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Should a Black photographer disclose that fact?
Yesterday, I had a model walkout on a scheduled shoot because I âdidnât tell me youâre black!â This model and had several phone conversations about the planned shoot, her portfolio, my portfolio, etc. We even talked about family and educational goals. You know all the normal stuff adults talk about. The shoot was at my condo in the Lincoln Park section of Chicago, not exactly the hood! Average home costs around $550,000 so you get the idea of the community. As a minority photographer, shooting nudes, should I make a point of advising new models that I am Black? Aug 10 06 11:13 am Link you should have shot back, 'you didn't tell me you were a bigot!' and thrown her ignorant ass right in the street. Aug 10 06 11:16 am Link Not anymore than a jewish or gay photographer should have to tell a model ( just examples). If someone thinks race is such a big issue when it comes to working with them best to find someone else. Racism is all over. I'd personally like it that one day artist are judged on their work not where they were born or what religion they are or what color their skin is... Aug 10 06 11:17 am Link So Says Amara. wrote: EXACTLY.... Aug 10 06 11:18 am Link I'm Black born in Harlem, thats what I tell them. It should not have mattered if she like your work. Some people are just stupid, shes no model. Aug 10 06 11:19 am Link That is really sad man. Sorry you have to deal with that crap. Maybe I should start telling models "Hey, you know I'm white right?" It really is a shame that people have to be like that. T Aug 10 06 11:19 am Link What the HELL?! I can't believe people are THAT openly racist anymore. Wow. Aug 10 06 11:19 am Link The value of your property matters as little as the colour of your skin, I would've thought. Aug 10 06 11:19 am Link Bigots don't deserve photos of your caliber. Aug 10 06 11:19 am Link Not sure what the color of your skin has to do with your photography skills. That was a very ignorant thing to say. I wouldn't suggest telling models before you shoot that you are black, that doesn't make sense. But what I would advise is that you plan an actual meeting with the model before you even consider shooting with them, that way the model and yourself can get a good sense of each other and there shouldn't be any disappointments if it is agreed that you two want to work with each other, in the end. Aug 10 06 11:22 am Link Brian Diaz wrote: Bigots don't deserve much of anything. Aug 10 06 11:24 am Link PPRO Analyst wrote: I've never had a problem, but i'm in Cali also. Not saying that i'm here makes a difference ,but I just don't run into of that much out here. Most of my shooting is done with another photographer (white) and when we meet the models they show mad love. Hell most of the time i'm the only brotha there lol. She was ignorant dawg. If she was stressin that hard then she needs to find a new line of work. Who cares what color the person is? If they can shoot fine. If not then you'll find out later. Judge the work not the person. Aug 10 06 11:25 am Link I think its a Terrible Shame...! What does your color have to do with your talent as a photographer? Does being a white photographer...make the work any better or the model feel safer, because your white? I believe talent is talent...not color! If the model feels different you don't need to work with them. Thank you for hearing my point of view! Lenny Hamilton Aug 10 06 11:25 am Link I would like to say I'm shocked, but having grown up in Chicago (Northwest side at the corner of Central & Belmont) I'm not. You have to go to the deep south to find more racist attitudes I think. (yes I know these are generalizations, but they are consistent with my experience). Try not to let it get to you, your work is great, she's an idiot, end of story. Aug 10 06 11:25 am Link So Says Amara. wrote: amen. Aug 10 06 11:26 am Link I agree with Ravina. I never plan on shooting any one until we have met and gotten to know each other a bit. It is an extra investment in my time and theirs, but I think it is worth it and makes the actual shoot go better. Having said that I am stunned to think that any model would be that stupid and prejudiced. Your work is outstanding and she does not deserve to be in your book. Harry Aug 10 06 11:27 am Link Whatever....No she's wrong! Aug 10 06 11:28 am Link I don't see any reason to disclose that fact. I also don't think it would've crossed my mind to do so nor should it. What idiots are in this world astounds me. Well comfort yourself with knowing that is model who'll have a hard time getting work with an attitude like that. OOoh, if I were there with my class 5 weapons grade electric cattle prod.... Aug 10 06 11:29 am Link Your work should speak for itself! I like to let models know how old I am (fifth decade-do the math) in case THAT is an issue. The ones I like say age doesn't matter; they like my work. Some say they feel more comfortable with me than a younger photographer!  As far as race, I have yet to shoot a black male or female model but that doesn't mean I do not wish to. I am in the process of discussing shoots with several. The quality of the model's work and creativity is what matters to me! Ken Aug 10 06 11:30 am Link How sad. It would really bother me if I had to put: "Warning, photographer is a pudgy old white dude" on my email signature and business cards. I vote we both keep our appearance a secret. Aug 10 06 11:31 am Link dale99 wrote: Least I am not pudgy! Aug 10 06 11:32 am Link Photographers should have a "disarming" picture of themselves onliine somewhere that prospective models can see. That way, if there is something about you that creeps them out (such as race), things will go no further. It's also a good idea because the model will know it is you when meeting for the first time. Sometimes people assume someone looks a certain way, and are surprised when truth is revealed. Did anyone ever see an image of a radio personality, only to find out that they looked nothing like you thought? Aug 10 06 11:40 am Link You really shouldn't have to but we live in the real world and bigotry always seems to raise it's ugly head when you least expect it. I don't tell a model my race unless she ask and if she ask i have no problem