Expresso

To add to Memento Mori´s statement, here´s proof: (Warning. Digital nudity ) http://jessicaalba.net/wp-content/uploads/...beforeafter.jpg

Phenobarbie, Jennka, Sweetlu and Joe, nice posts! (did I forget anyone else? ) Interesting you bring that up because I have noticed the same thing. The ´hotties´ rarely stay hot. I have a cousin who was a complete knockout at 16 (and she knew it too) and now she's 24 she's reduced to being merely average at best. My aunt was just an averagely cute girl when she was young and now at 35 she outshines pretty much every teen and twenty-something in the family. She rarely uses makeup at all, she just has that natural beauty. Also, what do you guys think about this? A model friend of mine said that she would probably look haggard when she got older because of all the layers of makeup she had to wear all the time for work. Also, her hair was breaking off from all the blowdrying, dyeing and hair styling products they did for shoots. So do you think starting modeling at an early age will age you quicker than living a normal life would? Just a random thought that popped up.

^^That's....just.... if one of the most influential fashion magazines chooses to be represented by an 8 year old, than what does that say about themselves?

And not just in America. I saw a discussion on TFS about this as well and some people there said that in Europe "we're used to that sort of thing" and that nudity at 16 isn't shocking. I guess sex at that age is normal for some of people, but messing around with your bf somewhere noone knows about it at that age is (to me) very different than being topless or nude on an ad at that age which thousands if not millions of people will get to see. Aside from that there is another issue to consider. I am not specifically targeting the ED stuff (any model at any age can fall into that pit and I don't want to open that can of worms) but at 14 many girls look like thin mosquito's, perfect for the 'clothing hanger' modeling. Then they get 17/18 or older and they start filling out and suddenly they're not wanted anymore. It can do a lot to a girl's self worth when you were first booked all the time and suddenly struggling with jobs and struggling with your body because of it. Why not pick adult girls who are naturally thin and are done wrestling with puberty? I guess my main question here is: Why does the fashion industry prefer underage (and with that, underdeveloped) models over adult ones? I am not talking about established girls like Adriana Lima who has made a name for herself and continues to thrive because of that. I mean the relatively unknowns who are only recognized by the up-to-date fashion/model fans. I'm not talking about career durability either. Being a fulltime model is hard work and puts a strain on your body. Doing that from a young age could actually age you quicker than if you'd gone to school like every other normal kid. I mean, I think it's weird that models at my age (which is 22) consider themselves "old" and past their prime.

Yeah, I mean sometimes I see girls prancing around half naked for some kind of perfume and they're not even fully grown yet. I find those ads to be distasteful, to be honest. Also, since the majority of the consumers aren't even the age of these girls, how are we supposed to identify with them and be convinced to buy what they're selling? The fashion industry seems like a self indulgent entity that functions on it's own. My question is who sets all these strange standards and why would people want to keep it that way? @phenobarbie: I haven't seen any flaming so far towards your opinion. As a matter of fact, I agree with it.

Thanks for your insights everyone. I agree the fashion world (and in it the modeling business) is a strange one. I was asking because a classmate of mine wants to start now she has a college degree but fears she's too old. Then again, Anna Selezneva is actually 22 but is advertised as being 18....It got me thinking about the weird thing about models and age. @phenobarbie: you have made me curious. Surely your view cannot be that bad? Unless you're openly advertising child pornography with an addition of a lot of foul words, I don't see what harm it could do to share your thoughts. There's no ban against sharing an opinion, as long as it's not some random hurtful statement.

Wow, great pics everyone! As for Adri, it's like she really reinvented herself. She toned down the whole exaggerated thing and now she looks modest and almost innocent again like she did pre 2005. Her face looks great, her body rocks, yeah defenitely a comeback! Thanks for the HQ's everyone! I want her jacket. P.s. did anyone notice Doutzen seems to be pregnant very much in the same way Adri was?

I don't know if I posted this in the right category, but here goes: Models and age, is it a big deal? There has been plenty of discussion about when young is too young. But I just started to think about the other way around: what if you're in you're early twenties and want to start out? Honestly, I think that's a much better age because you're more grounded and you (hopefully) have an education to fall back on. On the other hand there are lots of young models to compete with and when you take the Elite Model Look competition for example, where the ages range from 14 till 22, it's always the really young ones (15) that get picked. So what do you think? Is it possible or wishful thinking? Do you have to lie about your age if you want to model in this situation? What are your thoughts?

