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Online Modeling does it make or break ur career???
Ok I was offered to do an online modeling site like http://stephtm.com Theres no nudity just sexy pictures of her but its a member site which I have heard can look bad and good so Im confused I know it will rack in the money which is a pluse but not if its going to ruin everything I have worked so hard for. I need advise xoxo~LoLo Apr 15 05 04:50 am Link If you seriously want a career in modeling and have the right look..go to an agency. But this is tricky. Because not everyone has the right look for an agency, that is why the internet is a great way for models to get out there and promote themselves. When I say this you must meet the requirements. You should go to an agency and have them judge you. They are the only ones with the jobs from bigger clients, You can network online and get a lot of cool things online, but most real modeling jobs come from agencies. You can get a lot of jobs online, including promotional work and things. Fit modeling and other great assignments. LiKe jeff curley said, the internet is powerful, but it is not the only way to model. Find the market you are in. Straight models Plus size models..remember when I say plus. I mean well porportioned 40-31-41 or something close. Your hips and waist should be about 10 inches apart. Bigger plus are used locally and smaller for most national ads. Print ads Part modeling Etc... get my drift There are tons of spokesmodeling and promo modeling avail online and other opportunities. Nothing wrong with nudes (lol..too old for that crap now). My advice don't go that way or do it classy.. Apr 15 05 09:26 am Link no the site that i would be doing wouldnt have nudes I wont do them but its like my portfolio pics but with members paying to see them i dunno it sounds good but people say it can mess things up so I dunno. Apr 15 05 08:40 pm Link I really don't think it matters... Online modeling won't make or break you... Your choices in modeling will. Apr 19 05 08:06 am Link Posted by LoLo Sky: I think it would be nice to have a professional website of yourself. Apr 19 05 08:33 am Link Posted by CurvaceousModel: Very good advice and accurate. I know we won't touch a model who runs their own "pay site" of sexy photos - regardless of content. It just isn't something clients want someone representing their products to project. Now, strangely enough, this changes once you're famous, but is often handled different and usually not with the same "intent" as most "pay" sites have. Just FYI. Apr 28 05 02:36 pm Link Posted by Austin Models & Talent Agency: Posted by CurvaceousModel: Very good advice and accurate. I know we won't touch a model who runs their own "pay site" of sexy photos - regardless of content. It just isn't something clients want someone representing their products to project. Now, strangely enough, this changes once you're famous, but is often handled different and usually not with the same "intent" as most "pay" sites have. Just FYI. Ya know, I just think its kinda funny you are saying if you have a pay website business that is harmful in your ability to get a job. Last I heard, all the rich people have businesses and all the poor folks have jobs (trust me, I have a GREAT paying job- but Im still poor). Apr 28 05 11:18 pm Link Just my 2 cents but - what I think is ironic is I'm hearing statements like "everything is better OFF LINE" but we've all gathered here ON-LINE to discuss it ... we all have accounts here. Must be one of those "love-hate" things. Apr 29 05 06:09 am Link It's becoming an age of wanting to see models this instant, in dealing with booking models to photographers & art director wanting to see books from agencies right now. This is the new beast of the industry...from modeling agencies to models on their own...it's call promotion....being able to be in front of the mass amount of shooters out there with just a single click of a mouse. Would you rather go back to the days where we had to have books sent by FEdEx..a whole two days depending where you live. It's not always perfect, but you get seen by thousands of people that need models without having to pay for printing runs that coast more than your first 8 modeling jobs........ Apr 29 05 06:27 am Link Jumping in Feet first as always. First, What is your goal in modeling? Do you want to be rich from it? Famous from it? Both? I disagree with both Curvaceous and with Austin, then again, I think Austin and I have not agreed in over 3 years :-P Pay sites that have some type of sexual connotation are bad. Pay sites that may have sexual connotations are bad. Pay sites that support a model can be both good and bad. Being from the NYC area, I have come across more than a fair share of models with potential. I can tell you that web content for the most part did not matter. One of my favorite models I met when she was 18. We talked, I gave her advice, we became friends. She started living like a model (if interested in what that means, message me direct) 2 years later, She was in Paris for Fashion Week walking the runway! Not only does she have her own website, But she was on OMP and a couple other model sites as well. Online content got her into an online/offline agency that got her to Paris! Curveous, I must say, you are kind of two faced in your statement, "They are the only ones with the Real jobs." - If that is true, Why do you keep posting jobs and defending them as legit..... Just curious how you can reconcile the two things.... Main point - Evaluate what the site is. If it can enhance your career (think Evignya! hope I got that right) then by all means, do it! If you think a prospective client would shun you because of it, then stay away from it. But I got to say, If it is a pay site and there is no nudity, it sounds like a con job for the public, and that would make you part of the Con Team (willingly or not) People barely pay for porn, most do not pay to see nudes of beautiful women, I doubt any would pay for just pictures of models..... seems fishy to me. Apr 29 05 06:57 am Link Don't let this be misunderstood. The Internet is a powerful tool and I am the first to admit that I beat out many of my competitors for jobs because I can provide instant information electronically - photos, databases of talent, etc. Now with that said, we need to understand that the Internet modeling situation definitely holds more value to the more adult oriented aspect of the industry than the more mainstream commercial. Certainly adult style work (be it art, figure, etc.) is often the result of talent found online. Commercial accounts generally work with ad agencies or casting directors who hire directly through talent agencies - I know it is argued over and over online that this is not true, but I won't argue till blue in the face, it is a simple fact. I guarentee you my clients do not go online to search for models, unless that online is an agency's site. This said, there's nothing wrong with the Internet and modeling. It's a tool that MUST be used if you want success. Just don't get too caught up into believing it is the only way, because one needs only look at the rates Internet models are paid vs. agency talent. One only needs to look at online photogrpahers paying to shoot models and those offline being paid to shoot them. There's nothing wrong with either, but understanding this is the first and best way to optimize it for your own best success. Models who have Internet pay sites that may appear to be adult in nature may have problems with potential more mainstream commercial work later (and unfortunately most online pay model sites are stereotyped to be "adult"... which I agree is sad, but it is true). Perhaps this is not true in your market... I can only speak from my own experience working professionally every day in the Texas and L.A. industry. I don't say any of this to offend or belittle - I love the Net as much as you. Apr 29 05 10:42 am Link Posted by Austin Models & Talent Agency: BIG HUGE DIFFERENCE in pay scale... BIG SUPER HUGE... Apr 29 05 10:45 am Link Correction.. With anything....everything is better offline. If you seriously want a career in modeling and have the right look..go to an agency. When I say this you must meet the requirements. You should go to an agency and have them judge you. They are the only ones with the jobs from bigger clients, You can network online and get a lot of cool things online, but most real modeling jobs come from agencies. You can get a lot of jobs online, including promotional work and things. Fit modeling and other great assignments. LiKe jeff curley said, the internet is powerful, but it is not the only way to model. Find the market you are in. Straight models Plus size models..remember when I say plus. I mean well porportioned 40-31-41 or something close. Your hips and waist should be about 10 inches apart. Bigger plus are used locally and smaller for most national ads. Print ads Part modeling Etc... get my drift There are tons of spokesmodeling and promo modeling avail online and other opportunities. Nothing wrong with nudes (lol..too old for that crap now). My advice don't go that way or do it classy.. Apr 29 05 10:54 am Link WOW i love this forum. I love the fact that people can disagree or agree...This rocks. I respect everyones opinion and that just makes a great forum Apr 29 05 11:03 am Link At the risk of exceeding my daily quota of ticking people off, Let's put this all in perspective here! If you are super model quality, than you are not on this site! or if you are, Then you will not be for long! Therefore, let's assume no super models here. Now, that leaves the rest of you models that are fighting for scraps of food within the industry. I see all sorts of stuff posted here about what you should and should not do. Let's face it, you are competing with the other 15,000 wannabe net models as well. Everytime you say I won't do this or I won't do that, you are simply limiting the amount of work you can get. Do not do TFP nudes? then a lot of photographers will not work with you, including me. I do not pay the models that pose for my artwork. I do pay the models that are in the games I create though. Guess where they come from first? The models that did the TFP nudes before!!! Go Figure. Now, I hear some will never do nudes of an kind. Again, your choice, but consider this fact. Of the top 200 paid models (over the age of 18) the number of them that have posed nude (whether it is implied nude or nude or topless - I.E. got naked for a photographer!) is ........ 