Jade 173

This glossy edited capture marks the end of a photo shoot that will always bring a happy smile on my face. Jade is the 76th Lady behind Crystal Veil.

After her application for my casting call, Jade and I had a very effective email exchange which is often the hallmark of full time professional models. Jade enjoys 20/20 vision but she was interested in doing a photo shoot with me because it was clearly "something different".  Her portfolio was quite interesting. The pictures alternated between serious, beautiful posing and the sympathetic girl next door. I also noticed signs of actress quality. In short, an ideal mix for a photo shoot in prescription glasses. Another bonus was that Jade lives in Brighton and she knew one or two alternative locations in case of rain. She arrived well prepared for the photo shoot and we were in a lively conversation straightaway. When Jade started selecting the glasses with mild prescriptions, it struck me that she had a remarkably developed taste for frames. This payed off when the actual photo shoot went under way. The more a model likes a pair of glasses, the better the posing.
Looking through prescription lenses was of course an entirely new experience for Jade but she got the knack within ten minutes at most. It was interesting to hear her spontaneous comments on each new prescription. In retrospect, it was a smooth photo shoot in which all went by itself. It was a pleasure to work with such a cheerful model. Her posing and acting was second to none. None of this was lost when we made the switch from mild prescriptions to strong glasses. It was amazing how quick Jade adjusted herself to the blur she saw through the lenses. She managed not only a natural, credible eye contact but a great variety in expressions as well. Delightful, confident, sweet posing. And a very effective use of her hands and subtle hair variations. Spontaneity and cheerfulness contributed a lot to the results. Jade was the perfect ambassador showing girls and women that there is no reason for them to feel insecure about their strong glasses.
Lovely Jade took directions quite well but she also threw in lots of initiatives of her own. We were switching roles constantly and without any discussion. What we did was real team work with a great flow to it. Jade clearly enjoyed every bit of what she was doing and the photos testify to that.
Thank you, Jade for a wonderful afternoon with excellent results, a great atmosphere and lots of "craic" as the Irish put it. I wish you a happy, successful continuation of your modelling career!

Jade 172

My only regret was that I only brought half a dozen strong glasses to this photo shoot. Not every model - even a full time professional model - is given to handle the massive blur and create natural, credible portraits. Jade has 20/20 vision and no previous experience with prescription glasses. But she managed many great, cheerful portraits like this. Big, big compliment to lovely Jade! But all good things must come to an end and so must this wonderful photo shoot.

Jade 171

More reward for my compliment about Jade's looks.... A happy face, a sweet smile and perfect, effortless posing.... It was a treat to work with lovely Jade!

Jade 170

Needless to say, I made Jade a big compliment for her looks in these honey brown glasses and she was clearly pleased with it.

Jade 169

These nice glasses first appeared in the Zenni catalog in early 2010. The frame came in two different colour settings of which this honey brown version was by far the best. The glasses suit blondes and brunettes alike and as a result, they were shown in many photo shoots (e.g. Tineke 124, Marleen 080, Farishta 263, Esther 130, Melissa 149, Claudia Allegonda 026). The glasses remained in stock until 2014. They were an obvious candidate for the photo shoot with Jade but I did not expect that the colour blend with the model's hair would be as perfect as it turned out to be. Simply great!

Jade 168

Glasses: Zenni 2378 (out of stock)
[L=R: -8.00]

Jade 167

Brands and opticians chains create an illusion in their photography of models in plano glasses or even empty frames. My project goes straight against this, showing models posing in real - and sometimes quite strong - prescription glasses. However, the models are illusionists as well but in a different way. Jade is an excellent illusionist, creating natural portraits like this. Again, you would swear that she is quite shortsighted and wearing her own glasses. The reality is that Jade has 20/20 vision without glasses and all she saw at the moment of snapping was a massive blur. Hat off for Jade!

Jade 166

"No, I don't think so. My vision will be fine for another while"

Jade 165

"Do I need a slight increase already?"

Jade 164

"Ah, that's much better, now I can see you. How are you?"

