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Hosting group shoot! advice?
Hello,
I am looking to start hosting some group shoots, where the photographers pay to shoot great models and nice locations and studios in Los Angeles. I am looking to shoot fine art nudes and boudoir, but probably some more fashion/editorial shoots as well. I have found these kinds of shoots to be a good tool for networking, and building portfolios for both models and photographers. I am wondering if anyone has any advice or tips? As a photographer, ideally how many models would you like to see at a shoot like this? What factors go into how much you’re willing to pay to attend? What are you expecting to be provided for you? Models: how many photographers and models do you typically feel comfortable shooting with? What makes the experience good for you? As a model myself, I have been to several group shoots. A couple of them have been pretty awesome, others have been a bit annoying. I am definitely looking to get other perspectives. Thank you, Jahla Jul 30 19 06:47 pm Link I'm not sure how the group shoots are run these days in the usa but here in Manila it's about $50 for photographers to join, sometimes it's as low as $20 depending on the sponsor. Most of the times the girls are paid transportation but sometimes they can earn $40 for nude modelling. The ratio is usually about 3 photographers per model.
Back in the stone age in the USA they used to charge $60 for photographers and pay the models as much as $150. That was about 15 years ago when I used to attend. The photographer /model ratio was closer to 7 to 1. Also, models tend to earn more if they did nude. There was sometimes private times set aside for photographers to hire models on a 1 to 1 basis. As far as advice, Pick a regular day once a month. I think the best are first or third weekend when people get their paychecks. Photographers and models are creatures of habit. Find a great location that is affordable with parking. Great locations are nice but it's better to not be too far out from the city. Photographers and models tend to flake more if the location is far. Try giving an early bird discount to see who will actually attend. It will take a while to grow the business. Don't overpay the models. It should be seen as a networking opportunity. Also give the models extra ways to earn. Maybe give 2 hours after the group shoot that photographers can hire the models for extra time. Also, they can get model releases $20 was typical back in the day. Bring flyers to other sponsors events to network. Be kind to other sponsors and try not to step on each other's toes. I used to sponsor my own shoots here in philippines. Just a heads up. Most of your customers will be hobbyists who are beginner level to intermediate level rather than pros. I find most pros don't like group shoots for whatever reason. Jul 30 19 07:52 pm Link guaranteed income by charging the photographers a flat fee instead of the whole "book on your own once you show up and hope for the best" setup.
extra hours at the end for private bookings getting the photographers to organize themselves into some kind of shooting order within their group so its not just a constant barrage of flashes and "look over here!"s from all directions host keeping track of and enforcing designated break times so photographers cant take advantage and overrun their time figure out a release situation beforehand so the models arent shoved a stack of random paperwork at the end Jul 30 19 10:45 pm Link Laura UnBound wrote: We usually have a "no photographer" zone. Usually for the muas and models only.
Jul 30 19 11:28 pm Link Laura UnBound wrote: Have a stack of releases pre-signed by the models. Each photographer can enter his/her own name and have someone sign as a witness.
Jul 31 19 05:21 am Link Three things are necessary
Great models with experience with a few of those you can add in some less experience ones A great photographer to set up interesting lighting and sets. Photographers should shoot one at a time with studio stobes , not paparazzi style . A photographer that can answer questions on all aspect of the shoot and familiar with most ( all) current brand cameras A good location that can hot the number of setups and people you expect to have in a safe area with good parking. First work on developing a reputation for great event where everyone leaves waiting for your next one. The $$ come later. Aug 03 19 10:04 am Link JAHLA wrote: I personally will not welcome more than 3 to 1 ratio. Photographers are plentiful but models are a rare breed at the meet ups. Then you got the question of who qualifies to be a model at the shoot because if I am shooting an average person you see out in the streets with no modeling experience its a waste of peoples time. Even tho I tend to give a pass if the model looks like a young Pamela Anderson with no experience.
Aug 03 19 06:26 pm Link Though I am not in the market to attend a group shoot experience, if I were I would not attend one organized by a model. I know that there have been many in the past, I don't trust that my needs as a photographer would satisfied. Though you may well have a great amount of experience modeling at group shoots, I would not estimate that is the same as being a photographer. Additionally, I would be cautious of events organized by other non-photographers as well as photographers will only a small amount of experience. These I have witnessed and found some of them to be a mess.
In the group shoots I have organized, I have made extensive plans in advance concerning logistics, shot angles, lighting accommodation for multiple shoots going on at once. Maybe it is my singular opinion, but I feel like you need to have MORE experience at photography than the participants in order to anticipate the needs of a shoot, much less a group shoot. Aug 05 19 04:35 am Link I don't go to many group shoots anymore, but the ones I have been too charge the photogs about $70 for a four hr time period(this depends on the number of models). The photogs then can arrange 1 on 1 time with the model
Make sure you hire reliable models, i.e. ones that don't flake. Keep the photog/model ratio at about 4:1 Aug 05 19 08:59 am Link JAHLA wrote: A suggestion on lighting-Los Angeles has some great houses that you can rent for a shoot with a swimming pool. So depending on the location you may need not need any lighting beyond a sun bounce reflector. In doors, where possible set up strobes with three point lighting. Watch some tutorials on lighting with strobes. You need transmitters and receivers for the strobes. It can be expensive to rent strobes--incidentally I have four and want more. You'll need insurance (which I have) and also consider whether to have hmua-depending on the quality you're offering. Aug 05 19 09:07 am Link 63fotos wrote: The group shoots in CA that I have attended are probably similiar to you your experience. They were more for a fun time to see pretty girls and get some memorable photos for amateur photographers than to work on a fashion port. I would see many of the same faces at similiar events and most events ended up being about $100 per shoot if you paid and got a model release from your favorite model of the day. I used the shoots as a socializing experience more than building my portfolio.
