Modeling in Focus

Dancer-Turned-Model CJ Steps Up Her Game by Working with Top Photographers
by Elias AllStar OMP Member #10270

Seeing her flexibility and agility while posing for photographs, it should not surprise anyone that CJ Perry (OMP Model #232684) originally started out as a dancer. She is a member of the Florida State University Cowgirls and has been featured on SI.com and other online sports websites. She also collected many awards in the field of dance.

CJ has also made great strides since she started modeling, recently working high-profile photographers David LaChappelle and Matthew Jordan Smith.

"I worked with David LaChappelle for the MTV Video Music Awards. The photos were featured on billboards and other advertising for the VMAs. That shoot started at 7am in the morning and went till 4am the next morning... Yes, that's almost a 24-hour shoot! Matthew Jordan Smith is one of Tyra's personal photographers and one of the photographers for America's Next Top Model. Both shoots were very intense and exciting!"

Many One Model Place members will recognize CJ from our coverage of OMP excursions to Las Vegas and Panama City Beach. Her elegance and beauty were evident in both SNAP! pictorials and video portraits that were featured on LiveVideo.com.

CJ has been very busy since she started her modeling career. Her television credits include "College Remix," commercials for Coke and Herbal Essence, and an FSU Cowgirl reality show featured in Germany. Print assignments include projects for MTV, BET, CosmoGirl and Seventeen magazines, ads for Sobe and Matrix Energy Drinks, catalogs, and calendars.

Her commitment to modeling is apparent whenever she is asked to describe her goals as a model.

"Modeling is my passion, it's my hobby, it's my job, and it pays my bills. My dream is that I will be hired for international advertising campaigns and be recognized as a successful working model."

CJ discovered One Model Place after her initial photo shoot.

"I found OMP through my first photographer that I ever worked with. His name is Ron Gardner (OMP Member #69940), and he was great to work with. He suggested I join the website, and soon I was getting more offers to model."

She was also selected as a One Model Place competition winner and got to go on a dream shoot to Las Vegas with other winning models and photographers.

"A year and a half ago I won the Lingerie Competition on OMP, and was flown to Vegas to work with the OMP team. The other models and I got to work with top photographers and excellent makeup artists. After the trip, I was able to get really good pictures that got me signed with several top agencies. And like they say, the rest is history! If it wasn't for OMP and that trip, I don't know where I would be right now!"

Dedicated and down-to-earth, CJ offers the following words of advice for models who want to succeed in the industry.

"I would tell all models to make sure and have a great attitude, work hard, network with people, and figure out a plan to make your dreams and goals a practical reality."