Define model. Go on I dare you! If you asked someone 20-years ago the usual response would be something along the lines of, "a tall slender female"... oh how wrong this is in 2017. While most of us still associate modelling with young, beautiful people there's a few people out there that are trying to change that.

 A little while ago I got the the opportunity to put myself in front of the camera rather than behind it with an offer that I couldn't refuse from the Photo Studio Australia. With a slogan of "FIGHTING FASHION STEREOTYPES" and as someone who likes to describe herself as 'chunky but funky' my eye was immediately drawn.

This 'modelling' experience (and I put in quotation marks as I don't really know if you can call it modelling) was an odd one, but in a good way! I arrived to a fantastic team which completely transformed me from drab to fab! I had a photographer that made me feel completely comfortable in my own skin and a fantastic makeup artist that shared the same beauty opinions on eyeliner, baking a brows as me, (kindred spirits or what?!).

Having recently gone through quite the physical transformation, my confidence was a lot higher than what it use to be. On this day, I got to live out my fantasy of being a Calvin Klein model. I felt great, inspired and confident (tbh, I kind of had a Beyonce moment). The only negative thing I could say about the experience was when it was over. 

Of course, I don't suspect the real modelling world to be as nice and fluffy as my one time experience, but it was definitely nice to see a photo studio defy the usual connotations that come with modelling. These days you have a variety of people in the modelling industry, men and women setting the example of real-life beauty. Is the standard where it should be today? No. Is it a 100% complete representation of people in the real world? No. Is the modelling world heading in the right direction? Yes! With the likes of Ashley Graham and Robyn Lawley gracing magazine covers, billboards and runways, the usual 'model' picture is certainly changing and for the better.

I wouldn't say that I'm going to become a model any time soon, but if I had the opportunity, I would certainly do it again and I'd recommend you do the same! Don't be afraid to take a step outside yourself. Everything is scary the first time you do it because it is the unknown. But it's also not knowing what's to come that makes the experience exciting.