The PostModel and all other articulate models implement IPublishedContent, so you have direct access to all the normal ways of working with Umbraco data as well. So you can still do @Model.Content.GetPropertyValue ....

I can add a nicer way of doing it to the strongly typed model though if you want to create an issue for it?

Well, in an ideal world full of unicorns and rainbows, I would want something like this: https://github.com/rustyswayne/Buzz.Hybrid/blob/master/src/Buzz.Hybrid/ImageExtensions.cs

In the meantime, I'll submit an issue for it and just use IPublishedContent ;) Thanks for clarifying!

Pretty sure your world of unicorns and rainbows already exists, no?

https://github.com/umbraco/Umbraco-CMS/blob/7.1.5/src/Umbraco.Web/ImageCropperTemplateExtensions.cs

Right, but that's off IPublisheContent and not a strongly typed image, isn't it?

(You'll have to forgive me, I'm jumping into this with a learning curb as we just started doing a Hybrid Framework for everything here)

Yup, so the underlying call to populate Articulate's AuthorModel is:

    public AuthorModel Author
    {
        get
        {
            if (_author != null)
            {
                return _author;
            }

            _author = new AuthorModel
            {
                Name = Content.GetPropertyValue<string>("author", true)
            };

            //look up assocated author node if we can
            if (RootBlogNode != null)
            {
                var authors = RootBlogNode.Children(content => content.DocumentTypeAlias.InvariantEquals("ArticulateAuthors")).FirstOrDefault();
                if (authors != null)
                {
                    var authorNode = authors.Children(content => content.Name.InvariantEquals(_author.Name)).FirstOrDefault();
                    if (authorNode != null)
                    {
                        _author.Bio = authorNode.GetPropertyValue<string>("authorBio");
                        _author.Url = authorNode.GetPropertyValue<string>("authorUrl");

                        _author.Image = authorNode.GetCropUrl(propertyAlias: "authorImage", imageCropMode: ImageCropMode.Max);
                    }
                }
            }

            return _author;
        }
    }

So until I add something nicer, you can create your own extension method on PostModel like :

public static class PostModelExtensions
{
    public static string GetAuthorCropUrl(this PostModel postModel)
    {
        if (postModel.RootBlogNode == null) return string.Empty;
        var authors = postModel.RootBlogNode.Children(content => content.DocumentTypeAlias.InvariantEquals("ArticulateAuthors")).FirstOrDefault();
        if (authors == null) return string.Empty;
        var authorNode = authors.Children(content => content.Name.InvariantEquals(postModel.Author.Name)).FirstOrDefault();
        return authorNode != null 

            //TODO: Adjust the overloaded parameters to suit your needs here:
            ? authorNode.GetCropUrl(propertyAlias: "authorImage", imageCropMode: ImageCropMode.Max) 

            : string.Empty;
    }
}

Genius! Thank you so much for the help :)

is working on a reply...