I appreciate your comments, LynnT. It all makes sense. I plan on getting a couple of photo shoots under my belt and then making my rates very clear. I just thought I could do something I really enjoy (photographing beautiful women) and make a little bit of extra cash doing it and, maybe help some struggling providers at the same time by offering a quality product at a good rate. I just have to get these first few shoots under my belt. I have some prospects, so hopefully it will take off very soon. Again, thank you for your comments. I do take it all to heart. Originally Posted by centex_mexYou can always place an ad on Craigslist looking for models for trade, also Modelmayhem.com, start a profile there and you can run castings looking for people to shoot. Do some hot couple shots as well, they are growing in popularity. You also want some extra cash doing it get into doing some family portraits/senior portraits.
Also when you get some images for a portfolio get a nice website it will be much easier to get people to work with you, a website is Very important. Clean, easy to navigate and easy gallery viewing. I can suggest some for you that are at a great price. PM me. Also set up a flickr account, easy to use when you want to post images on the net in forums etc, it generates code for you. They also have a nice picture quality there. Get the pro account is only $25. If you go pro you can actually put full resolution files there, clients can download from there if you give permission or you can lock it so people cant.
When I work trade shoots I only give websize images of the ones I put through post production. If they want print size I charge for them. 5-10 images is the general average for a trade shoot. I put in my castings for a minimum of 5 web images. If you can find makeup artists to work with, some will work for trade as they are building their port too. Also worth paying one, A good makeup job can make all the difference in the world! Also cuts out tons of post production time. Some makeup does not work well with the camera, creates hot spots.. there is a whole world of HD makeup for film/photography.