telling her becasue if it matters to her what race I am then she is not the type of person i want to work with. I put a portrait of my 9 month old son on my MM page this morning because I love the picture, he's a handsome little fella and I'm proud of my boy but at the back of my mind i was also thinking, "well this will let any model interested in working with me, know that i'm black and if she has a problem with that it will save both of us a little wasted time. she can go on pretending she's not really a bigot and I won't have to deal with her silliness in my world. Chris Aug 10 06 11:42 am Link RidzDesign wrote: i agree, chica was a bitch (sorry) Aug 10 06 11:45 am Link I'm black and although no one has said anything like that to me, I have recieved a few uneasy looks, that is at first, but once they get to know me, everything is cool. Either that, or they're suprised to find out how young I am. I still feel that there is no reason to judge the person you're working with by anything else other then the work that they produce. so keep shooting, and whoever is stupid and ignorant enough not to shoot with you, they can go to hell! beautiful work by the way! keep it up brotha  Aug 10 06 11:46 am Link Yea, the girl is ignorant as shit, a photog is a photog whether they're black, white, gay or str8 as long as you can take good pics, that should be all that matters... it's sad that ppl are still so ignorant in the year 2006... *shakes head* Aug 10 06 11:48 am Link name some names !!!! call the bigots out !!! Aug 10 06 11:50 am Link Your work should speak for it's self. I've had "you should have told me you were white" before, but only once did they not go through with the shoot. Aug 10 06 11:51 am Link e-string wrote: Believe it e, it is just not as blatant. My brother's kids are bi-racial and a few months ago their aunt told her sister(my brothers ex-wife) during an argument, "go on and have some more "N-word", kids. The kids are 15,14 and 12 years old and I've know the aunt since the 1st one was born. she's faked being cordial to me for 15 years but then she goes and calls her niece an nephews the N-word...go figure. Aug 10 06 11:52 am Link So Says Amara. wrote: Best answer! Aug 10 06 11:54 am Link PPRO Analyst wrote: you have got to be kidding me! i would have told her back to not let the the door hit her in the ass. I am a firm believer in not trashing a model, but hatred and bigotry is one of the worst offenses in my book, I hope you let other photographers in your area know about her... Aug 10 06 11:56 am Link I use to tell models that I am African-Amercan but I thoght "why am I making this an issue?" Either they like my work and want those images or to get paid or they don't. Now it's funny to me to see the reaction. Most don't even sweat it but there are some that you can see that I was not what they expected. On the flip side, I wonder sometime what my face looks like when I meet models for the first time without thier hair or make-up done. One reason why I don't play poker is beacuse my face says it all. Some have had to have seen my face and knew I was thinking "She don't look even close to her portolio pics!' thought. But I get over myself cause I work with bomb ass MUAs/Stylists that can turn the "ugly duckling" into the swann. I NEVER say that to the model but some really needed the help. To the OP, don't sweat this. Her loss and you didn't waste your time with a models who would have given you some awful pics beacuse she has issues and was uncomfortable. Aug 10 06 11:56 am Link As long as the photographer can do the job and do it well, what difference should their color be? That makes no sense. If a model can be shot with a black camera or any other color camera, why should it matter what color the person holding the camera is.... Aug 10 06 12:00 pm Link why would it matter what race you are....as long as you're proffesional and your work is good, race or anything else shouldn't matter. Aug 10 06 12:01 pm Link Hey Man... Welcome to the club. My profile has stated that I'm an African-American photographer for several months now. I've had 2 models cancel once they found out I was black, so now everyone knows up front. I'm past the point of being of naive about race so I don't have a problem with putting "I'm Black" on my profile. Aug 10 06 12:01 pm Link I'm going to try to play devil's advocate here a little (even though I agree with the person who made the bigot remark).. Just because.. Should your race, gender preference, or other things that have nothing to do with the quality of your work or your professionalism play into whether a person should/shouldn't shoot with you? No.. But.. If the shoot was racially, ethnically, politically, or any other "-ally" themed.. Then THAT should be a factor that should be brough forth in the beginning.. Since it plays into how the subject (the model) will be represented in the images.. At which point their beliefs do matter.. I bring this up not because of anything the OP did or didn't do, but because there was a thread a while back in which a gay photographer complained that his model was upset because the photos they took ended up on a gay photography site.. Now the point is the photographer wasn't exactly hiding this information (and there was a small logo stating that just because the models appeared on this site it did not mean they were necesserily gay..) But none of this was stated completely up front and on the surface.. And at this point it had gone past who the photographer was, into the realm of how the model would be perceived.. Point is.. It sucks.. It can get sticky.. But do we all have to be so quick to judgement? Aug 10 06 12:02 pm Link Should a Black photographer disclose that fact? No. Doing show suggests a preoccupation with your skin color yourself. Apparently there are some llamas who already do enough of that stupidity for most of us. Aug 10 06 12:02 pm Link So Says Amara. wrote: 50 points. Aug 10 06 12:02 pm Link PPRO Analyst wrote: This is the last place I'd expect a reaction like that. We're all about creating something not destroying it. Aug 10 06 12:04 pm Link e-string wrote: You haven't been to Alabama have you???? LOL It sucks that people are still like that. If you take good pics, you take good pics. That's the way I look at it. Aug 10 06 12:04 pm Link |
