Model Prices

[Gabriel]

I guess it depends on your market. I live near Chicago and many of my girls come from the city or near the city. I've also worked with some girls a little closer to home (Indiana).

I've found the forums to be pretty typical of just about any forum on the 'net. They have pretty heavy moderation, especially when compared to a site like this where moderation is pretty light. That of course is in their industry forums. If you venture into the Soapbox it's pretty much no holes barred.

I can't imagine handing out business cards to strangers on the street netting you more reliable models... But then I've never tried it for fear of being viewed as a creep.

MM might not be ideal in that everyone on there is an agency represented model and the photographers run the gamut from GWC to world famous photographers. I don't know what else you would expect from a extremely popular photographer/model networking site. I've tried other models sites and they're either dead, poorly laid out, or both.

Sure, you have to work at finding a model. You have to contact them, call them, screen them, talk to some referrals... kind of like running a business and interviewing prospective employees. I don't think you'll ever find a site out there that takes the work out of work... but if you do, please post the URL!

But things may be much different in south Florida. That's probably more a reflection on the area vs. Model Mayhem. I chat with many photogs nationally and internationally on MM and few of them complain about the reliability of models... but then they've spent quite a bit of time learning how to screen them effectively... something I'm starting to master myself.

If you're just starting out in photography and are looking to work with models for the first time, MM is probably the best place in the country to find them. If there's a site I'm missing, let me know because I would like to check it out!

You make a good point on the area/location and Model Mayhem. I'm a little spoiled down here and I know it (I still want to live in NYC instead, though).

I'll admit that MM is pretty unique, it's like the MySpace of the fashion and glamour world. I think its getting so big was actually a bad thing, though, for me. If you got into it more recently than I did, you'd probably think it's a great place to hang your hat for a while. I guess I'll always compare it to how it was when I got on it (about 3K members or so) to now (tens of thousands of members?).

I got lots of complaints from other photographers through the private messages, in regards to no-shows and flakes. Eventually, the conversation would come around to that, and I started to see I wasn't the only one (not to mention all the countless threads about it).

But like I said, if it works for you, it's great. I don't think that there is another site like it around, and the ones before and after it probably don't compare too well. My own experiences on it started to turn wasteful, plus I was shying away from that scene altogether, so I gave up on it and left.

Just keep in mind that you can be anything you want to be on the 'Net, but that persona may be far from the real thing. There was even a local girl that was conning some guys out of $50 a pop - it was to cover her "expenses," sent through Paypal. And then she'd never show up.

Agreed on the forums and their general attitude, though some of the folks on there - the major postwhores and their sycophants - were a particularly pedantic bunch. I don't think I ever got into a pissing match with anyone (I tend not to really argue over the Internet, only in person!), but I saw a lot of it all the time.

As with anything, tread carefully. One thing I will say for it, though, is that when I wanted to redo my entire portfolio some years ago, I did it primarily through MM. And I never paid any models anything other than prints and/or CDs.

 

[bhphotography]

I use model mayhem frequently for many different projects from wedding to boudoir. I have only paid a model twice and that is when I posted a casting call with pay. Try posting a casting call, under a TFP arangement and see who replies to it. Weed out the flakes and go from there. If you are just testing your lights and getting practice, try to find a model under TFP. If you are doing nude work, expect to pay a little bit.

Some models in my area look for $20-$40 / hr while they are starting out. Sometimes offer wardrobe or other forms of compensation.

 

[wescobts]

Funny story, a friend of mine refurbished an old truck and wanted a shot. He also wants a nude to go along with it. So I went to a local strip club and hired a local girl, nice looks and seemed to be excited about doing some work for her portfolio. There would be no money exchanged, but head shots of her would be payment. She showed up SOOO wasted, even her "manager" was embarrassed. Needless to say I took shots of the truck, & sent her on her way.

 

[DeadEye]

Seemed to become divas who expected you to bring a wardrobe stylist and a makeup artist to a TFP shoot - on YOUR dime.

Hee Heee ~ been there and done that.

Live and learn. I find it better to pay for experanced models and forget the wannabe types

Schooled only. Barbazon or IMTA talent if its for a client.