Aug 07 19 06:07 am Link So, first off, listen to LauraUnbound. She's probably been to more shoots than most of us combined, so if anyone can tell you what makes a successful group shoot, it's her. 
martin b wrote: Yeah, this is generally my experience as well. Meetups and workshops tend to cater to different types of photographers. In my head, I think of the two ends of the spectrum as "tourists" and "hobbyists". These categories are a bit simplistic and probably not entirely fair, but I think it's a useful distinction for someone looking to organize a meetup.
Sep 13 19 10:29 am Link 3 to 1 is ideal, although I advertise 4:1 and hire an extra model to make it 3:1, but if a model flakes I'm still OK.
Many photo shoots that I've been to have a similar ratio, but the photographers aren't divided up so there will be a bunch of photographers surrounding a model while other models are just standing around WAITING for someone to shoot them. (most people that attend these type of events are amateurs / hobyists / new and are either too shy or not confident enough to direct a model so they blend in by shooting the same fricken thing with the rest of the photographers. The photographers are divided into groups to prevent that from happening at my events. Save the afternoon of May 11 for the second artistic glamour FIGURE workshop we've had in a long time! Did I forget to mention it's AFFORDABLE?!?!
Sep 13 19 12:16 pm Link As a fine art photographer, I'm not a fan of most group shoot settings; especially in studios. I rarely attend them, unless I hear of one at a good location with good scenery and/or lots of natural light.
One thing I hate about studio type group shoots, is that there's typically only one lighting set up and it's usually for glamour type images. This means the model is fully lit (typically), so there's not a lot of options to create mood with shadows and contrast. On top of that, a lot of these shoots involve lame costumes and lingerie. At one shoot I attended, one of the photographers wanted the model to wear a see-through teddy and a silver gladiator helmet. Even the model was like, "WTF??", and refused to wear it. Another one I went to, a photographer wanted the model to hold up a Rambo style knife and lick it with her tongue while trying to give "sexy eyes" to the camera. So lame. I love shooting at nice, big homes and mansions that have nicely decorated rooms and either a pool or nice landscaping outside. This gives me a lot more options with natural light, but also allows me room to set up my own strobes if I need additional lighting. On top of that, there's more room for the photographers and models to work around; so they're not crowding each other or waiting in a conga line to be the next person to take a shot. I like to take my time when I'm shooting, so I hate being rushed and told I can only take like 10 photos so the next photographer can take his 10 shots. As far as ratio goes; I agree a 3 photographer to 1 model setting is the best. If you're going to have a good amount of models though, then try to get all of them to be within the same level of attractiveness. I've been to shoots where some models are amazing looking, and others aren't anywhere near as good looking or shapely. Typically what will happen, is the photographers will gravitate toward the best looking models and leave the other ones standing around twiddling their thumbs. What adds insult to injuries, is the paid one-on-one times, where some models don't get any offers and others get booked for the rest of the day. At that point, the less appealing models won't make enough money to make the shoot worth their time. When it comes to rates, I wouldn't pay more than $80 for a group shoot. Even then, it has to have some really good models to make it worth my while. If the model line up and location are top notch though, then I'd be willing to pay up to about $150 to attend. I'm a hobbyist though and want to shoot artistic nudes, so I can't justify the expense if it's more than that. I did attend one once where a photographer was spending hundreds of dollars on a pretty lame glamour shoot. When I asked him why, he told me he sells the photos to adult web sites. He didn't care about lighting, the model's look, or the setting, because he got his money back and then some after selling the images. For him, photography is just a business. Last issue is the one-on-one time. I can't justify paying $100 an hour for a model's time, since I'm not getting any money for the images I produce (Yet). I'd like to put a photo book together one day, but I don't know when that will be. It's especially too much for a model who doesn't pose well, emote well, or look that good. I think that rate tends to scare off a lot of photographers that attend these things, so they'll usually leave right after the group portion is done. $30 to $60 an hour is far more reasonable rate, because it means a photographer can shoot with more than just one model and he can also to try and get the type of images he's looking for. In my opinion, some money is better than no money at all. A model has every right to demand a high rate for her time, but just because she asks for it doesn't mean anyone is gonna' pay it. Balance between attendance cost and one-on-one rates is really the key to a successful shoot, IMHO. If someone came up with a group shoot that was focused on art nudes and had a good mix of top models at a nice location, then I would probably be willing to attend these things again. The majority of the ones I see posted here on MM simply aren't worth my time. Nothing worse than paying a good amount of money to go to one of these things, only to end up with a handful of decent image. Sep 13 19 04:27 pm Link |
