Ailana’s Journal—2026-06-13 (and Island Kids) (Patreon)

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GOOD MORNING by Ailana Geven Keller

I went to bed last night feeling exhausted, but at ease. The judge ruled in favor of her staying here with no expectation that would change.

I woke up to the realization that Jason and I are now legally responsible for seeing to Emily’s well-being. I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror, wondering if the judge had any idea what I’m actually like!

For crying out loud, I debate Pop-Tart flavors! (By the way, those of you who voted on my Instagram story disappointed me a lot! You scorned my Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon flavor in favor of Jason’s Chocolate Fudge! ’m hurt!)

Let’s hope the judge’s faith was not misplaced!

Today, we’re testing Naomi’s faith—the idea that I can help guide her new models from their first shoot with us, to bigger, more complex shoots in the future.

She’s tossed out the idea that AGI Creative can both meet a client’s needs while also helping new models learn the workings of campaign-level production. I’m sure we can deliver the client’s needs. I also felt pretty good about how things went yesterday.

We’ll be outside most of today. That will allow me to talk about a whole different range of things for them to think about.

That’s all for me, for now. In the meantime, I hope you have a great Saturday morning. See you soon!

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SHOOTING IN PUBLIC by Ailana Geven Keller

Sienna, Mari, Jason, and I are now on the streets of Port Isabel. This introduces another dimension to modeling.

Not only do you have to pay attention to the photographer, but you also have to mostly ignore all the passersby who might think what you’re doing is odd or interesting. You mostly ignore the passersby, while still staying aware of your surroundings.

Feeling comfortable posing in front of the camera is not the same as feeling comfortable posing while strangers are stopping to watch—or gawk, stare, scorn, etc., depending on your mindset.

I’ll add that posing for pictures in public is a lot easier in 2026 than it was a decade ago. The acceptance of posing for social media is pretty well ingrained in culture now.

Still, whipping out a professional camera, reflectors, and a diffuser draws some looks.

Anecdote: once on such an occasion, a boy about seven or so strayed onto the location and asked to have his picture taken. The photographer pretended (he didn’t take pictures of a kid without a parent’s permission), then sent him on his way. Later, I saw him with his parents pointing and smiling.

We’ve done a few shots in the Port Isabel area this morning. There have been some outfit changes under held-up blankets, and a lot of walking.

Now, we’re heading to South Padre Island and doing some shots on the beach. I’ll check later with a short, quick update. See you then.

BEACH WORK by Ailana Geven Keller

I’ll be very quick here. We’re getting shots from the shot list and working on poses.

I asked Sienna and Mari how they think today is going, and they both said it feels pretty good. Honestly, I think the last hour or so has been more about getting the shots we need. The teaching has been pretty specific to the task.

Quick examples: 

“Okay, you need to get the sand off your legs before this next shot.”“You didn’t get the sunscreen rubbed in. There’s a white blotch on your shoulder.”

“I know the sun is bright… Close your eyes, hit your pose, and wait. I’ll count to three, and you open your eyes looking right into the lens… Ready?”

That’s it from the beach. I’ll be back later with a… ahem… Bootcamp Wrap-up Post.

WORKING FOR KAYLEE by Emily Amos

Jasmine talked to Kaylee about me working for her to repay her for the clothes she gave me and for helping me with the shoes yesterday. Kaylee said she was more than happy to help, but she’d be grateful if I worked for her.

She said if I worked all weekend, it would be way more than the value of the clothes she gave me. She called Jason because I explained that Ailana was probably busy with the models.

“Jason,” Kaylee said, “can I pay her for at least half the hours? If she works all weekend, it will be twenty or more hours.”

Jason told her to do what felt fair and right.

So, Kaylee says if I work for her today and tomorrow—after church—she’ll pay me for ten hours of work at minimum wage.

Meanwhile, since I’m doing cleaning work, Isaac took some more handyman jobs.

Of course, I’ll do my best. Maybe I can work for them again in the future. I know we’re going on the Route 66 trip, but I could help more between now and then and after we get back.

Anyway, it’s an idea. If Kaylee likes what I do, I’ll ask her what she thinks, then ask Ailana if it’s okay for me to work for her.

I’ll be sure to have Ailana explain whatever gets decided. That’s all from me for now.

BOOT CAMP WRAP-UP by Ailana Geven Keller

Well, the photo shoot finished about an hour ago—long enough ago that we could clean up and sit down for the wrap-up session..

I asked them to relax and ask questions, and said I’d expand my answers based on what they asked.

We talked about a lot of things, but I’ll spare you the details. Topics have included airport travel, sleeping on the plane, dealing with unprofessional members of a shoot team, general conduct and process on big shoots, and even filing taxes.

My biggest business advice was to set up a separate bank account and run everything through it. “When everything from a trip is balanced, transfer money once to your personal account. That makes it clear.”

They also asked how I ended up doing their first session for Naomi. I explained my history with her going back to 2017. I told them how I brought Sasha, Geoni, Jasmine, and Kaylee into the business, and how Naomi thought that approach had been effective.

I also invited them to give me feedback on the process.

Mari spoke for them both. “It was fast, but it was good. I’d really rather do another one with you before getting dumped into the deep end.”

“Well,” I said, “that will be up to Naomi.She’s a great agent and an amazing businesswoman. She’ll see to it that you’re successful. She’ll push you, but she won’t waste you.”

I’ll close with one aside.Emily texted me a goofy picture of herself cleaning a toilet for Kaylee.

“I have a new job!” was the comment.

I laughed and had to tell the models about Emily. And I’ll end this by saying doing so felt really good.

GOOD NIGHT by Ailana Geven Keller

It’s been a long three days, and I’m ready to get some real rest! I won’t keep you long tonight.

Thursday was day one of the modeling boot camp. Friday was the hearing about Emily’s custody. And today, I was back at it helping two new models settle into what it means to be a professional.

Or, as Emily called it, “How to Get Hired Twice.”

Call it work ethic. Call it professionalism.

I think they got it.

After Denny’s, I got the models to the airport—Naomi is meeting them in Chicago later tonight. Then I sat down with Jasmine to go over hours and get her ready to invoice Naomi.

“This is a good start for June,” she said. “We need more jobs like that.”

She went on to say that the Route 66 road trip would cost a lot of money, but that she expected it would generate a lot of future content.

“We might not come out in the black for June,” she added, “but if the yacht trip is any indication, all the articles you guys produce from Route 66 should give us a great July.”

That’s the plan. I reminded her that Naomi wants us ready to pull over and do shoots, which is why we worked out all the packing strategies for our studio-on-the-go.

We’re still set to pull out on June 22. Call it eight days of preparation…

And, I hope, a somewhat normal schedule.

May the work you do create success and opportunity, and may those opportunities lead you onward toward joy, prosperity, and peace.

Good night.

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