Back in the USA; have spent the last 4 months in Egypt, Libya, and Yemen doing photojournalism work.  It was exciting and exhausting; I've got lots of stories and a couple new scars, and it'll take me a while to get back into the groove of 'real life' in America, so if you've been trying to contact me, please be patient -- I'll get back to you ASAP.

Profile Re-design!
If you've visited this page before, you'll note some significant changes -- but that's life!  What started out as a simple one-man operation has expanded and branched out, and hopefully it will keep on going.  Byline Jay Miller is now Byline Form + Figure and Byline Imagery.  Jay is still the guy behind the camera, but now there are a few more people involved -- so you'll be seeing a lot of we thrown around in this new profile.

The Past:
Back in the days of film, I did all sorts of photography to make ends meet:  weddings, portraiture, and some ad work.  Before my equipment was confiscated & destroyed by the IDF outside Gaza, I kicked around the world, shooting on-contract and freelancing for various newspapers and wire services.  After that encounter, I decided to settle down, and I got a 9-to-5 job that allows me some flexibility with scheduling & travel, and yet is much safer than photojournalism. At this time, I started branching out with photography, working with models and building up my portfolio (typically with TF* work) whenever possible.

The Present
Things have gone well, and I've recently pooled my resources and talents with a first-class artiste and savvy businessman, and the result is a two-pronged venture.  One prong, represented here, is Byline Form + Figure.  This profile page outlines the high end of the venture--the for-profit photography, and the art produced when photographer and model collaborate and create imaginative and moving artwork.

So... umm...  what?  Oh yeah, rates & stuff:
If you'd like to work with Byline, you won't be refused.  There are three ways we can work together:  1) Pay to pose; 2) Contract work, where you get paid to pose; 3) TF*

Pay to pose can mean studio or location work.  Rates will vary depending on project details, post-processing and prints, and copyright arrangement (i.e., the more exclusivity you want over the images created, the higher the cost), but our basic rate is $150/hour for studio time, and $100/hour for basic location work.  MUA, wardrobe, and hairstyling can be provided at additional cost.  Post-processing costs scale with processing complexity and quantity, but run $10-$25 per image, with package discounts available.  For more more details, quotes, or to request a booking, contact us via mail here on MM, or at either [email protected] or [email protected]

Contract work is the "new frontier" for Byline: we're moving into the realm of commissions and spec work, and anticipate being able to offer compensation to outgoing, professional, compelling models.  This is a bit of a "don't call us; we'll call you" thing, but if you want to put yourself on our calling list, again, contact us via mail here on MM, or at either [email protected] or [email protected]

TFP and TFCD are still part of what we do, but it has to be a proposition and arrangement where the benefits are substantial -- to everyone involved.  So if you want to work with us, but:  you don't have the funds to pay for our time; or you think that your time/look is worth our time/talents in exchange; or you're a pro who normally gets paid by photographers, and you'd be willing to waive that requirement to collaborate with us, then by all means get in touch.  However, bear in mind that since TF* work & portfolio expansion is no longer the focus of this enterprise, there is some license to be picky/choosy.

If you want to sit for us:
Get in touch, let us know if you have any specific ideas/needs, and we'll get back to you (quickly) regarding availability and rates.  If you have a TF* offer, please make it clear up-front, and give us a compelling reason to do it.  We'll get back to you regarding TF* proposals, but please understand that we're prioritizing paid shoots.  If you do contact us, we're going to assume that you are: a) proposing to pay for a session; and b) going to follow-through.  In other words, don't 'poke'/tag/friend/call us to express some vague hope that we can work together in the hazy future.  Contact us if you want to shoot.

If we want to shoot you:
We will contact you with a specific idea/proposal, including compensation and legal mumbo-jumbo about image rights.  If you get a mail or call from Byline, it won't be just to say 'hi' or to express an unfocused notion of potentially maybe working together sometime in the future on some unnamed, unplanned shoot.  And we won't contact you for TF* work unless you've contacted us already and/or your profile makes it clear that you're looking for TF* work.  Yes, I still have sets I want to shoot and no buyer, and money is tight for funding those sorts of shoots, but honestly -- and this isn't to brag, it's just stating the happy reality that Byline has become -- there are already quite a few models who have done TF* work with Byline already, and they get first crack at future opportunities.

