EDIT: I know TFP is a form of barter - that's not the focus of this thread.
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This thread will not apply to all photographers/models. If it doesn't apply to you, instead of flaming me, please move on to the next thread. In another thread someone mentioned bartering - so as not to hijack that thread, I'm starting a seperate one here.
I would love to pay everyone I want to work with, and be paid by everyone who wants to work with me, but sometimes that's not always possible. I just can't financially afford TFP with everyone who wants it, and many models can't afford to pay cash.
But what works out great is payment in the form of services! Most people I've come across (since I don't live in NY or LA) seem to have a day job, and so trading goods/services that one would otherwise have to spend money on is one possible alternative to cash.
Some of the ways I've compensated models and MUAs aside from cash:
custom Business/comp cards
Clothes
Collectible Toys
Day spa services
Gauranteed gallery exposure
Guaranteed tear sheets
Getting them paid gigs with someone else
Headshots
Photo Retouching services
Prepaid gas cards
prepaid phone cards
Resume preparation/formatting
Restaurant Gift cards
Some of the ways I've been compensated:
Access to locations
Beer
Chiropractic/massage work
Free film processing
Free photocopy and/or printing services
Free Hotel stays
Frequent flier miles
MUA services on other shoots
Prepaid gas cards
prepaid phone cards
Restaraunt gift cards
Website services
just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
this thread may still be handy to explore the possibiities.
be as creative in your dealmaking as you are in your work.
oldguysrule wrote: just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
Not to derail the conversation, but I wish more people understood that. All too often it is thought to be a matter of "free" modeling for "free" prints.
oldguysrule wrote: just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
this thread may still be handy to explore the possibiities.
be as creative in your dealmaking as you are in your work.
Yes, it is. My intention was not to deny the value of TFP, just to suggest that there are other forms of barter often overlooked.
With your years of experience, this thread may not be so valuable to you, but thanks for the comment.
oldguysrule wrote: just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
TXPhotog wrote: Not to derail the conversation, but I wish more people understood that. All too often it is thought to be a matter of "free" modeling for "free" prints.
I was beginning the think I was the only one who thought that.
This is an excellent thread, though. Perhaps this will facilitate ideas and keep people from feeling like they get the shaft in trade scenarios. I've always maintained that the question isn't whether or not people are paid for their work, rather whether or not the payment is worth it.
Hopefully this thread can get people thinking about the options available for compensation.
Patchouli Nyx
Posts: 25,311
Santa Cruz, California, US
The way in which I make most of my money now is through ceramics. Sculpture and vessels and stuff.
It might be the nature of the clay tradition combined with my proximity to alternative communities and people, but barter is pretty common. For instance, when I was doing a series of full sized torsos, and needed models, we traded for either a finished piece, an extra mold (for them to play with), 6 hand thrown mugs, food, a couple bowls (the ceramic kind), a couple bowls (the smokeable kind) etc.
I'm actually needing to find some figure models soon, to get castings from and plan to offer TFFP or TFM or open-ended barters.
I'm not adverse to doing the same with photography. I've done it before and it tends to work well with models who view their modeling as having an artistic purpose rather than just a purely financial one.
i would consider paying someone in food and beer for photos. im an excellent cook, and my husband is a beer connessieur in the making! (dont think i spelled that right...)
baelie wrote: i would consider paying someone in food and beer for photos. im an excellent cook, and my husband is a beer connessieur in the making! (dont think i spelled that right...)
I would shoot for food and beer. A nice home cooked meal on a real plate with a real fork, yea that would be a good deal. Can we have Catfish and Hushpuppies???
baelie wrote: i would consider paying someone in food and beer for photos. im an excellent cook, and my husband is a beer connessieur in the making! (dont think i spelled that right...)
oldguysrule wrote: just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
this thread may still be handy to explore the possibiities.
be as creative in your dealmaking as you are in your work.
TFP is intra-industry barter, i.e., between photographers, models, and MUA's.
It is more properly called barter if it involves anyone outside of the industry, for example, giving a classic car owner prints in exchance for using the car as a prop.
I agree barter can be a good thing when those with skills and needs can match up.
dissolvegirl
Posts: 297
Northampton, Massachusetts, US
I've done shoots where I provided the outfits the models wore, and gave them the clothing as payment for the shoot.
I'd be more than willing to shoot for barter, especially in exchange for trustworthy, reliable babysitting. Sweet Jesus above, I haven't seen a movie in the theatre since I don't know when.
back in 98, i designed a website for a dive shop in trade for free diving. part of that at the time was including some pictures of the island and some UW pictures.
well, i still have my free diving today (and hotel), and since, it has landed me steady annual work with the island's Tourist Board, and more recently, a 2nd tourist board on a completely separate island.
