I always wanted to know what it takes to be a stylist. It didn’t look that hard to me. I watched America’s Next Top Model and Glam God. Seriously, it seemed like a breeze. Put a girl in an outfit. Zip her up. Job well done. Anybody with a sense of style could do it in their sleep. So my pal, Darryl G., a budding stylist, allowed me to watch him work his magic during a portfolio for makeup artist Ariel Vega and photographer Matthew Murphy.

I was so excited! It was taking place in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn on a rooftop. (How cool is that!) Here’s a rundown of what went down last Sunday, November 29:

• 9:45 a.m. — Catch the J to the photo shoot location.
• 10 a.m. — Call time for Darryl and German model, Stephanie Voelckers.
• 10:46 a.m. — Darryl arrives with friend Rae Holliday, blogger from Stuff Fly People Like and has shopping bags in tow.
• 10:49 a.m. — Get down to business. Darryl shows Matthew and Ariel the pieces. Concept — futuristic. Belts. Leather. Maybe some tulle. Ariel loves the sky high heels and tweed jackets Darryl got from Goodwill. Ariel has worked with Stephanie before. He raves about her “tight booty.” But there is a snafu. Ariel’s roof was recently redone, so Stephanie will have to model on the balls of her feet.

• 11:30 a.m. — Walk to Walgreens with Darryl to get some pantyhose. (Side note: Remember when they used to sell pantyhose in those eggshell thingys? FYI — they still do.)
• 11:50 a.m. — Stephanie has arrived. Ariel goes over what his hair concept is. He wants futuristic ponytails for one look and old school donuts for another. Mad Men meets Krispy Kreme.
• 12 p.m. — Darryl begins to fit Stephanie. I chat it up with Ariel. (His name is pronounced “Ari El”, while mine is said like the letters, “R-E-L.”)

• 12:30 p.m. — Matthew takes test shots on the roof. It is very sunny outside. Matthew wonders how Stephanie is going to deal with the light.
• 1:30 p.m —  Ariel is doing hair and makeup for the first look. Darryl is sewing on buttons to make his Goodwill jacket a little snazzier. He had to learn how to sew when styling. He’s getting better as he takes classes at FIT.
• 2:33 p.m. — Shooting finally begins. On the next door rooftop,  a man keeps a pigeon coop, and every once in a while he swirls this giant stick with a garbage bag attached, and the pigeons circle around. Just like Pigeon Lady from Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Stephanie took advantage of capturing the birds in the photos by jumping around. That’s a model.
• 3:30 p.m. Darryl and Ariel get Stephanie ready for the second look of the day.
• 4:02 p.m. — Back on set. Matthew does his thing. The sun is starting to set, and it’s getting cool. I’m lying. I’m cold. My friend A.V. Perkins lends me her pink and gray gloves. I absolutely love Stephanie’s look. It’s my fave, from the tweed to the pumps.
• 4:15 p.m. — That Matthew shoots quickly. There’s another change.
• 4:37 p.m. — By this time it was definitely cold outside. I don’t know if I fell into a different zip code or what, but I swore I was in Buffalo, not Brooklyn. I had to leave early to drive back home and be financially raped by the toll booth prices, so I said good-bye while the shoot continued.

There were two more changes, and the shoot wrapped at 7:30 that evening. I learned a lot while I watched behind the scenes. Being a stylist requires a lot of work and a whole LOT of patience. Between the lint rollers and lighting and cold air, I know I wouldn’t be able to do this everyday, or even twice a week for that matter.

I was proven wrong, not everybody could do it. (I can admit when I’m wrong, and this is my one time, okay?) I never really thought about all of the elements it takes when it comes to taking a great photo. All of the hard work it all worth it.

Look at the real photos on Matthew’s blog Ranting Details.

And don’t forget to check Armoire Chic for a profile of Darryl G. later this week!