I am now casting for paid, national fashion work. If you are signed with an agency but live outside my area I will consider you based on a Skype audition. If you live within two hours of me I require an unpaid test shoot before I will include you in castings. Please understand, these shoots are fast paced and there is no room for uncertainty and no time to get to know you on set.
I can't divulge client information before actually offering you the job. That is pretty standard industry practice, especially when using non-professional casting mediums like MM or Craigslist. If you have questions ask but first read a couple of my rants, chances are I've touched on a couple of them.
I do shoot concept tests and other side projects regularly. Please note that if I contact you for a side project and for a paid casting, your involvement with the side project will have NO bearing on the casting. Side projects are just that... just to test concepts or for shits and giggles.
The Aesthetic Sherpa's Photo Survival Guide (abridged edition)
Real shoots vs. Scams
If any of the following things take place it is probably a scam:
-You are paid by check up front but there is a clerical error and you were paid too much (check scam)
-A publication or end client is promised but no client is on set (outright lie)
-Photographer refuses to provide personal contact info (creeper alert!)
That's all I've heard about so far so message me with more!
Setiquette (set-etiquette... get it?)101
[Please note that this is in reference to full crew, end client/publication shoots and not TFP collaborations!]
Boys and girls:
-arrive with clean face and hair, no product.
-bring your own underpants (see specific notes regarding your gender below). all other clothing will probably be provided.
-for outdoor, location shoots bring sensible footwear and outerwear. If you are shooting hiking boots on the side of a mountain you have to wear your own shoes for the hike up!
-be in the studio 5-10 min before your call. I suggest arriving 30 min early in case you get lost or can't find parking. but waiting in your car until 10 min before the shoot. Earlier than 10 min and you may be a bit of a nuisance. Later than your call time and you might have been replaced!
-if you are 18 or older but feel the need to bring an escort make sure they have someplace else to be in case there isn't an area for them. Also, it is standard practice to feed talent in full-day productions and unexpected escorts can cause shortages with catering if it was arranged in advance. (for underaged talent escorts are usually required and accounted for in catering)
-if you are shooting swimwear or underwear it is a good idea to bring your own robe. do you really want to chance the one that hangs in the studio closet? Also, in large, full service studios there are usually offices and other work areas. It may be impolite to walk around in your skivvies when people are trying to get work done!
-plan to be there late. shoots usually tend to wrap late, not early (except when your team is as kickass as mine!)
-turn your phone off.
-off. not vibrate. not "silent but I can still text (lolz)"
-off. not "airplane mode"
-KEEP YOUR LOOK THE SAME AS IT WAS IN YOUR AUDITION/TEST/POLAROID!!!
BOYS:
-if you are able to pull off the "scruffy" look you should come with 3 days of stubble but bring shaving supplies, just in case.
-bring neutral colored (white, black, grey) boxer briefs with no writing on the band
-don't hit the gym the morning of the shoot. You can always warm up on set if necessary.
GIRLS:
-don't get your hair did the morning of the shoot
-bring neutral (nude) colored underwear that doesn't make lines on your body. Bras should be natural style with a strapless or adhesive option or you should be comfortable going commando.
-bring skin care product if you need it but use it at the stylists' direction only.
"rasul's lofty rant #1"
what, exactly, is an "implied nude"? Where do you draw the line? are we sticking to MPAA guidelines, here? does buttcrack count? just because you're cupping your boobies while you try your best to look provocative doesn't make the shot any less bad. don't misunderstand me, there is absolutely nothing wrong with modesty or nudity. i don't want to have pictures taken of me with no clothes and i don't go out of my way trying to get models to take their clothes off without good reason. but if the model and i agree that a little skin is necessary for the look we want i'm fine with it. hell, if someone approaches me and says "i love the way i look naked and realize i won't always look like this and i wish there was some way to preserve this forever", i'd be happy to lend a hand. what bothers me is all these girls with captions that say "I DON'T DO NUDES" and a bunch of slutty looking "implied" shots in their portfolios. a poorly photographed girl with bedroom eyes her hands over her kibbles and bits looks way more naked than a woman who conveys deep emotion but happens also to have a nipple out. guess what! an "implied" nude is still a nude and either will be just as embarrassing if shot in bad taste when they're leaked to the press during your run for president. or when your kids find the incriminating CD in a shoe box under your bed.
