Sourcing Local Talent

A seasoned commercial photographer knows what it takes to get the best results when sourcing local talent. Before you can hire any talent, you need to have a clear vision of the type of talent you are hiring. Ideally, it pays to research local agencies before you actually need to do any hiring; this will save you time in the long run.While appearance in general is important when hiring models, the overall tone of the project needs to be taken into consideration as well regarding model selection. If you have been hired for resort photography and the photographs are meant to depict the resort activities that guest could partake in, such as, surfing, then you need to hire models skilled at surfing. It is important to make the distinction between hiring surfers that are experienced models versus hiring surfers with no modeling experience. Just because an athlete is the best at their chosen sport, does not mean they can also perform that sport in front of the camera.We know you didn’t become a professional photographer just to end up crunching the numbers, but the overall budget for a commercial photographer needs to be kept in mind when hiring talent. Shop around to local agencies for their availability and rates. Factors that can impact your budget: will the models have to travel, will the shoot last a number of days, what is the per diem rate for the models, etc.Another aspect to consider when sourcing local talent, whether or not you will need to hire hair and makeup stylists as well. Most likely you will need to hire these professionals to help make your photo shoot a success and their fee will affect your overall budget.We pride ourselves on the fostering strong relationships with local talent and model agencies. We know exactly who to turn to when it is time to hire specific talent for an upcoming shoot. Paying careful attention to this element of the photo shoot will yield excellent returns for you in the end.