Jade 163

Another example of good acting by Jade in her role as a quite shortsighted young lady seeing only a massive blur looking over her strong glasses....

Jade 162

These glasses first appeared in the Zenni catalog about five years ago. Instantly liked by several models, they were subsequently shown in perhaps half a dozen photo shoots (e.g. Doreen 204). There was a duo shoot where the mother and daughter were swapping glasses (Juliana 154 / 160) and both of them looked great in this pair. My climbing partner in the Alps used them under extreme circumstances, posing in a gala dress in the snow during her third photo shoot (Marieke 372). The glasses then dropped out of sight, surfacing during the selection for the three photo shoots in Brighton. It's a fairly wide frame with nice decorations on the arms.

Jade 161

Glasses: Zenni 2695
[L=R: -8.00]

Jade 160

My project is not selling dreams, it's all about showing that a lady can look great in glasses, even if the lenses are strong. Minus eight is above the upper limit of what is generally seen in the streets but I see no flaws in this natural, credible portrait. There is no way of telling that these are not the model's own glasses. Hat off for lovely Jade!

Jade 159

Generally speaking, the retro era (1989 - 2009 in the Netherlands) was an all time low for frame design but the invention of the floating lens was nice and playful.

Jade 158

Patient posing by Jade, showing the floating lenses of minus eight in retro style glasses by Zenni from all sides. This is the real stuff and not an illusion.

Jade 157

Jade showing the side of the floating lens. Thick as a brick.... I always order glasses with standard 1.57 lenses. This choice is given in by the cost factor but also by the nature of my project. It's not just about frames but also about lenses. Brands and opticians chains neglect the effect of the lenses in their photography. This is odd - they are only showing half the product they are selling. Hiding the prescription lenses may have to do with the quest for perfection but what's the point of selling illusions?

Jade 156

The frame style with the floating lens was popular until the arrival of the black hipster glasses.

Jade 155

These red metal glasses appeared in the Zenni catalog early in 2012. A few months later they were featured in a photo shoot done in Belgium (Daisy 220), followed by my life partner (Nel 479] shortly afterwards. And that was it.... until the recent search with Jade in mind. For her I concentrated on glasses with frames that were not overwhelmingly present.

Jade 154

Glasses: Zenni (long out of stock)
[L=R: -8.00]

Jade 153

Adieu to the Laines.... Our time was up, but let's return to the Pavilion Gardens for the final part of this documentary.

Jade 152

A bit more navigation from both sides the camera.... yes, the other hand does the job. Meanwhile, the eyes - or rather, the brain - is getting used to the new information supplied by the lenses. Posing in glasses near one's own prescription can be more difficult than posing in glasses with a prescription that can't be bridged by accommodation.

Jade 151

Here Jade is trying to bring the glasses into the right position. Adjusting glasses is a job for the optician but we did not have one around....

Jade 150

I'm not sure about the brand of these glasses. The arms show considerable wear and tear so reading the brand name is guess work. The glasses were a find in Germany and must have belonged to a lady in her early fifties. Jade is the second model posing in them, being only preceded by Karen (258), five years ago.

Jade 149

Glasses: Tharot (?), late 1980's
[L: 0; c-0.50 h / R: -1.00 / var add 2.00]

Jade 148

"Another brick in the wall" (Pink Floyd)

We were running out of time but decided to try one last pair before hitting the road.

Jade 147

Who could imagine a better tribute to the half dozen great Silhouette glasses than this sweet smile of lovely Jade? Again, this is a pair that really suits this excellent model. Nobody had heard about Jade back in 1980 but she would have made a perfect model for Silhouette if only she had been at the right place at the right time. Anyway, there is always a second chance....

Jade 146

I love this pose, especially the effect on Jade's very long hair.

Jade 145

Lovely Jade studying the details of a wall in the Laines through Silhouette glasses made ten years before she was born. In a way this is a metaphor for the Laines - they combine the young and the old, the present and the past.

Jade 144

The Laines have a timeless quality in their atmosphere....

