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Weekend models
Models that say I only work on weekends are they serious about this or not what are your though about this. Most pro's (photographers) work Monday - Friday normal business hours. I'd like to hear from both photographers and models. May 30 05 04:43 pm Link Posted by Mike Bell: I have a life, I have children and a family to run. Not everyone can afford to raise a family, and run it fully while also doing 24/7 modeling. There is nothing wrong with weekend shooting, or after hour shooting - its a great time to get creative and a way to blow off steam after a long hard day. May 30 05 04:45 pm Link The only times I have are weekends or after hours. On occasion, I will take the day off to shoot a model or two. I'm pretty flexible. Sometimes I will take my kid (18 months) to the beach so he could check out the chicks. lol May 30 05 04:46 pm Link Are you speaking specifically of one kind of modeling, or is this a more general question that covers all bases? While I'm sure a high percentage of the models out there would love to be able to model full-time and book during normal business hours, as with any competitive business most won't be able to do that. (Just look at all the actors waiting tables in Hollywood!) I don't think that means they aren't serious about what they want and what they're pursuing - it just means they're still working on getting there. There are also a lot of models who aren't trying to make a full-time gig out of it, and would no longer enjoy modeling if they did. (Several on MM come to mind.) They're serious about what they're doing, it's just that their goals might be different from the masses'. May 30 05 04:53 pm Link My best times are weekends, sometimes very early weekdays, and when I contact a model for that time, I'm serious about it. May 30 05 05:05 pm Link I would say that "weekend models" are a smart crowd, because they hold day jobs that pays the bills instead of making a few hundred bucks a months that can't even cover the rent, but are able to say that they are "models" and have a sugardaddy straddling their backs... I am also surprised that you state that most professional photographers have nine to five hours with studio times. In my own experience... I have a 7 days week... I shoot on the weekends as well (mostly runway). Hey I give you a schedule how my weekend looked this week: Thursday evening... shooting a Chinese delegation that will host the Fashion Olympics in China (Hunan Province) with cooperation of USA International Fashionshows (I am the house photographer for them.) After the reception I did some ad hoc shoots with some of the models. One of them, Marina can be seen as recent upload on my profile. Friday editing images etc. Getting up Saturday morning and getting ready for shooting models in Newark (NJ) for magazine submissions and meeting the publisher of Trace Magazine. The shoot started around 5pm and went 'til Sunday morning 4:30 am. Then editing (no sleep) and getting back to NYC for the Champaign Fashionbrunch. Had to be there because I am also the stage manager until the actual show begins and then I am shooting..., then meetings afterwards and I didn't come home basically until Monday morning 2am. So, there is my weekend... it's not often that I don't get sleep... but my weekends are usually filled with work... and often during the week, most shoots are in the evening... because that's when the events happening that I have to document. My shoots during the day happen too of course, but those are in the minority, except for agency work. May 30 05 05:08 pm Link Posted by Mike Bell: Hi Mike - May 30 05 05:09 pm Link I'm a weekend model. I have no illusions that modeling could not support me and I have a full time job that takes priority over playing model. So, I guess I'm not serious. Other weekend models may be more serious about modeling as a career, buit not in a position to leave the full time job behind yet. So far, the only photographers who have had issues with my weekends-only schedule were family men who devoted their weekends and evenings to their kids. Otherwise, I've never run into a M-F 9-5 photographer. May 30 05 05:39 pm Link Im 100% serious about modeling, & I definately schedule work AROUND my shoots. but most models that are just starting out dont have that luxury. I probably do about 5-6 shoots a week when Im not traveling. & I work @ night in a lounge as a bartender, 1500$/night is about how much I make on a modeling day rate anyway. May 30 05 05:41 pm Link I don't take the weekend worriors any less serious, it just means I can't really use them if I'm shooting a weekday morning agency job. On the other hand, casinos employ a lot of people here in Nevada and Casinos are a 24 hour business. A few of the models I know hold down a steady income with the casinos as a cocktail waitress or something else and their weekends are in the middle of the week anyway so it makes little difference. In the end I think serious is more a mind set than the hours you put into something. Do you show up on time ready to work and not like one the models I had the "pleasure" of working with, still drunk from the night before? tThen in my book you have some degree of prfessionalism.. Peace, G. May 30 05 05:48 pm Link Today I work nearly non stop. Either I'm shooting a model or band somewhere, or on the computer or doing several of many other things. There is no clock for me to punch at the end of a work day. Back when I started out, I did work the 9 to 5 gig while doing weekends and evenings for photography. Now I can't afford to go to work for anyone else! Besides, who would hire a bum like me? May 30 05 05:59 pm Link Got me.... I guess since I only shoot on weekends I am not a serious photographer...... But I usually only shoot with models that only work weekends... so its all ok then.... I run 4 companies during the week - thus no time for photography..... It is an interesting questions thou - I think