What Byline Form + Figure shoots:
Everything from headshots to boudoir, but we place emphases on high art, the risque, and fitness.  Of course, if it's your commission, I'll shoot what you want -- after all, you're paying.  But take a look at the port on this profile, as well as the linked flickr page, and you'll get an idea of what is meant by "Form + Figure."

If you're more interested in less edgy, more traditional, more conservative photography, and/or you want to expand your portfolio with shots that are G- and PG-rated, head over to the second prong of this new venture: Byline Imagery (link coming).  Byline Imagery is also the home to our retouching services (we'd like to call it reimagining, but that sounds too Jim Henson...).  To put it another way, Byline Form + Figure is where you take your clothes off; Byline Imagery is where you keep it on ;^)

Wanna work with Byline?
Be energetic and open-minded.
Be professional.
Understand that you pay for an experienced, talented photographer and a suite of services including professional Photoshop wizardry and processing.
If looking for TF*, make a compelling offer that truly will benefit everyone involved.
Don't flake.  Even if you commit via email, don't use that as an excuse to bail.
No prima donnas need apply!

Bear in mind that there will be paperwork you'll put your signature on before any shots are taken.


Janey by Byline Jay Miller, on Flickr

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Nicole by Byline Jay Miller, on Flickr

Will you like working with Byline?
If you aren't willing to get up at 4 am to take advantage of early-morning light, or you don't want to do a shoot where you have to curl a dumbbell over and over (actual examples of divas I've worked with in the past), move on. But if you're willing, daring, and open-minded; if you enjoy creating art that may end up in a portfolio and/or making some money; if you are willing to take direction from a guy who's used to wearing body armor and taking pictures while hanging out of moving vehicles; if you're willing to take risks, even though those risks might end up on the cutting-room floor (so to speak), then we might have a lot in common.

If you don't have a lot of experience modeling, that's fine -- I'm used to taking pictures of people who didn't even know they were having their pictures taken (no, not that: see the photojournalism experience I mentioned above). I enjoy the great outdoors, but I have access to studio space, as well. I don't particularly like studio work, though -- when indoors I tend to do very un-studio-like work.

Final note:As mentioned above, there are occasions when I sell photos long after the shoot -- selling stock, shooting on spec, etc.  So it's possible after you pay for a sitting (or after a TF* shoot) that you can make some money -- a lot depends on how we agree your images can/will be used.

The genres Byline Form + Figure pays to shoot: (consult list often, as this is subject to change)
Fitness/sport/action -- particularly in certain clothing types/outfits/colors.  This varies according to season, as well.  These shoots don't pay well, at the moment, but the more athletic you are, the more you can make.
Dramatic BW -- incorporating movement and unexpected tension into artistic settings (examples to be posted/linked)
HDR -- High Dynamic Range photography involves multiple photos taken at differing exposures, in order to capture a wider range of light and detail.  This is a challenge for modeling, because it means a model has to stay perfectly still through multiple exposures (i.e., for a couple seconds rather than a fraction of a second)
"Risky business" -- sets in tricky locations, or shots that are in legally 'grey' areas (e.g., nudity or partial nudity in public places, shooting in abandoned buildings, shooting in adverse weather conditions as part of the theme, etc.)
And so on... more examples to be posted as they come.

Why work with me?
I enjoy what I do, no matter what I'm doing -- and that tends to mean that my subjects enjoy it, too. I'm creative and adventurous, and willing to try goofy things.  I've taken 500+ shots in an hour, and the best one was the weird no-look crooked angle that was captured when I was messing around... and that one shot made all the work worthwhile. I have a day job, so I'm not gung-ho to make a living off of this, either -- so I don't have any sort of God complex.  In the end, I'd like to be the Joe Satriani of photography (Satriani copyrights his music under the label 'Strange Beautiful Music'); it's about finding the beauty in every moment. And we can have fun.

If you want to see more of my stuff, go to my flickr account, but be warned: there are boobies!


Lady in the Mirror by Byline Jay Miller, on Flickr

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