doing press conferences is smiling for the cameras. There are some right smack in front of you, others on both sides. Thankfully, our photographers are incredibly polite; no “name screaming” to get their target’s attention.
Following the press conference, it was time to head to a photo shoot for a popular glossy magazine. Instead of a roomful of flashbulbs, the lighting for this setup was deliberate, carefully placed to highlight my features as well as the fabulous makeup and hair job and the fun clothes.
Tilt your head, chin down … look straight at the camera. Smile, please!
One part of any celebrity’s job is to have his or her pictures taken. Whether it’s for an album cover, a magazine spread, a press gathering, or even that random fan pic taken at a signing session, it’s our job to pose and smile for the cameras trained in our direction.
Unflattering photographs
Unfortunately, however, there are some unflattering photographs taken, as evidenced by the US tabloids (cellulite shots of celebs in their bikinis, for example). These are shots we can’t always control, and I’m envious of the celeb who always seems to look fabulous regardless of the circumstance. I’ve seen some pictures of myself that I just don’t give a second glance to, because of a bad angle, an overly oily complexion, or just looking more than a few pounds overweight.
For the most part, though, I’m quite happy with the pictures taken of me, even under the least ideal of situations ... but happiest when the photo is taken in that wonderfully controlled environment.
Allow me to share a few secrets on how those magazine and album covers, posters and billboards are made to look simply fabulous.
A top-notch photographer. There are many of these talented artists working today: Raymund Isaac, Ronnie Salvacion, Sara Black and Francis Abraham are a few favorites I’ve worked with. They are great people with a great eye. They each have different styles of working (Raymund spouts expletives when he grabs a shot he really likes, and Francis will play YouTube videos while waiting for the next setup), but each brings his unique sense of beauty and humor to every shoot. There are also photographers I’ve never worked with, but whose works I really love—Marc Nicdao and Jojit Lorenzo are two of them. Here’s hoping for an opportunity in the future.
Makeup! I place a lot of value on, and trust in, the hands that handle my face for a photo shoot … names like Juan Sarte III, Steven Doloso, Gela Laurel-Stehmeier and Jingky Ilusorio are but a few of those I’ve worked with over the last many years. Again, each of them brings a unique style and aesthetic to the table while wielding the tools of their trade. One specializes in that “fresh and dewy” look, another in “old Hollywood” glamour. I love that my face looks just a little bit different depending on who’s taking care of me, but that it still looks like me.
Bag of tricks
Fabulous clothing. When a stylist is in charge of the look, he or she takes to the shoot a clothing rack filled with possibilities: blouses, dresses, gowns, trousers, T-shirts, coats and jackets, plus all kinds of shoes, and baubles, bangles and beads. Also included in that virtual bag of tricks are safety pins, clamps of different sizes and masking tape. A lot of the time, stylists will borrow clothes by different designers, or source stuff from different ready-to-wear brands … and a lot of the time the clothes will not be a perfect fit. Sometimes, something will be too long (safety pins needed for the cuff on those jeans), too big (clamps fastened down the back of that oversized blouse, and masking tape to taper the sleeves), or too tight (prayer is the only hope). For that perfect shot, it doesn’t matter how Frankenstein-ish your dress looks from the back; it’s all about how it flatters you from up front.
Striking that perfect pose. A model (in this case, yours truly) will be instructed on poses. I’ve oftentimes found myself contorted in some of the strangest positions. I’ll be asked to turn my head here … then there … raise an arm, angle my elbow in a certain way, lean against a wall. In my head I know which angles work best for my face, but I also put my trust in the photographer to place my face (and the rest of me) in the most flattering pose.
Frank Wildhorn & Friends
Hello to my fans in Las Vegas! I shall be visiting your city very soon to sing in “Frank Wildhorn and Friends” with Linda Eder, Rob Evan and Douglas Sills. We shall be singing music from “Jekyll & Hyde,” “Dracula” and “The Scarlet Pimpernel,” plus music from Mr. Wildhorn’s newest pieces. We’ll be at the UNLV.
See you all then!
