Model Safety

The following are provided as general guidelines for protecting yourself. Any one under the age of 18 needs to have parental / Guardian consent in any sort of modelling or commercial photography and publication. This is under the law of the UK and many states and countries throughout the World: All that you do, needs parent / Guardian approval. Be wary of photographers / promoters telling you otherwise. Model safety is a very important issue to myself and any serious photographer which is why I have included this page on my web site. The golden rule for an internet model should be safety first and there is certainly nothing wrong in being careful!

Model Safety Guidelines

When attending a shoot, or meeting with someone for the first time, always use a chaperone.

Never put your full address or phone number on any post in a modeling forum or other public area.

Obtain as much information you can about those you are considering working with.

Take a companion with you they can stay in earshot in the next room. In all honesty it is uncomfortable for many photographers to do their job when every move they make is being watched. A good companion will wait in the next room and give the photographer his space. However should things go wrong. In advance of the shoot you should discuss a couple of code words with your companion - one code word that means you feel uncomfortable and your companion should not leave you alone.
Plus a code word that tells your companion to call for help immediately.
Your chaperone is really a matter of not encountering any surprises without support.

Ask for references and examples of prior work. You should always be able to obtain these from any model the photographer has previously worked with If you have to stay overnight make sure accommodation is provided for you.

Never stay overnight at the photographers home. If travel and hotel plans have been made by the photographer verify with the hotel.
Always feel free to ask about anything you are not sure about
Prior to arranging a shoot, discuss and clearly agree on the subject matter of the shoot. Ensure that the terms of the shoot are established in advanced
(TFP, pay rate, expenses, etc).

Be certain to get a verifiable home and/or studio phone number, and street address, for anyone you work with.

The ultimate way to protect yourself from bogus organisations is prevention. Replacing starry eyes with good old fashioned common sense and gut feeling is essential.

A couple of extra hints:

Treat a genuine offer of help like gold dust. Opportunity's knock is a light one in the entertainment's industry and it may only come round once.

Finally, never agree to do a shoot, then change your mind, without a valid reason. Most valid reasons are associated with medical problems/illness. Most other reasons are mostly excuses. Excuses are not acceptable. If you offer an excuse, that is genuine, then be prepared to back that up, so the photographer knows you were sincere and will be much more likely to try working with you another time.

Try not to burn the candle at both ends! We all want to party like Rock Stars at times but during regular castings and work its hard to do this. Knock late nights and heavy consumption of alcohol on the head. No one wants a model with a weeks worth of shopping under her eyes!