Sweet dreams: Rat models Duck and Worm look adorable as they snuggle up to each other and a miniature teddy bear Budding fashion photographer Jessica Florence is nibbling away at the edges of the big time with a new portfolio of portraits of her pet rats.
Picturing them in a variety of cute, cuddly and sometimes hilarious situations Jess, 19, has built up a remarkable gallery featuring the normally reviled rodents in adorable poses .
Jess first attracted attention last year after she posted a series of pictures of Bug, her first rat,on the web.
Sadly Bug passed away but Jess now has two white females, sisters Duck and Worm, to help her in her dream of making it to the catwalks of Paris and Milan.
Clearly following in photogenic Bug's footsteps, Duck and Worm, both sixteen months old, are naturals.
Keen photographer Jess has pictured them snuggling up together with a tiny teddy bear.
Other pictures show comfortable Worm in an irresistible pose - buried in a pile of cuddly toys the same size as her.
The pair are also seen snoozing together in a toy dog basket and wearing toy ears.
As they sleep together in one snap, their tails push together to form a heart shape while another shows baby Worm at five weeks with an arm around her favourite doll - just like a real tot.
So far untrained, Jessica has proved a natural at capturing the playful nature of her pets at home in Portsmouth.
She said: 'I never had any brothers, sisters or cousins around to practise on because they were either too old and had moved out, or lived too far away.'
'I had no training but I was desperate to get into photography and needed models badly.'
'My pets were the logical choice. I started with Bug. She was brilliant but sadly passed on last year.'
Posers: Jessica accessorises her pet rats with a variety of props to create the fabulous photos
Gift wrapped: Jessica's first camera came as a Christmas present only two years ago'Now Duck and Worm have taken up the little reins as my subjects and we've got some great results together. The pictures have become really popular on the internet.'
Jessica received her first camera as a Christmas present only two years ago. She soon showed that she had no fear of old showbiz saying that you should never work with children and animals.
'Sometimes it's frustrating when they getting into a perfect pose but move to have a sniff around somewhere. But I have learned to take what I can get with them and patience always pays off. they always do something interesting.'
Just like real supermodels, Duck and Worm can sometimes get get grumpy and prove difficult to photograph. But just as she will have to if she breaks into the world of high-fashion photography, Jessica has learnt to adjust to her subject's moods and whims.
'There's often not a lot of setting up involved,' she added. 'I usually just follow them around with my camera. It can take hours and usually happens at night.'
Pictures show how Duck this year had a litter and meant Jessica was suddenly presented with tiny new subjects - almost all identical to each other.
Jessica's camera skills have advanced to the stage now where she is experimenting with digital photography and even using photo-editing software to bring out the more subtler shades of light in her work.
However, Jessica is keen to point out that she is unwilling to 'over-cook' her photographs by technological means and prefers to let her own eye and camera skill do the work
Showing the love: Duck and Worm's tails form a heart shape as the two young rats snuggle togethersource: dailymail
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