Just remember to make sure the government gets its share. When you barter, dont be an IRS martyr. Send the IRS a couple of nude prints with your 1040. LOL.
There's a discussion about a 5 foot 6 inch fashion model that has forty-something posts. And this one only has 14 (including this one). So I suppose the other is more relevant to our day-to-day concerns...
Cash
Prints
Room
Board
Plane tickets
Movie tickets
Sushi
Hair cuts, color, styles,
Ramen
Fresh lemons
Fresh catnip
Wine
Clothing
Free night club entrance
Free drinks
Books
Movies dvdâs
CDâs
Free trips vacations
Spankings
Tattoos
All the hot wings I can eat
All the wonderful beautiful new places I have traveled to and seen.
All the wonderful beautiful people I have met and learned from.
The chance to be immortalized in art
I've been paid in gold fish (the crackers, not actual fish.) Cigarettes. Money. Prints. Cds. No clothes yet, gotta work on that . Barbed wire... (modeling, not photographing.) Strange things. The gold fish were the best payment though.
Megan_G wrote: I've been paid in gold fish (the crackers, not actual fish.) Cigarettes. Money. Prints. Cds. No clothes yet, gotta work on that . Barbed wire... (modeling, not photographing.) Strange things. The gold fish were the best payment though.
I bartered with a cement contractor, photos of his wife's pottery for pouring a baketball court. He poured a basketball court for me and his wife never called.
Sushi,, I just learned to like Iona
Hair cuts, color, styles,
Ramen ..... I just learned to love Iona
Fresh lemons
Fresh catnip
Wine
Clothing
Free night club entrance
Free drinks
Books
Movies dvdâs
CDâs
Free trips vacations
Spankings
Tattoos
All the hot wings I can eat
All the wonderful beautiful new places I have traveled to and seen.
All the wonderful beautiful people I have met and learned from.
The chance to be immortalized in art
So for one fine dining experience you will pose for me all weekend?
we are NOT millionaires here! we know about not having money.
But people try to put shit over on you.
eg..have no money for the shoot..but shows up in a brand new car..
eg.. have no money for the shoot...but tells me she just paid $500 to the vet for the rat dog
eg.have no money for the shoot...but is leaving for a three week trip to Jamaica.
Have shot finished cars from a customizing shop for their website,in exchange for a paint job on my girlfriends car.
Have shot remodeling before and after photos, as well as decks and such, for a wood floor in my living room.
_Cinnamon_
Posts: 1,697
San Francisco, California, US
UnoMundo Photography wrote: we are NOT millionaires here! we know about not having money.
But people try to put shit over on you.
eg..have no money for the shoot..but shows up in a brand new car..
eg.. have no money for the shoot...but tells me she just paid $500 to the vet for the rat dog
eg.have no money for the shoot...but is leaving for a three week trip to Jamaica.
PHOTOGRAPHER FOR YOUR NEEDS - m4w
Reply to: pers-179406454@craigslist.org
Date: 2006-07-07, 11:10AM PDT
I'm good looking male who is looking help you make a web page or an ad and all I want is to watch.
Or I want a woman or women to masturbate in front of me.
* this is in or around Las Vegas/Henderson
* no -- it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
In addition to pay, I have gotten:
A $48 BART [kind of like the subway] card
Clothes
Lots of food!
Movies
Great photos
Without pay, I have gotten:
Clothes
A tattoo
Great photos
While working my other job, as a street vendor, I have made friends with other street vendors. There are these chain-maille guys. They're the geekiest vendors on Telegraph, so I tend to be interested in them. Last week, one of the guys asked me if I would be interested in modeling some "shiny metal underwear" for him. He's going to give me what he makes for me to model or anything else I want in return. Fuck yeah! I'm excited.
PHOTOGRAPHER FOR YOUR NEEDS - m4w
Reply to: pers-179406454@craigslist.org
Date: 2006-07-07, 11:10AM PDT
I'm good looking male who is looking help you make a web page or an ad and all I want is to watch.
Or I want a woman or women to masturbate in front of me.
* this is in or around Las Vegas/Henderson
* no -- it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
I'm a barting junkie on craigslist and I see photogs all the time trying to barter for photoshoots. I think it's pathetic. They can't get even tfp/tfcd gigs while talking to models so they have to try and barter their GWC work with people that don't know any better lol
oldguysrule wrote: just to clarify, TFP is a form of barter.
this thread may still be handy to explore the possibiities.
be as creative in your dealmaking as you are in your work.
Right! TFP/TFCD is barter it's not very expensive to buy a big thing of CD's and or paprer to do prints. lol
Like that's the whole point is to get either a CD or prints not clothes or beer lol I cant use that stuff for my portfolio.
(the crackers, not actual fish.) Cigarettes. Money. Prints. Cds. No clothes yet, gotta work on that 
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