dignity, folks, that's what matters. have some dignity whether or not you're clothed! face it, you're in an industry in which some display of skin is someday going to be necessary and, if you're interested in being a model, you should be proud of and comfortable in your skin. but your look is a product. In most cases, it's the only thing you have of value in this industry. be conscious of what the work you show does to the value of your product. i'd rather work with a model who gives me emotional content with or without clothes than the girl who thinks that because she's allowed someone to cover her naughty bits up with caution tape, she's saying something. stay with what makes you comfortable, display the kind of work you want to get and turn down requests that you don't like. get really good at one thing, stick to your guns and make a good living doing it. or evolve and change and grow as an artist. i really don't think the amount of cloth covering your bait and tackle has as much say in the matter as does the quality of the work.
but, hey, i could be wrong.
rasul's lofty rant #2"
so, the other day i had a conversation with a model; she replied to my tag (which clearly stated my rate) with interest and a phone number and when i called her to finalize a booking she was appalled that i would have the audacity not to want to trade her prints for her time. my time and the money i've put into equipment and education notwithstanding, i should be so honored that she would grace me with time that i would offer her my service in exchange?
i don't typically do TFP. if i do collaborate with a model i certainly don't call it a "trade" and here's why: good photography falls into two basic categories, work and art. good work is artful, but it is done for a reason other than pure, unadulterated self-expression... that means that the artist (model, photographer or both), in return for "valuable consideration" like money or exposure, is making an image which someone else will use. when you hire someone to produce work you get the work you need or you don't pay! and since we all know that the work you show in your profile is exactly the type of work you will get, why not show some professional work?
to put it another way, if you are trading your time for prints, you are at the mercy of the photographer's skill level and preconceived artistic vision. it doesn't matter if you look good in the shot, it only matters that the shot looks like what the photographer had in mind. and then when you display that shot, other photographers of the exactly same skill level, with exactly the same shot in mind will try to get exactly the same work out of you for free. i've seen profiles on modelmayhem full of tfp work and the model doesn't seem to understand why she still can't get paid work.
if you are happy expressing yourself and producing beautiful art, and not getting paid for it, then please keep doing what you're doing. but watch out, a lot of photographers do tfp for less than pure motives (bow chicka bow).
my passions are food and fashion photography, that's how i make my living. i've also been told i'm pretty good at shooting models and i feel fortunate that what i do for a living can help people get where they want to be. if you're ready to start going after paid agency work then reply to my tag and we'll work something out!
rasul's lofty rant #3 (or the rant with the world's longest acceptable run-on sentence)
it's an image or a shot, people, not a "capture"... unless you're amish or from the 19th century and you honestly believe that the camera is both magical and sinister. and then you shouldn't be modelling because you're clearly too old or too -- um -- amish. let's drop the pretense, people, there's no need for this brand of self-importance. calling a shot a "capture" implies that the artists involved (photographer, makeup, wardrobe, set...) had nothing to do with creation of the beauty. it means someone just happened to be there with a camera at exactly the moment when the light hit and the makeup sparkled and the dress flowed. if you're talking about an henri cartier-bresson grade, planets aligned, decisive moment; a "simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as the precise organization of forms which gives that event its proper expression", well then maybe i guess you've "capture"d something. but in that case the word doesn't seem adequate, does it?
i could be wrong now, but I don't think so...
(the long awaited) lofty rant #4 or "Casting on MM is like hypnotizing chickens":
what is with people on here? look, i've ranted enough about "TFP" garbage... if there's no exchange of any valuable consideration, no one has any right to bitch about professionalism. i get that. but for the last few months i've been trying to cast actual jobs, paying jobs, and people are giving me a hard time. if i want flaky, i'll order a freaking puff pastry! seriously, though... i send a message stating that the job exists, they reply with interest, i reply with specifics and a request for contact information and then i get budkis. is it the request for contact information? do people around here do business without talking on phones or at least emailing agreements?
or, get this, my reply to their interest has a very simple set of instructions: email me with a current picture (if none were posted in the profile) and other relevant info and do so by my casting deadline. and in response i'd get all kinds of 'what if' questions. 'what if i look different than i did?'; 'what if i don't check my email in time?' blah, blah, blah! i have no time to hold your hand and pat your bum and tell you it's special and different from everyone else's bum. i'm here to do business and if you're here, you should be too!
people are freaking crazy.
the even longer awaited RANT #5!!!
what you show is what you get. ad agencies have a stable of talent, directors and photographers and they tend to keep using the same ones for the same stuff. "but rus, what about my favorite actress who is 3' tall and won both the cannes best and teen choice?". first, i bet she blew her fair share of mickey mouse club execs followed by more than her fair share of studio execs. second, no one... NO ONE gets to pick their roles at first. EVERY star, whether model, musician, or actor proved themselves doing one thing consistently before they got a chance to branch out. even Beck, who is known for re-inventing himself with every album, recorded his first two with the dust brothers. ind a niche, your look, don't worry about showing diversity. it just dilutes your message. you may get typecast but, then, everyone does. if you're really good and really lucky you'll stay busy and make a living in this industry. if you're really, really good and really, really lucky maybe you'll break out of the mold you find yourself in.
depressing? not if you liked modelling/shooting/acting/whatever to begin with...
