#bcycle11

[topmodelranking]

#4 – Simone Murphy

It pains me to put Simone 4th, but after a lot of consideration I think this cycle had the right top 3. No one really had a flawless portfolio this cycle, and arguably Simone came the closest. Sadly though, her weakest moments were right at the end. While the others blossomed, she shrunk slightly. Still, even with that I would more or less put her on par with the other 3 portfolio wise, but on the runway she is the clear odd woman out. Her walk wasn’t awful, but the others just all felt like professionals. Simone’s felt a bit stiff to me, even if it was probably still in the top half of walks this cycle. So while those are the reasons she misses out on a top 3 finish, Simone still was leagues ahead of those below her. She remained in my top 2 for the first 5 weeks; she got 4 first call-outs; she got the highest average. As I said the last few shots were subpar, but they still weren’t bad. Simone is a gorgeous girl, who made a questionable makeover look great, and proved her versatility and photogenetic nature time after time. Her personality was absolutely delightful too; oozing charisma, and every client again seemed to recognise the dedication she showed. By the final 5 she had earned her spot in the top 4, and it still seems ridiculous that she was cut there.

I have pretty much only positives to say about her portfolio; out of the 9 weeks, she killed a third of the shoots, and was only average in the other 3; none elimination worthy. Her weakest was the one she was eliminated for, but her performance on set still wasn’t awful. It may be cheesy, but Simone still looks gorgeous, and I think it would work for some uber commercial clients. On the positive end she had so many great results. Deciding the best came down to personal preference, and she just owned the club shoot like no one else did. Even then, her swimwear shots and pastel were great too; cementing her early was one of the girls to beat. She even managed to excel in the underwater shoot, one that is notoriously difficult. Simone was versatile and adaptable, and her portfolio backs that up.

Simone may not have made the top 3, but she proved she was an exceptional model this cycle. I don’t think she should have gone any further than 4th though. The top 3 just showed strengths that Simone didn’t quite reach, and I think perhaps the lack of one area of clear domination was Simone’s undoing. Alannah was the queen on the runway this cycle; Olivia’s face was built for high fashion; and Jennifer just had that commercial charm needed to dominate. Simone was good, just not good enough to defeat those three.

[topmodelranking]

#9 – Victoria Clay

Victoria had so much going for her, but never really lived up to what I expected. Her look was everything I love. Fair hair and skin, with soft features, curvy body and just tonnes of potential. She felt like someone who could be melded into a successful model, but just never really got there while on the show. Her photos never quite felt as elevated as they good, and in person she just came across as less spectacular. Her sweet personality and demeanour, along with the soft look just meant she could fade into the background; especially with such big personalities around her. While I didn’t want her to be eliminated, I can’t help but feel she was cut at a fair point.

Victoria’s portfolio unfortunately leaves a lot to be desired. I can’t help but want more when I see her shots. Her best is still just pretty, and while I think she did what she needed to do for the brief, the other two in the shot outshine her. It would have been stronger if she had gotten a solo shot, as I think her hair and skin look beautiful, but just out of place beside the tanner two. As for her worst, I just still don’t know what she was doing. I remember watching her fumble on set, and it was clear she didn’t have the experience. She got too literal in her direction, rather than embodying the theme. I actually still think you can see Victoria’s natural beauty in that shot, but it just gets overshadowed by the poor body language.

Victoria’s progress after the show has really surprised me. I didn’t expect her to be one of the few success stories, but I’ve actually seen her various times outside of the BNTM context. She has found her niche as a curvaceous, gorgeous model, who still rocks the bright red hair. Based on what I’ve seen post-show she has really improved, and pretty much all the flaws I mentioned have now been fixed. If improvements after the show affected my ranking, Victoria would definitely be sitting much higher on this list. Still, based solely on what we saw on the show she was not nearly at the same level as she is now.

[topmodelranking]

#7 – Victoria’s Pastel Shot

While Bianca struggled to bring the sweetness, Victoria clearly didn’t even try. She didn’t assess the situation, and tried to give an edgier vibe which just doesn’t fit the brand. Her body language is too loose, and the face is flat. She definitely deserved her place in the bottom 3 for this.

[topmodelranking]

R u taking a break from the model ranking for c24 and bntm11?

For now, yes. My exams begin tomorrow, so for the next few weeks I will be pretty much silent on this blog. Cycle 20 will continue to come out on the queue, and once my exams are done I’ll finish Cycle 24′s model rankings, then do BNTM Cycle 11′s.

[topmodelranking]

#6 – Chloe

For me Chloe is just resting on pretty here. She is rocking her 60s in a cute and quirky way. The makeup looks great, but I am not sure this would catch my eyes in a magazine. If Chloe had done something to actively stand out, it might have been a different case. But as it stands, I can understand the judges not being fans of this shot.

[topmodelranking]

#1 – Olivia

I am again unsure why they released a different shot. This time however, unlike with Chloe, the shot released is far superior. While the one shown still didn’t warrant bottom 3, this shot is absolutely gorgeous. Olivia’s eyes are absolutely hypnotic; never have I appreciated the shape of her face more. The way she is interacting with the man, but keeping her eyes off them gives the shot life. A story is just created from such a minor detail. The watch too is in prime position. Olivia is proving her unique look can easily be translated into actual modelling jobs.

[topmodelranking]

#12 – Olivia

Wow, our winner really flopped week 1. I am willing to forgive this shot, as Nicky did say there were better shots. Still not 100% sure why, but they are experts. Olivia’s face was so temperamental, it either photographed gorgeously, or just slightly puffy. Her eyes do look gorgeous, she has such a natural smize, and her body is fine, not spectacular. It was generally a good selection, so the flawed face was problematic.

[topmodelranking2]

Would you had still given Olivia FCO for the dixon watch shoot of you had use the photo shown in panel in your rankings?

I had to rewatch the ep because I kind of forgot what the original photo was, and to be honest, I think this one is solid too. I prefer the non-panel shot, it showcases Olivia's best feature better, the watch is more prominent, but the other photo looks great too. I don't get why the judges seemed to hate it so much, I think her body is positioned well, this is a decent angle of her face. I think I might have given Jennifer first call-out over that shot though, her face was just radiant in that shot, and Olivia's in the panel shot just doesn't hold up. Olivia would come in at second though, as I still think it is a good photograph.