Brining Photography Weblog

And Then There Were Three...

This story is becoming like a soap opera! 

In the beginning there were two West Highland Terriers - Angus and Hamish - who I was called upon just before Christmas 2008 to photograph for their owner. Shortly after Christmas, Angus departed to be replaced by Hector who was subsequently photographed in early February.

Since then, Hector's brother Herbie has arrived. Just as wonderful (and mischievous) as Hector, and in late March I was back again to photograph the terrier-trio.

Pictured (L-R) are Herbie, Hamish and Hector and the single image shows Herbie looking a bit unsure as to whether he should be on the leather sofa or not.

Bogus Modelling Agencies?

My step-daughter (let's call her Helen for purposes of this story) recently decided that she'd like to try her hand at modelling, no doubt fuelled by the apparent instant-success culture of the American TV teen programmes that she so enjoys watching. 

As she was so convinced that she was the Next Best Thing, she was given the task of doing some research to find a suitable agency to approach. After many hours of searching and excited appearances from behind the computer with another wad of information for us to patiently sift through, she finally found one that she liked the look of.

The agency, let's call them "New Faeces", requested she send a selection of photos for evaluation purposes. No problem there then. I was duly pressed into service to provide said pictures and these were subsequently despatched to the agency with accompanying documentation.

All OK so far.

A few weeks later, just as my wife and I thought it had all been forgotten, an email turned up saying that "yes indeed, Helen could be the Next Best Thing" and all that was required now was a cheque for £125 to "register" her with the agency and for them to produce a handful of picture cards.

Note that at this stage there was no offer of a contract or any guarantee of work. At all. What the £125 fee 'guaranteed' (and this was never tested) was that Helen's details would be kept on file and when a potential client requested details of a model that fit Helen's profile she, along with the however many hundred other 'matches', would pop up and her details made available to them. 

From this, she MAY have been chosen to attend an audition, and following this she MAY have been picked and offered the contract.

The point is that there's an awful lot of "MAYs" involved, having already parted with a not insubstantial amount of cash. Now call me sceptical but there are a considerable number of young and eager aspiring models out there, perhaps more ready to shell out the money than we were in the hope of gaining a lucrative contract. You don't really need any mathematical prowess to work out how much money could be made from this - let's call it - scam.

Interestingly, a very well-known and respected agency - let's call them Storm Models - say on their website that "We will NOT ask you for any money up front - that includes NO joing fee." and that entry into their agency is purely by interview i.e. if they don't think that you are suitable for modelling work, you don't get in. But more importantly, you've lost nothing in the process. 

Even more interestingly, we hear in the news recently that the Government are currently investigating these bogus modelling agencies who charge fees to join. Makes you wonder how prevalent this is for the Government to get involved doesn't it?

So to all you aspiring models out there, I'll happily take a portfolio of pictures for you but beware who you submit them to!

Hector & Hamish

Regular readers of this blog (assuming there are some) will probably remember that just before Christmas I took some portraits of a couple of ageing West Highland terriers - Angus and Hamish. Unfortunately since then (but hopefully not related to my visit) Angus, sadly, had to be put to sleep.

Shortly into the new year however, there was a new arrival - Hector - a gorgeous little Westie pup who took no time in making himself at home apparently. 

So following a call from their owner, another visit ensued and we spent a good hour or so attempting to get both dogs to a) sit together, b) sit still and c) look at the camera (preferably at the same time) In fairness, Hector was fabulous given his age and seemed to enjoy being the centre of attention whilst Hamish just looked on laconically (if, indeed a dog can be laconic) with an air of quiet resignation.

I've not previously been overtly fond of small dogs, but I must admit that I could have happily smuggled Hector out in my camera bag - he was just wonderful. 

Angus & Hamish

A fun shoot just before Christmas involved Angus and Hamish - two West Highland Terriers whose owner wanted a lasting record of her favourite pooches.

The two terrors -er - terriers were very inquisitive (Hamish particularly) and enjoyed sniffing through the contents of my camera and lighting cases. Having said that, they were great models when it came to the actual shoot and stayed exactly where posed. If only some of my human subjects were so well behaved!

Their owner was delighted with the results and ordered a 24x20 inch and 20x16 inch print to hang on the wall.

 "When I say, run!"

Phillippa's Headshots

This was a portrait session for Phillippa - an actress heading off to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival who needed some headshots for prospective casting agencies. The aim of the session was to provide a number of different 'looks' (which is vital for any actor) achieved by various lighting styles and costume / hair changes.

The show for Edinburgh is 'Escape', which is an internet safety play for children aged 7-13. It has successfully toured 60 schools in the Dudley Borough for the past term, and will continue to tour nationally from this Autumn. Unfortunately there is no website as yet for this production, but www.saltimine.org tells you a bit about the charity 'Saltmine Trust' which runs 4 theatre companies. 'Red Balloon' is Saltmine's children's theatre company performing 'Escape' in Edinburgh.

The blurb in the Edinburgh Fringe programme for the show is:
'This delightful production teaches rules for e-safety. A little girl goes into a forest alone for the first time. There are wolves, but she's learned rules to keep her safe. Will she remember? Will she survive? Will she escape?'

Good luck to Phillippa and the rest of the cast with this production. If you're up there - go and see it!