References for Melissa Brill

DKNG

I responded to Mel's casting for a photographer to shoot BTS stills for her dance video. Dance and dynamic movement are themes I love shooting and so I jumped at the opportunity.

It was very evident that Mel is not only a very talented choreographer and dancer - everything was planned out with military precision - she is also a very confident model who simply exudes style and composure, even after she had just been busting her moves for the video moments earlier.

I would most definitely recommend Mel to any photographer looking for a model for dance or fashion, and would jump again at another opportunity to shoot with her.

Apollo Flux

This was my fifth shoot with Mel, and I've only just realised that I've not left a reference for the last one we did together. That one was organised very last minute as we both happened to be free on the same Friday afternoon and we met up on London's Southbank for a quick fashion shoot.

Our most recent shoot was on Friday just gone, and we'd booked it in some time ago. I had suggested we try St Dunstan's, but when Mel had a quick look before I arrived she saw that is was heaving - what did we expect at 2pm on a sunny Friday afternoon?? So instead we went for a walk in the Wapping direction and found a handful of great (and much quieter) spots, and as always seems to be the case when we shoot together, we made some great images.

I love shooting with Mel. She is full of energy and is always great fun to be with. She has also started to think a lot more creatively, and is more than happy to suggest ideas for shots, whilst also being great at taking direction.

We are already planning our next shoots and are hoping to try some more creative/artistic projects together in the future. I can't recommend her enough.

Balazs Toro

I had an urban shoot with Melissa recently in London. The pre-shoot communications were great, we came up with location and styling, and Melissa had a great outfit. She has a lovely personality and it was really fun working with her. She was keen to get the best possible result. At the end, we got some great amazing images.

She is highly recommended. I'm looking forward working with her again.

Apollo Flux

This was my third shoot with Melissa, and came a very short time after the second as we enjoyed shooting together so much. I find we are very much on the same wavelength, whatever style we are shooting.

This time we wanted to head to the Barbican estate in London, to really focus on fashion, but also to film some of Melissa's choreography. Melissa had bought several new outfits specifically for the shoot and had shared her ideas online with me before purchasing him. Melissa has great taste in clothes, and she looked fabulous in every outfit. Her confidence as a model also seems to grow hugely with every shoot we do.

This was my first attempt at videography, but Melissa was patient with me and we were both really happy with the final video that she edited together from my footage.

I really can't recommend Melissa enough as a model.

Apollo Flux

This was my second shoot with Melissa, and it felt like an awful long time in the waiting. I enjoyed our first shoot so much but our respective schedules made it difficult to arrange another one until now. We decided that we would love to shoot together in a studio as we both had a number of ideas we wanted to try.

Communications with Melissa were flawless. We spent a fair amount of time discussing our ideas, and sharing inspiration images online, so that come the shoot we both had a very clear idea of what we wanted to achieve.

I picked Melissa up from the station, and once we had been shown around the studio by the owner, we very quickly got to work. Melissa was great in our first shoot, but despite having done very little modelling since she had obviously been practising as her posing went straight to a new level!

We had booked the studio for six hours, and I had been a little concerned beforehand as to whether we would be able to fill the time. However, it was exactly the opposite - we ran out of time long before we'd had the chance to try all of our planned ideas - Melissa is very flexible, and so one idea lead to another and so on. The time flew by, and even after nearly six hours Melissa was still full of energy and enthusiasm.

I love shooting with Melissa and we have already arranged out next shoot together.

Mark Wilkinson

Excellent dancer, model and presenter. Also, great fun to be around.

Highly recommended.

Apollo Flux

I had the pleasure of shooting with Melissa before she joined PurplePort and it was an absolute delight. Melissa is a stunning young woman with a personality to match and the shoot was definitely one of the best I have had so far.

Communications before the shoot were excellent - we chatted online about location (Melissa was very keen to do an urban/graffiti shoot), outfits, etc. and Melissa sent me photos of her outfit ideas, and we also discussed pose ideas using a shared Pinterest board.

Melissa was on time for the shoot, and things just got better and better from there. Melissa has done very little modelling but you would not know it at all. Boy does she know how to pose! This comes from being a dancer - she is very confident with her body and knows how to use it! She is also very good at coping with the elements - it was a chilly day in Brick Lane but Melissa did not complain once, even when I had her balancing on a park climbing frame in her crop top!

I captured so many incredible images of Melissa, and I have told her that I just don;t know where to start with choosing the best ones. What a great problem to have!

Melissa is not only a beautiful, talented young woman, she is also severely deaf. I would say to every photographer out there that this must not put you off working with her. She has hearing aids which you won't see and which allow her to hear pretty much everything you say as long as there isn't too much ambient noise, at which point she relies on lip reading. You might have to adjust your directing technique from time to time, but you'll be all the better for it. Melissa is very open about her disability and will happily answer any questions you have about it.

I really cannot recommend Melissa more highly. I feel privileged to have worked with her and we are already talking about our next shoot, which can't come too soon for me. Thank you Melissa for a fabulous shooting experience.