Advice by Now-Retired Model Rachel Jay
For whatever reason, some photographers are non-committal when it comes to booking, or think a minimal amount of info sent to a model suddenly means they’ve booked said model. For models, this is frustrating (especially when the same photographers are seen in the forums complaining about no-show models or not being able to find any models in their area). Here are some tips and things to avoid doing when booking a model.
Modeling is hard work. I love when people think it’s easy (insert eye-roll here). Many models hear it a lot too. I can come from anyone–photographers, friends, significant others, parents, even new models and photographers–and chances are, every model has heard it at least once.
The problem is, it’s not true. Sure, it might be easy to stand in front of a camera and have your picture taken, and if the person taking the pictures knows what they’re doing, it might end up being an ok picture. But there’s more involved in modeling than just standing there and looking pretty, and that’s what makes modeling not-so-easy.
Here are deal-breakers for me when it comes to photographers. All of the things listed below are either things I’ve seen, or things I’ve dealt with during communications, at a shoot, or after a shoot. Post-shoot deal-breakers mean I won’t work with the person again, nor recommend them to others.
Here are some Do’s and Don’ts of planning group shoots. All of this comes from either my experience as an attendee or a planner myself. I suppose I’ll state right off that bat that some of these might work for others, whereas some might not… it all depends largely on your audience, your event, and who’s planning the event.
A couple years ago a local photographer started shooting nudes at the frozen waterfalls at Starved Rock State Park in near-central Illinois. One of the things that bugged nearly everyone who saw his shots was that the always had the models in boots of some kind. His argument, when this was mentioned in critiques, was that a barefoot model would stick to the ice.
Enter local photographer Greg Kolack, who agreed with me that that wouldn’t be the case. So we planned to shoot at the very same frozen falls, with me going barefoot. I wouldn’t be nude, but we agreed that a black leotard, short tights and a flowy skirt would look great there. Greg and I also agreed that instead of standing in front of the ice falls, I’d dance as well as interact with them however we saw fit once we got there. We planned and planned, but for nearly 2 years we couldn’t get our schedules (and the weather) to cooperate.
I had one shoot when I started modeling (early fall, 2006) where I hadn’t gotten the photographer’s phone number. I’d asked numerous times, but never got it. I did make sure to provide my cell number though.
This is the reason I now require a cell phone number in order to book a shoot.
On my way to the shoot, with about an hour of time-padding (allowance for traffic and parking), I ended up stuck on the expressway 1.5 miles before an exit, with no turnaround options (read: concrete barrier in the way). There was a major accident just before the ramp that would have allowed me to navigate around it, and because of injuries and a spill, all 4 lanes and both shoulders were shut down for over an hour. Between the newsradio station and the police, those of us sitting were fairly well-informed.
But that didn’t help me reach the photographer to let him know I’d likely be late. I didn’t have a way to get a hold of him, made worse by the fact that we were meeting on-location in downtown Chicago. I did have the photographer’s first name, the suburb he lived in (or where his studio was located) and what he called himself on the site we booked through. So, during the hour I was sitting doing nothing but stressing, I called 411 numerous times getting numbers for anyone with his first name and any photography studio in his area. I also called my husband and had him Googleing all kinds of things, looking on the modeling site we’d booked, and even going thru my emails for me to see if he could find a number I’d overlooked, or any info that would have helped me get something worthwhile from 411. I called a bunch of wrong numbers, but got nothing that actually got me in touch with the photographer.
Once the highway opened up, I continued on to the location, showing up about 45 minutes late. I parked and wandered the location for another hour, asking anyone with a DSLR if they were looking for me. It was all a no-go, and I paid for my $25 in parking and headed home. I was disappointed but realized I’d done everything I could. I figured once I got home, I’d email and explain what had happened, and offer to reschedule provided I could get a phone number.
When I got home, there was an email waiting for me that read “waited 5 min for you and didn’t see you, oh well”. It was sent about 20 minutes after husband and I had given up the search in my inbox. Lovely. I ended up being glad I was 45 minutes late because of an accident on the highway instead of being 6 minutes late because it took a little longer to find parking than I’d anticipated. Evidently, even after waiting a whole 5 minutes, it hadn’t crossed his mind to call me and see where I was at.
Now I realize that it’s entirely possible that he didn’t have a cell phone, but if that were the case, I feel like he should have let me know that, and we should have figured something else out instead of meeting in a major, crowded place. Perhaps “let’s meet at my house and drive to the location together” would have been a better idea than, “let’s meet at Buckingham Fountain”.
Either way, lesson learned. Always, always, get a phone number before scheduling to work with someone. Even if you don’t think something will happen, plan for it anyway. Bottom line is, you need to be able to reach the other party in the event that something does happen… even if that something is, “I’m totally lost, help!”.
Trade
Commonly written as TF*, it means “Trade For Something”. Typically it’s TFPrints or TFCD (disc of images). All photographers have their own rules, requirements, and systems for sending images, so it’s something you need to work out with each individual prior to scheduling a shoot. The purpose of a trade shoot is for all parties involved who are working on a trade basis to benefit from the shoot. Keep that in mind when scheduling trade work.
Test
A test shoot it typically a shoot where a photographer wants to try a new technique or piece of equipment. In some cases, it nets 0 images, and in others it produces great results, but because it’s a test of something new, it’s not guaranteed. Some photographers do paid tests, others do unpaid tests. Again, it’s something that needs to be discussed on an individual basis prior to scheduling.
While I was on vacation in Florida, I had the opportunity to work with Heather of Meow Kiki Street Wear. All in all, it was an amazing shoot and the pics came out incredible! But let’s not get ahead of ourselves 😉 Here’s the whole story of the shoot, because it was craziness, followed by pics.
A model’s comfort during a shoot is essential to the shoot being a success. Certainly there are some models who are able to control their face enough to not portray discomfort (often most useful during poses that are awkward and/or painful), but not everyone is capable of doing so.
The bottom line, however, is that during a shoot, the model is responsible for maintining her comfort at a level that is satisfactory to her. That means, that if a model is uncomfortable in any way during a shoot, she needs effectively communicate that to the photographer using actual words, not body language, expressions, sighs or other not-so-obvious displays.
Thoughts of a Hobbyist Model 