200! All of them! It was 199 up until about 4 months ago, and number 200 was not a model to start. Now, I agree that if you do not want to, that is your right. But, let's get rid of the BS that is constantly flowing, and lets get to reality. This is a business! You are a business person! If you do not provide what the client wants, the client will go to someone else! It is that simple! Sure, you can make money doing non-nudes. It is not going to make your career though. You can not live off of it. I know models that LIVE off their modeling jobs that they get online. They have the same philosophy as I have stated here. You do what you have to for the client. If you have to give free samples to attract business, then so be it, but at least you are attracting business. Apr 29 05 11:17 am Link Ty - That would be a brief, understandable course in Marketing 101. Good work. Hard to misunderstand ... and it's true. Apr 29 05 11:42 am Link Posted by Ty Simone: That is very Internet naive a thing to say or believe. Apr 29 05 11:53 am Link Posted by Austin Models & Talent Agency: Posted by Ty Simone: That is very Internet naive a thing to say or believe. Funny, most agencies I know out here tend to agree with that statement. Apr 29 05 11:55 am Link Posted by Ty Simone: Sounds like an excuse for not doing a good enough job for their talent. I can only make my statement based upon the fact of actually being an agency. Perhaps they'll come share their input. Apr 29 05 12:03 pm Link Simple way to prove your point austin, Name me one Successful model that has never shot a nude or implied nude in her career (over 18) And successful does not mean Mary Jane Baker that lives in a shack in the middle of nowhere making 10K a year.... A model that makes enough to live comfortably, solely off modeling income. Apr 29 05 12:09 pm Link Net modeling is a good way for a model to market herself and get additional bookings. For serious paid work or projects, I try to work with brick and mortar agencies becuase of accountability. If the model doesn't show or isn't up to task, I have someone to call who do something (ie send another model). When I direct book off the net, I put myself at risk. That being said, I've had a lot of great experiences with models off the net but if 9 out of 10 times everything is fine but if that 10th time is the big job and she doesn't show, I'm up the creek. If I've worked with a net model before, I have no problem casting them. This statement is a generalization but my experience is that most net models are often newer to modeling. Apr 29 05 12:14 pm Link Posted by Ty Simone: I'm not interested in playing games of challenge. I will say, however, that a model who believes that she will make an extended living doing nudes will learn quickly that it's a short lived life. You also assume "model" to mean females. What about guys? Are they making a living and paying their bills with a career posing nude? What about kids and teens? They are models too. What about older folks? One of my favorite older ladies, a model in her 60's, was just paid several thousand for a billboard ad she did. She can't make a living doing nudes and I don't think that you want her to. Again, the issue with "Internet" is that it becomes assumed that the word "model" means strictly just girls age 18-.. what, maybe 25? There's actually a whole large real world out here where models work, make lots of money, and stay busy. Enough said on this topic - it's becoming nothing more than a pissing match. Apr 29 05 12:19 pm Link I think Ty and Austin Models are defining successful. I'm sure JoBeth Everymodel who supports herself just fine with commercial modeling does just fine without ever taking off her clothes. Even assuming everyone here wants to make a carreer of modeling (which is false) not everyone wants to be one fo the top 200 models or famlous or thinks they need to make six figures to be comfortable. Apr 29 05 12:20 pm Link Theda, Let's assume for the sake of argument that the amount to support yourself comfortable is 1.5x the poverty level. That is about 30,000 a year Non-nude work is about $50 and hour from what I have seen here. That is 600 hours of shotting a year. So, how many hours of paid shooting have you seen advertised on line in this or any area in the last year, divided that number by the total number of eligible models in that area, mulitply by 1.5 