Advice for Creating Your Modeling Portfolio
Creating your modeling portfolio is essential for a career in modeling. Whether you intend to pursue runway or commercial print, giving CD’s an idea of your look is how you book. Before you even get to that part, you’ll likely have a photoshoot to create your portfolio. What’s important in having your shoot, is knowing what you want out of the session. These helpful tips will guide you on what you should know when creating your modeling portfolio.
1. Know Your Look
The first and most important step is to look in the mirror and be honest with yourself. How are you realistically going to get cast in a commercial print campaign? Do you have a high-end look and should be booking jobs for Gap catalogs where you’re getting roles because of your great looks? Or do you have more of the everyday person type of look and can get hired for the doctor, real estate agent, or sick person for a pharmaceutical campaign? Without understanding how you are honestly going to get cast, it makes it very difficult to create the right types of photos that will get you work.
2. Do Some Research
After making the decision on your type, you’ll want to begin doing research. Instead of asking a photographer what you should do during a photoshoot, you want to find existing ads that are right for your category. Creating a number of different shots that look like ads while showing a variety of expressions and emotions will give you your best chance for getting both representation and bookings. Go through magazine ads that you could imagine seeing yourself in. When you see an ad and can honestly say, “I could do that ad,” then use the ad as a template for your photoshoot.
3. Ditch the Logos
You want to have a photo that looks like an ad for a specific product or products without using logos or brand names. You have to make it look like an ad without any headlines or copy (the words in the ad). Some people make a mistake by thinking that if they show an actual product in their test shot, people might think they really did an ad for that company. Along with the legal issues, you could lose work by doing this because you won’t be considered for jobs with competitors of that company. So, use props without showing the actual product name or logo. While studying the ad, you also want to see what location is needed for the shot. Is this a shot you can recreate in a photographer’s studio or do you need to go out on location?
4. Practice Makes Perfect
Along with magazines, you can also visit stock photography websites and search for your type. Typically, you will see thousands of photos that can give you ideas for how to create the shot. Once you figured out how to produce the right photo, then practice getting the right emotions and expressions. You can use a cell phone and make sure you have the skill to not only give the look that’s needed but also show layers of emotions that could also work. With the location, props, and wardrobe finalized, now you just need to find a photographer. You can show samples of the shots you want and make sure the photographer is willing to leave the studio if needed and begin creating eye-catching photos that will grab the attention of industry professionals.
5. Now It’s Showtime
Once you have produced these photos, you want to begin placing them on your website, your agent’s site, and all other places where you are promoting yourself. You will also need a composite sheet. This is the model’s headshot essentially. The difference? Instead of just having one photo, a typical composite sheet or Zed card has one photo on the front and three or four photos on the back. You will also include your name, contact information, and sizes on the card. It is always helpful to have some cards on hand. Every time you attend a go-see (the model’s audition) you always want to bring a few with you, just in case the photographer or client wants a copy.
