Hey everyone, I am brand new to the site and very excited to see where I can go from here. I have always been passionate about photography and have typically stuck with families and children but now I am looking to branch out and work with models. I don't have a specific genre that I am looking for, just wanting to build my portfolio right now. If you are in the St. Louis area and looking to do the same, please get in touch with me!

Welcome to the Mayhem

Good ways to network are:

Post an availability notice letting people know that you are available (under the casting/travel tab). This is for when you want to charge money. You can offer trade as well.

Search for Casting Calls in your area based on criteria you select. Post a Casting Call letting people know about an idea you have and want to put into a work of art. This is for when you are willing to pay other people. You can offer trade as well.

Search or Post Casting Calls and Travel/Availability Notices
Official Casting Call Rules - Read
Find the talent and resources you need on Model Mayhem

Browse for models/MUA's in your area and leave comments on images you like, send a friend request or message. Start a list of model's photos that you think are top notch for models in your area. This can become something of a Rolodex. Make sure that you select the Advanced Options and select an appropriate Logged in within:. I typically use 30 days, but you may want people who respond faster. Otherwise you will get models who haven't logged in in over a year. There are a lot of inactive accounts.

Make an announcemnet. Look on the front page for members offering comments for comments, and comment on their photos. Also make an announcement yourself.

Post a bulletin by going to My stuff > bulletins. Friends can see the bulletins you post.

Be active in the forums, but avoid trolls who start threads just to watch the ensuing flame war. Avoid threads that beat the over GWC's, flakes, escorts, ..., etc. Make positive constructive comments. Whenever you get published, add some new photos, or accomplish anything in general, post an announcement in the Accomplishments, Achievements and High Fives forum.

Share your other accounts on the Social Media User Name Sharing Thread.

When people see your forum post the first thing they see is your avatar. It has to be interesting enough for them to want to click on it and look at your portfolio. Now you need some killer photos with interesting concepts so they want to add your photos to a list. Comments are nice, but you want in lists. Everyone who looks at that list now sees your photo and may click to see the rest of your portfolio.
Having really interesting concept shots will get you more traffic. This means finding talented models to work with and trading up over time, and getting critiques from time to time.

Rinse and repeat.

Good luck in your search!

Model flake detection flowchart - YMMV

Avoiding Scams: The Basics

How to use the Model Mayhem forums

MM FAQ

Model Safety

And of course you must memorize this entire list MM Smiley List

Welcome on Model Mayhem

Welcome to the site.