it is more about being professional when you do what you do... vs. how much you do it.. I know plenty of photogrpahers and models that do it all full time and still suck. May 30 05 06:08 pm Link I've no problem with models shooting only on weekends. For the most part they know they are limited with how far they can go and with the types of modeling they can do. They know they are unlikely to do any serious commercial work and accept that fact. But with that limitation, weekend models can be very, very good. May 30 05 09:09 pm Link I say that they can definitly be serious about what they're doing. If someone is going to school, or works another full time job, weekends may be the only time they would be available to model. Now, with that said, I think anyone who REALLY wanted to get into modeling, under those circumstances would say, "I only work weekends, except for very limited projects." If it's a really good opportunity, it's not that hard to take a day off from other things. May 30 05 09:40 pm Link Posted by Mike Bell: I'm starting to be ill of this more holy than thou tone around here. When I ran my studio it was anything but 9 to 5. Often I wasn't even in on Monday or Tuesday, Wednesday Noon to 10 PM, Thursday 11 AM to 10 PM, Friday 11 AM to 2 AM, Sat 9 AM to 2 AM, Sundays Noon to 4 PM. Plenty of variations on this are possible and that doesn't count any darkroom time I did because I kept the darkroom in the house where less people would interrupt me. May 30 05 09:44 pm Link I am serious about modeling and am trying to make it full time but at the moment I only have time during the weekends, because that is when i am not working and that is when my photog is not working, where I am at most photog do photography during their freetime.When I come statside I am sure I will find full time photogs to shoot with and i will try to have modeling work only but at the moment I am just starting out and I have to get what I can. May 30 05 09:48 pm Link Great topic. Even Richard Avedon often would take work in the field of insurance for he often became disallusioned with the fashion and photography field. Good writings so far. I love to get paid for what I love to do. This is not always possible and I have found in my short life that it is smarter to make the cash somewhere else. Then I have the power to say no to clients that wish to take advantage of me. There are artists who took breaks from the business side of art. I find that people that I work with that often push too hard are not so happy. I work full time now and more. In the past and likely the future I will not. May 30 05 09:58 pm Link Im a full time photographer. In the summer months I work 7 days a week and 6 days a week other times of the year. Most weddings are weekends and I get a lot of my customers then. Im my commerical work its M-F most cases but you got the $$$ to spend im ready to go for it. May 30 05 10:03 pm Link Time for a reality check. With very few exceptions, most models can not make a living by modeling alone. Thus, they have to have another job if they want to eat. If they have a weekday 9-5 job so they can pay rent, then logic would dictate that they can only model on evenings and weekends. As a photographer, my schedule is not weekdays 9-5 either. I shoot a fair number of events, almost all of which are evening and weekend shoots. I see models at some of these events, too, if there is a fashion element to it. I suppose in a fantasy world, all photographers and models would only have to work weekdays. And get paid tons of money. But here in the real world, perfectly serious models and photographers have to (or want to) make choices based on their real life situations. Personally, I'd get bored out of my mind working in a studio 9-5, weekdays. Part of why I do photography is to escape that weekday grind. May 31 05 10:08 am Link The way I run my studio I don't keep any particular hours. Weekends are my busiest days and the first to fill up weeks in advance. Also, plenty of models who work/go to school, are also available in the evenings so I also schedule evening shoots. Some models have night jobs and so they can book shoots in the mid-afternoon (when they wake up). Most models who are realistic about the income they can get from modeling will have some other form of steady income, and use model money to supplement their income. And don't forget, some of the best models are really more motivated by creating great images than they are from making money, and I take these models very seriously. Since all I do is photography (I'm too lazy for a day job), I see no problem with working around the busy schedules most models have. May 31 05 11:41 am Link I am sort of a weekend model. I am married with 4 kids and they are at the age that I would like to see most of their activities that they are involved in. The photographers are more than nice enough to adjust to my availablity. I have no problem missing some things depending on the shoot. But I also come across photographers that just want weekdays or weekends. And I adjust to their times too. You have to be flexable both ways. I hope it makes sense. Donna May 31 05 09:21 pm Link if you are into modeling to make a living.. stop now - same goes w/ photographers.. yes you can make some money, but it can go fast the majority of this industry is not about getting rich most of the photographers i know who make their living shooting are doing weddings, or sublimenting what they luv to do (studio / fashion / fine art / etc) by doing weddings or portraits to help pay the bills May 31 05 11:40 pm Link Posted by Mike Panic: I do fashion, studio, kinda fine art, portraiture, magazine shots, catalogue, products, runway, events (not weddings, more photojournalistic documentation). It's ALL photography to me and I love to do it all... with preference to portraiture (where I don't understand why this would be a "neccessity" and not equal to the other categories you are mentioning.) May 31 05 11:47 pm Link |
