Many years ago, while working on a magazine, I was charged with organizing and overseeing a photo shoot. A fairly long-legged step away from the usual editorial work I was doing, I eagerly embraced the task. Change is always fun.
It didn’t come without its unique challenges, however. The location was small-town rural, a place where young people in search of glamour left for various cosmopolitan areas, and studio spaces equipped to handle such a large project, were sparse. Besides facing a limited hiring pool, this was a small publication with a budget as lean as catwalk models. I lucked out when a well-known local portrait photographer agreed to come on board, primarily for the free publicity, and she worked with me scouting out affordable locations, fashions and photogenic people.
It ultimately came together and it is one of my professional pride and joys from that time that I managed it on my own with relatively little experience in that milieu.
Now, as mentioned, there was a budget, albeit a dismally scanty one by most standards. Imagine, the challenge for new photographers trying to break into the microstock industry. The outlay of cash before one even has a guarantee of income can only be daunting, if not completely impossible, for struggling artists. Or, even if money, or lack thereof, isn’t the issue, knowing where to find good models may be, particularly if you don’t live in larger urban centres.
If portrait and model photography is your dream, though, here are lots of ideas online on how to find models, as well as how to get started without investing too much into the project initially. Check out these sites for starters:
PictureCorrect Finding Models for Photography
PhotoSecrets How to Find Models Online
eHow Find Inexpensive Models for Photography
PhotoSecrets How to Get Free Models
