As well as learning about nutrition and having to do a photo shoot with real live bees, two girls went home on this week’s episode of “America’s Next Top Model.” Eighteen-year-old Ondrei from Atlanta, Ga., decided to quit due to a personal situation, while 20-year-old Nicole from Orlando, Fla., was sent home because host Tyra Banks thought she looked “too old” in her photos.

Both girls spoke to CTV.ca about how they are no longer in the running to be “America’s Next Top Model,” what it was really like to pose with bees and their future plans in the industry.

Ondrei has no regrets about leaving ‘ANTM;’ says she needed time to heal

CTV.ca: I’m sorry to hear about the tragic loss of your brothers. What went into your decision to quit the show?

Ondrei: A lot of thinking went into that decision before I decided to do anything. It wasn’t a spur of the moment kind of thing. I definitely thought about it for days and days and it took a lot of prayers for me to make my decision.

I was going through a lot at the time and I wasn’t ready to be on the show when I was going through something as tragic as that. It didn’t hit me until I got there … I have no regrets, I realized I really needed that time to heal.

CTV.ca: How long had it been since you lost both of your brothers?

Ondrei: My first brother died (in a car accident) when I was nine years old and my other brother (was murdered) last year, four months before I got on the show, on my prom day. It was pretty recent.

CTV.ca: But going into the show, you thought you’d be OK? Was it really the “inner critic” exercise that brought it up for you?

Ondrei: Absolutely. It did bring it up and it was when I was able to realize I had a problem that I needed to deal with and not necessarily deal with it on the show, but deal with it being home and in a comfort zone where I was able to heal and get myself together.

CTV.ca: Were the other girls supportive about your decision?

Ondrei: They were more supportive than I thought. Of course there was some questions as to why I wanted to leave but at the end of the day, they were able to help me out and give me support and I appreciate it.

CTV.ca: How are you feeling now? Do you feel like you’ve come a long way since the show taped?

Ondrei: Yeah, I have. I’ve had the time to re-think and re-group, get myself together. And now I’m ready to take on my career full-force and get out there.

CTV.ca: What were some positive things about being on the show?

Ondrei: I don’t regret getting on the show at all. I learned a lot about what works for me as far as photo shoots … I learned a lot of stuff from Mr. Jay and Ms. Jay and just how to deal with personal issues, when you’re going through something and you’re trying to start a career.

CTV.ca: What was it like to do a photo shoot with bees?

Ondrei: I was actually excited about it when I heard about it because I had never done that before. It was uncomfortable because you have all these bees crawling on your neck and everything … but it wasn’t that bad at all.

Nicole disagrees with Tyra’s critique that she looked “too old” in her photos

CTV.ca: That was some harsh criticism you got from Tyra about your photos. What did you think?

Nicole: I didn’t particularly like my pictures but I thought the critique they gave me about looking old in pictures was kind of strange because I’ve been modeling since I’ve been 15 and I have a portfolio full of pictures – I don’t look old in them and I’ve never gotten that critique before.

CTV.ca: She also said you were trying too hard?

Nicole: I said that because I was just so dumbfounded. I didn’t know what to say and I was so caught up in the moment of being eliminated. I just said perhaps I was trying too hard but looking back at it, I don’t know (that I did anything) different than normal.

CTV.ca: That “inner critic” exercise really seemed to affect a lot of the girls. What did you think of it?

Nicole: I felt like it was kind of therapy on TV. I’m sad you guys didn’t get a chance to see all of it. We all ended up crying for that challenge and it was just really hard hearing Eugene (the acting coach) voice our worst fears about ourselves.

CTV.ca: Do you think it helped you to confront the little person inside who says you’re not good enough?

Nicole: I think initially it did. It’s not working right now unfortunately … it’s just because I’m a perfectionist. I’m always striving to make myself better so I’m always going to be hard on myself.

CTV.ca: What are your plans now? Are you still going to model?

Nicole: I’d love to model. Right now I’m going to school … I’m studying psychology in hopes of getting my PhD in neuropsychology.

Hopefully I’ll continue modeling (as well).

CTV.ca: What was it like to have a photo shoot with bees?

Nicole: I was so scared to shoot with bees. I’ve never been stung by a bee in my life so I was convinced that day was going to be the day I got my first sting but I went pretty far down the line, a lot of the girls went before me, so I’d asked them how their experience was and none of them had been stung by a bee so I felt pretty calm going into that.

CTV.ca: Any other highlights from the show?

Nicole: I think the biggest highlight was meeting Tyra Banks and all the other models and photographers and designers … Tyra has always been a role model for me and she still is.

CTV.ca: I hear you’ve had some modeling experience in Singapore?

Nicole: Earlier last year I spent three months in Singapore, my first real modeling trip and it was actually really successful. I worked almost every single day … I’d love to go back, they’ve already said they’d have me back but I’m not really sure where I want to model next.