Bahamian photographer and models score big with Nike ad campaign

By CARA HUNT | Tribune Features Writer | cbrennen@tribunemedia.net

ABahamian photographer and a group of local models recently got the experience of a lifetime when they were hired by sportswear giant Nike to participate in fashion shoot for the company’s ‘Bodies of Water’ campaign.

The idea behind the campaign is that Nike Swim is for everyone; for all bodies in every body of water.

Nike only wanted to use local talent for the project and so they first reached out to photographer Melissa Alcena, a Bahamian out of Nassau who has a booking agency based in the United States.

She explained that she was contacted about the project by her agent in New York (Society MGMT).

“I was contacted about the Nike ‘Bodies of Water’ campaign a few months back and we immediately accepted. Nike is such a big brand, so it was definitely an honour to be asked to work with them,” she told Tribune Weekend.

Melissa said it also allowed her the wonderful opportunity to work with friends.

“It felt really special to be able to photograph my friends; Bahamians at home, because I always aim to elevate our people through my photography and showcase our country through a Bahamian perspective,” she said.

“We shot it during an afternoon which was full of laughter and tons of action. Although I’ve recently located to the US to further my career, I look forward to being able to have more opportunities to shoot at home with major brands.”

Melissa explained that Nike sent her a mood board and it was up to her to bring that vision to life.

“It was up to me to depict that as authentically as possible. They wanted me to document my friends in our environment with the clothes they sent and wanted an authentic depiction of it,” she said.

Desmondo Bootle who was the only male model on the project, said: “Nike wanted to shoot a swimwear campaign for their Summer swimwear collection in the Bahamas, and because (Melissa) is from the Bahamas, her agency was been used.

“Nike was interested in sourcing local talent for the shoot and that was how the five of us were chosen. They gave Melissa the freedom to follow her own concepts, do her thing and come up with her own concepts

“The only requirement was to stage the shot as a group of friends having fun in a body of water, because that was the theme of the shoot. They wanted to show their swimwear in various bodies of water,” he explained.

For the campaign, Desmondo said, they shot at different locations in different countries.

“In the Bahamas, they wanted to capture friends around the beach and then around the cliffs at Clifton.

They just told us to have fun and be crea tive and come up with something nice,” he said.

Desmondo said the shoot was easy because the models were transported back to their childhood days of just play ing at the beach.

“I feel like growing up on the Family Island, we defined joy and made our own fun out of the simpler things; jumping off cliffs and docks, and swim ming in blue holes…those were the kinds of things I had to do and that was the exact type of content they wanted to recreate: us just having fun in the water, so I was in my element,” he said.

Being included in the Nike pro ject, Desmondo said, was a huge deal for him, “personally, and on a larger scale, as a Bahamian model.”

“I say personally because I have modelling now professionally for about three years and to date this is definitely the biggest shot I have ever done. I have shot for Calvin Klein before, but that was only for a social media post. This was different for me because it was an actual ad campaign and so far, they have used it on their social media page and they have it posted on their Instagram, but it could potentially end up in posters in stores, on their website, and also on billboards.” was contacted about the Nike ‘Bodies of Water’ campaign a few months back and we immediately accepted. Nike is such a big brand, so it was definitely an honour to be asked to work with them,” she told Tribune Weekend.

The shoot happened this Spring and the content is now being released.

When Desmondo, who grew up in Abaco and Crooked Island, started his modelling career, working for big brands like Nike was always the goal and dream.

“You don’t see many Bahamian male models modelling at this level,” he said.

“I try not to let where I come from or the fact that no one else has done this before…limit my belief in what I am able to for myself. I was able to finally break through and reach this level and know it was attainable. I feel that for the movement of Bahamian models and the direction were are going, especially on our 50th anniversary of Independence, is very special. We have the talent, I have no doubt about that, but I feel sometimes people need to see that representation and see that it is possible.

“I am honoured and very proud to be a part of this team,” he added.

The other Bahamians involved in the project were Dyaria Knowles, Katrina Tooth and Jodi Minnis.

A Bahamian photographer and a group of local models recently got the experience of a lifetime when they were hired by sportswear giant Nike to participate in fashion shoot for the company’s ‘Bodies of Water’ campaign.

The idea behind the campaign is that Nike Swim is for everyone; for all bodies in every body of water.

