Models Zakiya Bailey, sophomore fashion design major and Sarah Papcun, junior English major get hair and make-up done for yesterday’s Kent Next Top Model shoot. The night’s shoot was based on the Seven Sexual Sins for Sextoberfest. Shaye Painter | Daily

Credit: DKS Editors

The finalists for Kent’s Next Top Model competition posed for the “seven deadly sins of sex” during the final photo shoot last night.

The models, four in all, were asked to portray the seven sins – love, lust, obsession, fetish, infatuation, passion and fantasy – in each photo. These sins were determined by Kent Interhall Council.

KIC held the competition in conjunction with Sextoberfest. The winners of the competition will be featured on the cover of KIC’s upcoming “Sex Stories” magazine to be published October 14. Photos of all four finalists, however, will be featured throughout the KIC publication.

The competition was held over three days. It started Wednesday with six competitors in two groups, male and female. The competition continued Friday with an elimination round to bring the model count to four. Yesterday’s photo shoot will determine the two winners who will be announced today.

The four finalists- Will Esquire, sophomore accounting major; Nick Roope, freshman chemistry major; Zakiya Bailey, sophomore fashion design major; and Sarah Papcun, junior English major, were asked to step out of their comfort zones for Sunday’s photo shoot.

“I want you all to be comfortable with your body and the clothes, or lack of clothes, that we have you in today,” said Danea Rhodes, director of business operations for KIC, in a conference with the finalists before the photo shoot.

From a shot in a silk bed of roses to a dominatrix shot including a choke collar and dog leash, the finalists had to prove they were comfortable with some of the scenes they were asked to model in.

“I’ve always been comfortable with my body and my body image, so I have no problem with the photo shoot,” Papcun said.

“We wanted to change programming from the same old KIC events to new and exciting events,” said Ashleigh Newberry, vice president of programming and development for KIC. “‘America’s Next Top Model’ is one of the most popular shows out there, and we thought it would be a fun event for students and fans of the show.”

The panel of judges consisted of: Avery Danage, president of KIC; Tajuan “Twiggy” Howards, junior fashion design major; and Whitney Newberry, senior fashion merchandising major at Ursuline College.

“We judge all of the models on how well they connect with the camera,” Danage said. “The key is for them to look comfortable in the pictures and really look like they are feeling the emotions we are portraying.”

The winners of the competition will also be featured in a fashion show at KIC’s Homecoming pep rally Thursday.

“It’s not something I have ever done before, but coming into college you are supposed to try new things and be open to whatever comes your way,” Roope said.

Contact room and board reporter Cody Francis at [email protected].