3 tips for working with agency models

Maybe your friends are tired of you practising on them and you want to up your game by working with professional models or maybe you have relationships with agencies in your city but are wondering how to approach an agency while you are traveling abroad. While agency models don’t work for free, they will participate in mutually beneficial portfolio building sessions called “tests” or “creatives” at no cost to you if the agency deems your style to be in line with their aesthetic. These are a few things to consider when reaching out.

Be polite and professional 

Agents are extremely busy people and are constantly dealing with an influx of emails - it may seem obvious, but your email might get missed if you don’t state your purpose in your subject line. I usually label mine “test shoot with (name of model)” and include links to both my social media and my website and those of any make up artists/hair + clothing stylists I have on board. I also make sure to mention that the shoot is non commercial and for portfolio purposes only. If you plan on submitting the shoot to a magazine, you should mention it up front. Showcasing the work you create together in magazines, social media, blogs and personal portfolio websites is usually completely fine, agents just want to make sure that their model’s image isn’t being used for profit to promote brands, products or organizations.

Hello!

I just wanted to introduce myself - my name is Kate Whyte and I’m a beauty photographer from Vancouver. You can view my work at www.katewhyte.com and instagram.com/katewhytephoto. I’ll be in your city from May 6th to 12th and I’d love to set up a non-commercial creative with Model Name while I’m there.

MUA Name (instagram.com/muausername) is available for H+MU and I’ve attached a mood board, but we’re flexible if there is a direction that you’d prefer that we go. I can be reached at XXX-XXX-XXXX.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Kate

Ask for new faces

Agencies usually have two categories of models - established faces from their mainboard and new faces on their development board. If you are starting out, I’d advise requesting one of their new faces as they will be more likely to need new portfolio material. Once you build trust with the agency and they like your work, they will be more likely to offer up more experienced models for you to work with.

Be prepared

Having a plan is important. Before you send your email, take some time to assemble a team and create a mood board. A mood board doesn’t have to be complicated or over-designed. Agents are just interested in getting an idea of the styling and overall vibe of the shoot. I recommend keeping things simple if it’s your first time reaching out and making the natural beauty of the model the focus. If the agency agrees to let you work with their model, they will ask you for a call sheet with the details for the shoot and contact information for everyone involved.

A mood board can be this simple - it lets the agent know that you’re going for minimal, 90’s supermodel glam

Because so many people request to work with their models, agents are often extremely particular about who they say yes to so don’t take it personally if you don’t get the response you were looking for. Often they have a small roster of photographers that they work with regularly to keep the style of the model portfolios consistent.

Best of luck working with agencies and if you have any tips that have worked for you, feel free to share them in the comments!

What I look for when working with a make up artist for beauty photography

Beauty Photograph of Brianna Anderson @brriannaanderson Hair and makeup by Rio Translado @riotranslado

Make up for beauty photography is a lot different than special occasion make up where the focus is usually airbrushed flawlessness, sculpted brows, contouring and lashes for days. I’m lucky to get approached by talented MUAs regularly but there are a few things that I look for that influence my decision to work with someone.

Skin 

• I want to be able to see it. Often, make up artists I work with don’t even use foundation for beauty. They might colour correct under the eyes and spot fix a few imperfections, but in general, they let the skin shine. When I’m retouching an image with heavy foundation, it’s very difficult - if not impossible - to maintain a natural skin texture. Skin has minuscule colour variations and foundation unifies it and fills in pores - this is great for a wedding or graduation but, in my opinion, doesn’t usually work for the style of photography I do. I also tend to avoid chunky, metallic highlighter in favour of a light gloss as I don’t love the way the pigment catches the light.

Strip lashes

• BIG lashes are everywhere these days. From Sasha Velour to Kim Kardashian, it’s clear that we love them! And why wouldn’t we? They have the incredibly ability to transform a face and instantly up the glam factor on a night out. All that being said, my MUAs almost never use them. Lash bands have evolved to be thinner and more invisible than ever but the way I photograph picks up every detail and strip lashes always end up looking too artificial. Up close, they are too obvious, too uniform and they are almost never used in high end fashion photography. Pick up a Vogue and try to spot the strip lash. I bet you can’t. If it’s more of a lash focused look, I always prefer individuals.

Restraint

• Being able to show restraint is a big one. Often when I’m looking at MUA portfolios, I see a lot of big, over-the-top looks. Lots of flowers glued on faces, teased hair, big lashes and bold lips. I totally get it, it’s so fun to experiment and play and when I look back at my work from years ago, it’s also really busy and shouty - like I was trying to cram as many elements as I could into one image. I think there is real magic in those quiet beauty moments. I’m not saying to avoid those fun experimentations entirely, just prove that you can do both. In my opinion, for beauty photography, a subtle gloss on a lid can have more impact than a five colour cut crease.

There are so many different styles of make up artistry and finding your voice can be such a journey. These are just a few preferences that I have as a photographer but by no means is it the only way or the right way and there are always exceptions to every rule.