simply because I will assume you are in the upper echelon of the models in your area, and tell me you come up with 600 hours. Apr 29 05 12:25 pm Link And this is not including the 15% that Austin will take from your cut as your agent :-P So you can NOT put agency work in the mix. Apr 29 05 12:26 pm Link Posted by Ty Simone: I didn't say you could make a living *online* from non-nude work. The interweb is a naked place. Fortunately, actual commercial modeling pays quite a bit better than $50/hour on average and is certainly more readily available through an agency than a silly website. Apr 29 05 12:34 pm Link Posted by theda: Join in on the Conversation. Apr 29 05 12:38 pm Link Ty, You went on about how NO model could be successful without getting naked. You didn't say none of the models *here* (although that isn't necessarily true either... they's just have to get out in the real world a bit). You said name a successful model, not a successful model on the internet. I'm not sure you're following your own conversation. Apr 29 05 12:43 pm Link Posted by theda: I agree. I thought he was speaking about models in general, not just the Internet girls. As far as Internet modeling goes, yes they're not going to make it online without taking off their clothing. No arguement there. Those that won't do that usually turn off the computer and go find representation and start doing go-see's with ad agents, casting directors, etc. It's a different world and a different level of "career," success, and income. I know guys who drive VW's and guys who drive Ferrari's. Both are cars and both get them there. Which would I rather own? Apr 29 05 12:46 pm Link Name a model! Online or off. Go ahead. Apr 29 05 12:47 pm Link Posted by Ty Simone: Posted by theda: All you models from Ford's Modeling agency, Raise your hand..... There a few males on MM that are signed with Ford... I have viewed their profiles... There are too many women to view all of theirs... Apr 29 05 12:47 pm Link If you are super model quality, than you are not on this site! or if you are, Then you will not be for long! Um. I think that is QUITE CLEAR. Apr 29 05 12:49 pm Link Posted by Reese, VA . MUA: Posted by Ty Simone: Posted by theda: All you models from Ford's Modeling agency, Raise your hand..... There a few males on MM that are signed with Ford... I have viewed their profiles... There are too many women to view all of theirs... I could be wrong, But last I heard, Ford is an Exclusive Only Agency. Apr 29 05 12:50 pm Link (break) -to the original question. Apr 29 05 12:51 pm Link My 2 cents on agencies. I'm sure somebody will disagree with me on this. I don't like agencies. I think they are a scam. Why? When I was 19 years old, I went to a local agency. They said I had to go to their in-house photographer to get a porfolio, which cost me $400. They said that since I was only 19, pretty face, AND 6 feet tall, they should have no problem finding me PAID work. I never heard from them again. I've gotten more paying jobs on my own through the internet. I think modeling schools are a bunch of BS too. Modeling is more about personality. Sure it's a learned trade, but no school, agency, or how much you get paid is going to make you a great model. Apr 29 05 12:53 pm Link If they said you *had* to use their "in-hous" photographer, then they were a scam. But not all agencies are scams. Just because you personally had a bad experience doesn't mean agencies are scams. Apr 29 05 12:55 pm Link Posted by Tiff-Marie: Online Modeling does neither for you. Apr 29 05 12:58 pm Link Posted by theda: Exactly... and, in most states, doing that is illegal. Instead of assuming agencies are all a scam, it would benefit more to report them to the state government and watch them get hit with a huge fine... and possibly lose their license. I am sure, of course, that you verified they were licensed first, right? The problem with avoiding agencies "because they are all a scam" is that without an agent, you're unlikely to book good paying, high profile work. The industry is quite simple: Apr 29 05 01:15 pm Link Posted by Austin Models & Talent Agency: Posted by theda: Exactly... and, in most states, doing that is illegal. Instead of assuming agencies are all a scam, it would benefit more to report them to the state government and watch them get hit with a huge fine... and possibly lose their license. I am sure, of course, that you verified they were licensed first, right? The problem with avoiding agencies "because they are all a scam" is that without an agent, you're unlikely to book good paying, high profile work. The industry is quite simple: Strange. I've been able to get good paying jobs by myself through the internet, networking and answering casting calls. There are always excpetions to every rule. You don't always have to have an agency or a manager to be a model. Apr 29 05 01:59 pm Link Posted by Ty Simone: Posted by Tiff-Marie: Online Modeling does neither for you. I agree. Apr 29 05 02:00 pm Link |