Nike only wanted to use local talent for the project and so they first reached out to photographer Melissa Alcena, a Bahamian out of Nassau who has a booking agency based in the United States. She explained that she was contacted about the project by her agent in New York (Society MGMT).

Melissa said it also allowed her the wonderful opportunity to work with friends.

“It felt really special to be able to photograph my friends; Bahamians at home, because I always aim to elevate our people through my photography and showcase our country through a Bahamian perspective,” she said.

“We shot it during an afternoon which was full of laughter and tons of action. Although I’ve recently located to the US to further my career, I look forward to being able to have more opportunities to shoot at home with major brands.”

Melissa explained that Nike sent her a mood board and it was up to her to bring that vision to life.

“It was up to me to depict that as authentically as possible. They wanted me to document my friends in our environment with the clothes they sent and wanted an authentic depiction of it,” she

Desmondo Bootle who was the only male model on the project, said: “Nike wanted to shoot a swimwear campaign for their Summer swimwear collection in the Bahamas, and because (Melissa) is from the Bahamas, her agency was been used.

“Nike was interested in sourcing local talent for the shoot and that was how the five of us were chosen. They gave Melissa the freedom to follow her own concepts, do her thing and come up with her own concepts

“The only requirement was to stage the shot as a group of friends having fun in a body of water, because that was the theme of the shoot. They wanted to show their swimwear in various bodies of water,” he explained.

For the campaign, Desmondo said, they shot at different locations in different countries.

“In the Bahamas, they wanted to capture friends around the beach and then around the cliffs at Clifton. They just told us to have fun and be creative and come up with something nice,” he said.

Desmondo said the shoot was easy because the models were transported back to their childhood days of just playing at the beach.

“I feel like growing up on the Family Island, we defined joy and made our own fun out of the simpler things; jumping off cliffs and docks, and swimming in blue holes…those were the kinds of things I had to do and that was the exact type of content they wanted to recreate: us just having fun in the water, so I was in my element,” he said.

Being included in the Nike project, Desmondo said, was a huge deal for him, “personally, and on a larger scale, as a Bahamian model.”

“I say personally because I have been modelling now professionally for about three years and to date this is definitely the biggest shot I have ever done. I have shot for Calvin Klein before, but that was only for a social media post. This was different for me because it was an actual ad campaign and so far, they have used it on their social media page and they have it posted on their Instagram, but it could potentially end up in posters in stores, on their website, and also on billboards.”

The shoot happened this Spring and the content is now being released.

When Desmondo, who grew up in Abaco and Crooked Island, started his modelling career, working for big brands like Nike was always the goal and dream.

“You don’t see many Bahamian male models modelling at this level,” he said.

“I try not to let where I come from or the fact that no one else has done this before…limit my belief in what I am able to for myself. I was able to finally break through and reach this level and know it was attainable. I feel that for the movement of Bahamian models and the direction were are going, especially on our 50th anniversary of Independence, is very special. We have the talent, I have no doubt about that, but I feel sometimes people need to see that representation and see that it is possible.

“I am honoured and very proud to be a part of this team,” he added.

The other Bahamians involved in the project were Dyaria Knowles, Katrina Tooth and Jodi Minnis.

Best described as a number crossword, the task in Kakuro is to fill all of the empty squares, using numbers 1 to 9, so the sum of each horizontal block equals the number to its left, and the sum of each vertical block equals the number on its top. No number may be used in the same block more than once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Kakuro increases from Monday to Sunday.

Cryptic Puzzle

Small Crossword

Small Crossword

ACROSS

1 Orchitis (anag.) (8)

6 Curse (4)

TODAY’S TARGET Good 13; very good 19; excellent 25 (or more).

Solution next Saturday.

The Alphabeater

Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so the each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

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LAST SATURDAY’S SOLUTION

ACROSS 1 Penknife, 6 Reef, 8 Opera, 11 Narrow, 12 Cars, 14 Ape, 15 Other, 16 Ilk, 17 Ruin, 19 Sleeps, 20 Ashes, 21 Toes, 22 Meetings. DOWN 1 Practical, 2 Near, 3 Northwest, 4 Few, 5 Eagerness, 7 Enables, 9 Power, 10 Reprise, 13 Style, 18 Upon, 19 She.

8 Cattle farm (5)

11 Border (6)

12 Utters (4)

14 Honey-making insect (3)

15 Country roads (5)

16 Dowel (3)

17 Filth (4)

19 Lust (6)