Words of Wisdom

A portfolio is a compendium of the work you have done as a model. More importantly, it is a way for a model to demonstrate to a casting director, art director, photographer or client her range, look and ability to pose.

A good portfolio can be the best asset a model can have. A bad portfolio can be like a chain around your neck.

Most new models tend to go overboard when creating their first portfolio. They will try to compile as many photos as they can, good or bad. Generally speaking, a good portfolio will have about ten, unique photos of the best quality you have available. Having more isn't necessarily bad, but it deprives you of the ability to truly impress your viewer with your finest work. Similar photos from the same shoot are a bad thing since is demonstrates that you have little history. Poor quality photos reflect badly upon you. Images that are obviously old are also a detriment since they generally don't reflect your current look.

Rule number one: A portfolio should show what you look like today, unless you are displaying a tear sheet and want to demonstrate publication.

If you have recently changed your hair color, for example, and have a great photo from your old style you would like to show off, that is fine. In general though, if you change your look, you need to change your book. There is a trends towards smaller pictures in your book. In the past 11" x 14" was common, today we often see 9" x 12" or even 8" x 10".

Rule number two: You don't need a portfolio to get an agent.

Yes, you heard me right. That you need your portfolio first is one of the great myths of the underworld. The truth is if you have the look, you can walk into a fashion agency with a Polaroid and get yourself signed. The other truth is that if you get signed by a large agency, they will most probably throw your portfolio in the trash, or at least major parts of it. The exception is that, if you are intending to be a commercial model, most commercial agents will want you to have your collateral materials in advance.  With the big fashion agencies though, it is generally not needed.

The common process, if you get signed with a larger fashion agency, is for them to give you a list of photographers, you select the one of your choice and you then have a portfolio shot at your expense to their specifications. In some cases the agency might advance you the cost, but they will deduct it from future earnings.

The corollary to all of this is that if your portfolio is really bad, if the photo quality is bad, your expressions bad, your wardrobe bad, etc., it could dissuade an agency from signing you.

Which brings me to Rule number three: If you want to shoot with amateurs, get an amateur portfolio.

With the Internet and the proliferation of amateur digital photographers, there are constant opportunities to trade modeling for prints or modeling for CD's of the images taken. With the advent of quality digital cameras and improvements in digital editing software, everyone is a professional photographer. The problem is that they are not!

In the old days, it was a big deal for an established photographer to agree to test with a model at no charge. Well known shooters were booking talent for major clients and had no need to persuade models to work for free. So in that environment, it was a big deal for them to agree to shoot a model without charging her.

Today that concept has been extended so that photographers use the pretext of testing, as a way to gain skills rather than a seasoned professional having an opportunity to try out new equipment or techniques. I am not suggesting that trades are bad, only that testing is not what it is used to be.

For a new model who is inexperienced and uncomfortable in front of the camera, it is fine to do a few trades to get some on camera time. The trick is to do so without the expectation of getting images that will impress a professional. Don't be disappointed if the images are bad. Likewise, don't delude yourself to believe that the results are better than they are. Good snapshots are nothing more than that, good snapshots.

Professional make-up, professional lighting, professional equipment and professional sets make all the difference in the world. The best portfolio is made up of images that you have been paid to shoot for followed by quality images from experienced photographers who you paid to shoot you.  Occasionally you might get some great images when trading with a photographer, but you need to view that as the exception, not the rule. 

Creating a portfolio out of bad images simply shows that you don't know what quality is.

In the end, you are fooling nobody. A seasoned art director will know immediately that you are a new model. If you have the look, the personality and the drive, your chances of being booked are better if you are honest than if you come forward with a portfolio that either does you no justice, or worse, reflects badly upon you.