"rasul's lofty rant #6"
"Trade" vs. "TFP" vs. "test shoot"
trade=an exchange of some valuable consideration (money or merch) for a signed release from the model. the photographer can publish the images and has the right not to give the model copies (though i think that would be kind of douchy).
TFP:
not really sure what TFP is... it literally stands for "time for print" which means that the model is trading her time for a print. that's a trade. but who the hell needs prints anymore, anyway? is the model putting the picture of herself on her wall? is she giving it to grandma for christmas? everything is electronic now!
the fact is, if no one signs a release then both own the images... let me say that again... we BOTH already have some ownership of the image. i own what comes out of my camera and the model owns her face. so what's the trade? (note: i recently started shooting with agencies and learned about this legality so to any models that i've asked for releases in the past please accept my apologies.)
my theory is that "TFP" started out as a way for unscrupulous photographers to get models to sign releases for free. it has since become a standard term on this site and is, in my lofty opinion, just another one of the things that is bringing on a rapid demise to western civilization.
test shoot:
THIS IS THE INDUSTRY TERM for a trade between two artists.
as i've said in previous lofty rants, photos can be separated into two categories: work and play.
the term "TEST SHOOT" simply means there is no end client. the only thigns being advertised are the model or the photographer. new models are often asked by their agents to book test shoots. sometimes agencies will book the shoots for them, sometimes larger agencies will even pay approved photographers to test with several new models. when a photographer is paid to do a test shoot for a model his only function is to provide her with images that will help her to book paid work (excuse the gender specific prononuns).
when photographers choose to test for free you should know what their motives are. sometimes it's to grow their own portfolios. sometimes to test new equipment, crew or techniques. sometimes it's because they are crusty old men who want to hit on scantily clad teenagers...
...and now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Rasul's lofty rant #7
or... "That's the standard, deal with it."
TV/Movie producers have auditions.
Still photo clients have go-see's.
Photographers have test shoots.
These are all essentially the same thing. You show up and someone takes your picture and/or makes a video of you for the purposes of casting. End of story...
...or is it?
When a photographer (ooh, ooh, pick me!) asks you to test for a paid gig this usually means it will be a very brief shoot and that you will need to come prepared, hair makeup and wardrobe. It is expected that you show up in a photo-ready condition. I sometimes book test shoots at as little as half hour intervals so I usually don't have time to wait for models to get ready!
People need to stop asking me for client info! Typically in the casting process, whether with an agency or a full-service studio, end-client details will not be released until the job is awarded to you. I have made that mistake and, twice now, have gotten burned by models who posted details about the gig on Twitter or Facebook before we'd made any decisions! I know there are a lot of scams out here and I'll get into that but if you don't believe me take a look at LA's casting page on Craigslist:
http://losangeles.craigslist.org/tlg/
If you disregard all the porn, student projects and other tom-foolery and focus on events and TV you'll see that 9 out of 10 of them don't give any kind of contact info or client details. In fact, if you are wondering why I use a business name here instead of my actual one it is for similar reasons. If you want contact info and references I would be more than happy to provide you with that when you book a test.
I understand that there are scams out here, so bring an escort to your test shoot and don't pay anyone any money or sign anything unless you know for a fact what you're doing. There are no cash advances on paid work in this business. Likewise you should never sign a release unless you know where the work is going!
The next thing that drives me nuts is that people on here don't seem to understand the concept of a callback... If you get a call back you got the job. If you don't you didn't. I look at hundreds of faces on here, contact dozens and present my client with 5 options for every position. I can't possibly follow up with everyone. But if we test together I do keep you on file for future work and since I know what to expect I would be stoopid not to weigh tested talent over untested.
The last thing is delivery of photos. Whether we shoot a test for a paid gig or just a concept collaboration I reserve the right to edit photos that I give you. Not just post-production editing, but right of total refusal. If there are shots that I would consider to be of lower quality than what I want to have out there with my name I will not release them. Period. (was that technically an ellipsis? If so that is the opposite of what I meant...) This might be harsh, but trust me. If a shot doesn't make it through my edit it ain't going to do you any good anyway. The only exception to this is with agency talent. I give agents unedited session books so they can better assess their talents' strengths and weaknesses.
aaaaand I'm spent.
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