Sorry to hear you feel this way. If I had a part in the reason you made this decision, I´m genuinely sorry. I guess it´s not nice to be judged by your appearance, but in essence, that is what modeling is all about. Models get judged and critiqued every day and even the average human being gets judged on appearance time after time on a daily basis. That´s the thing with beauty. It´s a double edged sword. Also, I don´t think the agencies themselves occupy themselves a lot with the opinions of people of this forum. Their job is to get work for their models. And as long as their clientèle is hiring them, they have nothing to worry about. That poster is new and he didn´t support his statement with any evidence that suggested what he was saying is true. Seeing how slender some of the girls are I see no reason to be suspicious of the measurements. If I were to be suspicious of anything, it would be the age they put up sometimes. But that´s another matter entirely and not worth getting into here. I do get why you feel hurt when you put in this much effort, but like I said, this is not an attack on you. I guess it may have become a bit of a soapbox like Joe said but at the same time it´s like that would mean we are not allowed to comment at all. Pictures invoke emotions, be it good or bad. And people are social creatures who like to share opinions, which is happening here. I don´t see what is so particularly bad about that as long as it is done in a civilized manner. It means people are interested enough in this thread to put in their thoughts about the content. I can name tons of threads I don't give a second look. If this was to be intended to be a pictures only thread, a forum might not have been the best place to put it. Or you should have arranged to have the ´reply´ option disabled. Again, sorry to hear you're quitting and I really hope you'll reconsider but ofcourse this is your choice to make.

I think a thread that invokes a discussion merely with pictures is a good thing. What's the point of a thread if people just look at it and leave again? If you are posting about new and upcoming models -which you are doing a terrific job at btw- it is going to stir up a discussion. I think the fuss here is this: The common perception of a model is that she is beautiful. Or at least attractive to most people. When people tell you "you look like a model" it is perceived as a huge compliment because that means you're pretty. With that in mind, some of these girls posted here (like the ones I mentioned) who are models are not considered to be pretty at all by the average person. But they are hired by agencies (several even, sometimes) and that means that they're getting work and that someone sees potential in them. So in that respect they are indeed the new faces of fashion. I think some people here wonder why that is. I sure do. Because in order to sell something it has to appeal to the masses, right? But I guess that HF seems to have become a self indulgent world of it's own that doesn't really care about anything else. HF used to be more...approachable. Now it alienates a lot of people, including myself. Models are supposed to sell clothes. My question is: to whom? Because a pretty model in a coat will more easily persuade me to buy it than one of those alien girls. And I'm not just talking about commercial modeling, but fashion shows too. Also, models are losing their monopoly in magazines and gigs on pretty movie stars and music artists. Supermodels like in the 80's & 90's are gone. I dropped a couple of names of what I consider to be well known models to several friends of mine and they drew up blank. But they do know Tyra Banks, Naomi Campbell and Cindy Crawford. Why are models losing gigs over celebrities? Isn't it because people like to see a well known pretty face rather than an asymmetric, unknown android like one? I will leave it at this, and maybe I'm completely wrong in my musings (if you think so please add your thoughts!) but yeah, sometimes I really am surprised to see which models turn up. All that said, you have put some interesting fresh faces out here and that's just great! So please youareprincess, I don't know if you do, but don't view this as a personal attack on you or your taste/preferences. Sorry if I struck a nerve with some people, but I think some discussion is never a bad thing. Keeps things interesting.

Before I start, I appreciate the thread and the diversity. So I am not hating on this thread or the efforts put in by youareprincess. You rock. BUT I don't get the whole alien/weird/man-droid look thing either. These are not the models that are going to be popular in a couple of years, because they're not appealing at all to the average Joe. Maybe for HF, but it is in HF fashion shows that I've wondered for the first time why certain girls were even wearing a bikini top because they didn't have anything to fill it up with. HF as it is right now makes it possible for lingerie shows to be repulsing to look at. Some of the girls posted here are strikingly beautiful but interesting at the same time (like this girl. So I don't agree that to be pretty equals looking generic and boring. If that were true the same could be said for the ugly and weird looking girls, who are boring and generic in their collective...weirdness. I'll probably get bashed for this post by all the 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' people, but I'm sorry, some of these girls just cannot be called beautiful: She looks horrendous in my opinion. And this girl looks too young and too thin. Looking at her in a bikini (or some bad imitation of that) feels like looking at child pornography. But that's just my opinion and I know that doesn't mean much at all.

