Rae01 wrote:
i always respond.  ALWAYS.  so some people do. :-)

You are definitely in the minority.  But you also - by virtue of doing so - demonstrate a lot more class.

ward wrote:
Cause it's a hobby for them, and they're not really serious.

Somewhat understandable, but when you tell them that they will be paid several hundred dollars for a few hours work....i dont understand the unresponsiveness

Cardillo Photography wrote:

Somewhat understandable, but when you tell them that they will be paid several hundred dollars for a few hours work....i dont understand the unresponsiveness

Even though it's rude...the lack of response probably indicates a lack of interest.  I always try to respond, even with a 'no, thank you'.  Sometimes emails fall between the cracks, though.  For every person who doesn't respond, you can probably find 20 that are interested.  Brush it off, don't stress about it, and do the best job you can with a model who wants to be there.

ward wrote:
Cause it's a hobby for them, and they're not really serious.

Bingo.

And with a lot of them, they freak when they actually have to step up to the plate and realise they don't know a damn thing about modeling.

Clint wrote:
As simple "yes, please," "no, but thanks for asking," or "I'm not sure, tell me more" would really go a long way.  But with time and expereicen I have come to the conclusion that modeling is like a lot of the rest of life.  It is not the attributes with which one is born that are the predicters of success in any given field.  It is not beauty, brains, talent, education or ability.  About 90% of success can be attributed to just showing up.  Answering emails is part of just showing up.  The rest are at home or wherever they are, clueless, while the clever few are grabbing the opportunities.

I understand people not having the time or energy for platitudes and cliches. If the person who I asked to model thinks my work sucks, they won't respond.

CDW Images wrote:
Honestly, would you rather them not reply at all at first, or do a no-show when you set up the shoot and hire a MUA etc. In my opinion it helps weed out the serious from the non-serious hobbists.

This is my take on it also.  Let them show their hand early on and you know what you're (not) dealing with.  I send an e-mail, wait a week, then hit the mental delete button upon 'no response'.

Kali Doom wrote:
Some probably forget they even have that e-mail address or their MM account, so they have no idea they have messages.  They created the account on a whim.

However, responding to a casting call and the ignoring is rude and unprofessional.

That's what I always suspected...drunken dare from a girlfriend to create an account after snapping a few webcam pictures!

Cardillo Photography wrote:
This has probably been done to death but I am just wondering why people cannot have the common decency and professionalism to respond to emails?  I would just love to get a response...even if it is "No Thanks"

I don't have a problem with lack of response to an unsolicited contact from me to a model. If the message remains unread, I know that the model is not that serious, at least as far as MM participation. If it was read, I assume the model is not interested at this time. I believe that everyone has the right to ignore unsolicited contacts, as it is stressful to have to reply in the negative. Also, saying "no thanks" may close the door to a later opportunity vs. saying nothing.

I do have a problem with models going silent once interest has been established. In this instance, it is rude and unprofessional. If the model changes their mind, an explanation is owed.

Jphoto wrote:

I understand people not having the time or energy for platitudes and cliches. If the person who I asked to model thinks my work sucks, they won't respond.

This is NOT true.  Very often models won't take the time to review what your
work looks like.  Now listen carefully, grasshopper.  Its not your work, you
or even what your profile says.  Its not personal and by the way everyone
who's speaking to this issue has decent to good work.  Its not personal.  These
models don't know you.  There are lots of reasons why models may not respond
and its best not to lose a moment of your valuable day thinking about why.

We should all consider what we say and how we say it but if people are responding
and seem intrested then vanish who knows what happened.  Here's a check list:
Were you polite, yes.
Did you give all or most of the details about the shoot, yes.
Did you make corny or sexy jokes, no.
Its all good then. 

I'd love to shoot more but I don't care anymore when models don't respond.

Cardillo Photography wrote:
This has probably been done to death but I am just wondering why people cannot have the common decency and professionalism to respond to emails?  I would just love to get a response...even if it is "No Thanks"

I know EXACTLY what you mean.  One of my pet peeves as well.  Ignoring someone is much ruder than politely saying no.

Cardillo Photography wrote:
For all they know I might have several high paying clients looking for a specific model type that they fit.........no response could mean no money for them...

Exactly!  If I ever get so busy as a photographer to the point where I can't answer all my e-mail's - I'm sure I would have enough in my budget to hire an assistant who can prioritize and at least send a polite reply (or block) to the least important e-mail's.

JAY carreon
PHOTOGRAPHER