Jade 143

Selecting these simple yet refined Silhouette glasses for Jade made sense because of the very mild prescription. Using them near the end of the photo shoot made even more sense as I noticed the first signs that Jade was getting tired. Small wonder after three hours of hard work and excellent posing! Technical note: I removed the glare in the left lens (from the model's perspective) but kept some of the glare in the right lens in situ. We were standing at one of the umpteen T junctions in the narrow Laines and the glare is showing what the adjoining Laine looks like. Functional glare....

Jade 142

These are Silhouette glasses from their classic era when frames were large. The glasses are in perfect condition, indicating that their first owner only made occasional use of them. This makes sense as her prescription was quite mild. The glasses were liked by many models and as a result, shown in many photo shoots (e.g. Karen 098, Leonne 048, Colleen 016, Abeer 008, Simona 126, daughter Juliana 043, Battice 027).

Jade 141

Glasses: Silhouette 1045, made in 1980
[L: -0.50 / R: -0.75]

Jade 140

Fine encore posing by lovely Jade in Hans Stepper glasses around her own age.

Jade 139

This nice tilt made Jade's hair look even longer than it is in reality. Great!

Jade 138

Some more posing in the Stepper glasses....

Jade 137

Jade took off the glasses and after saying goodbye to the shouter on the door of "Frames in the Lanes", we headed further down the narrow Laines for the final location of her photo shoot. Out came the Stepper glasses and here Jade is making sure that they are in the right position.

Jade 136

The marble structure on the frame indicates that these Stepper glasses were made in the late 1980's or early 1990's. The glasses were featured in three early photo shoots (Irma 022, Karen 145, Jolien 019) and surfaced again during the selection for the five photo shoots in Paris, with Mia in mind. They seemed to be an obvious candidate for Jade as well. No more shouting came from the door when she put up the Stepper glasses. No cylinders in the lenses....

Jade 135

Glasses: Hans Stepper, circa 1990
[L: -1.50 / R: -1.25]

Jade 134

"Oops.... Did you hear the man? He shouts that I am not allowed to wear prescription glasses.... Shall we leave him in peace and move on?"

"Ah, you missed the last bit. He mentioned prescription glasses for astigmatism and in a way he is right. What about a couple of pictures in a different pair, without cylinders?"

"OK, but can we move a few steps back, please? Your glasses don't make me blind, but that man is making me deaf"

Jade 133

"This man is a big noise. But if you can't beat them, join them.... And I have the longest arms!"

Jade 132

The most inspirational part of the famous optician's shop was its closed door....

Jade 131

From one glasses shop to the other.... Frames in the Lanes is a well known optician and Jade was pleased to pose in front of the already closed shop.

Jade 130

These simple but nice green glasses by Conquistador were featured in four early photo shoots (Rachel 022, Astrid 058, Hiska 084, Melissa 001) and then forgotten about. They surfaced during the search for glasses with mild prescriptions that might suit Jade - and they did. Again, these are glasses for astigmatism only, but it did not take Jade long to handle the blur.

Jade 129

Glasses: Conquistador, late 1980's
[L: 0; c-1.00 o / R: -0.25; c-0.75 o]

Jade 128

Lovely Jade clearly appreciated the fun element in the colour asymmetry of the frame. An excellent moment to pack our belongings and head further towards the Laines....

Jade 127

What happened to my photographer's wrinkles?

Jade 126

The best receipt is "business as usual" - ignore the slight degree of blur. Aren't modern times full of screaming commercials and other types of blur?

Jade 125

The lenses in these funny looking glasses are actually not as funny. The first owner of these glasses had only astigmatism. It's impossible for anyone with 20/20 vision to obtain a clear view by accommodation. The cylinders are by no means strong but it's easy to understand why Jade was wondering what's going on here....

Jade 124

These funny glasses with a highly unusual colour asymmetry were a welcome find in a Welsh charity shop, about fifteen years ago. They were only featured in three photo shoots (Irma 099, Hiska 017 and recently Mirjam in her New Year shoot). This time I selected them with Jade in mind.