I agree on a lot. Especially concerning Ale and Candice for the reasons mentioned. And just when I started to warm up to Emily Didonato she started to pull that same twitter 'look at me' crap Ale is doing. And I just don't find her that pretty in candids. She's got that sleepy look going on. Ana BB: I still love her and she will always be one of the most beautiful women, she hasn't done anything really remarkable lately. Still, sometimes she pops out something that blows me away, so I stick around Doutzen: I'm Dutch so naturally I like it when someone from my country succeeds. And in the beginning I really liked her. But like so many top models, she is overexposed and I dislike the fact she can't speak Dutch properly. It's like she doesn't even want to. And she doesn't come across as particularly bright in her interviews. Irina Sheik: the whole deal with her and Ronaldo, all the paparazzi pics and the fact that all she seems to be able to do is lingery and swimwear modeling. I still think she's stunning but she lost that spark that made me like her so much. Tori Praver: I used to love her. But I don't know, her recent work hasn't left a mark on me like it usually does. Adri used to be on this list for me, but she seems to be getting back to that 2005 and before look that I loved so much, so there´s still hope for her. She´s also put a lid on the stupid faces thing

Wow, she´s a knockout in that dress! The hair fits the overall look, I think. There are very few people that can wear this and look that good, especially on camera. She probably doesn´t have an ounce of fat on her.

*oops double post*

Yup, this is the first time I feel confident saying: SHE'S BAAACK! She really looks great here, better than previous years. And look at all those girls tearing up in front of her...

WOW, I've never been a fan of blonde on her, but she rocks it somehow. Like that Maybelline ad a while back. Also, she's stopped doing those funny faces so much and gosh it makes the pics so much better! Thanks for the pictures!

^^lol It's actually a pretty good manip too. As for Eclipse, am I the only one who thought Jasper stood out? He was interesting. Seriously, if they'd have scratched the whole love triangle thing and made him the center of attention (plus having Riley walking about a bit looking sexy) I would have loved it. That said, I enjoyed myself. Bella smiled! And I liked the jab "doesn't he own a shirt or something?" . Defenitely the best of all 3.

What do you guys think about the whole "let them grow" trend going on now? Most of the models I see these days (especially HF) have these huge eyebrows. Irina Shayk also lets them grow, as does Doutzen Kroes. Thoughts? Personally I prefer defined.

If you call that airhead behavior, you aint seen nothing yet. Look up Bar Rafaeli for SI and you'll find out it's possible to seem even more brainless. But I agree, this is an irritating 'interview'. They were obviously prodded to act as superficial and stupid as they could probably get. Atleast it looks like they're having fun....

To me, Coco only stood out in the 3rd picture. But that's just because of the pose and outfit. She takes in more space than the other girls. The one on the far left, seems to completely disappear behind Ale, Ana and Coco but that's probably because unlike those 3, she isn't pretty at all and has that sleepy "I'm-bored" look going on.

She looks so much better when she's smiling and upbeat. Too many models are copying this angry, cranky look and I hate it. Pretty girl, she could go far. I hope she keeps her hair, because it looks great!

Aaaaand, lets not forget how big the camera can make you. Recently, a friend of mine had a photoshoot done and she's stick thin. Like honestly stick thin, 6 ft with a weight of 100 lbs. That's thinner than models like Ale for an instance. Anyway, in the pictures, she looks normal. You wouldn't say she was that thin on them. So with that in mind Adri is already pretty frickin' thin, simply just not as thin as HF models. And lots of VS models are getting very skinny too. Ale is getting bony, Candice has very thin arms as well, not to mention Chanel. Compared to them, Adri does look chunkier. But hey, it wasn't that long ago since she had the baby. And losing all the weight very fast isn't healthy, nor does it help the elasticy of your skin. So if Adri is a bit slower, it's because she's sensible. I'm happy she isn't obessed with working out and losing weight because she knows that as a mom, her time should be devoted to her family now. As it stands I think she looks great. It's up to her and her management where she takes it from here, but so far I haven't heard a guy complaining. Has anyone noticed that most of the complaints about her weight come from women? nuff said...