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AUGUST
2007
Uprising
In The Tampa Bay Modeling Industry
INTRODUCTION
BY MODEL MONICA STEVENS
Ola! I'm model
Monica Stevens, the resident top model in the Tampa Bay market, and
I'm back. As this rather hot summer nears it's end, I am getting settled
in with this spectacular new Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag format, and
I am still playing catch-up with answering some of the best letters
that we received in the last nine months during my break. It is back
to work. Tampa Bay Modeling is very important to the professional
integrity of the modeling industry here in Tampa Bay, and my Mail
Bag column, which has no equal, is a regular read
for most of the professionals in the Tampa Bay modeling industry.
Going back to catching up, I would have answered some of these letters
last month in the July 2007 Mail Bag, but doing a relaunch of the
series was tough, and I simply ran out of time. We wrapped and uploaded
it nine days late on July 9, and as soon as it went up I didn't stop
and started immediately on this August 2007 Mail Bag. Hopefully by
September I will be able to settle into a more leisurely pace. I may
have to, as Tampa Bay Film's resident indie film Director Alex Cain
is launching the Tampa Bay Film Mail Bag in September 2007, and we
don't want to swamp our editors and webmaster (No word from Tampa
Bay Acting's Brian Steel on a Tampa Bay Acting Mail Bag, but I can
presume that it is in the works. His Mail Bag for Independent Acting
back in the day was very good, and he is a great writer as well as
a great actor).
Word has it that the Mail Bags for the other Tampa Bay Talent sites
will follow the trail that I've blazed over the years. Good stuff.
This Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag column, of course, continues to be
a work-in-progress. You can expect it to be adjusted as we go forward.
We are taking older Mail Bags and are fitting them with this new format;
this has been completed, and we may even obtain my older modeling
Mail Bags from Independent Modeling and port them over here for our
archives. We are beefing up the Mail Bag archives and are sorting
them out by both month and subject. We are also giving our readers
a reason to go back and visit old Mail Bags, as we
will adjust content and even add to them from time to time.
We have not decided on exactly how we will do this yet, but let's
say that you saw a letter and my response in the July 2007 Mail Bag
and either disagreed with me or wanted to add your own response (
Much like the Tampa Bay Modeling
Opinion section does). You would compose your letter and
send it to us, referencing the particular Mail Bag and the letter.
What we would do is add your letter after my response to the referenced
letter in the July 2007 Mail Bag as soon as we received it (Immediately,
much like a Blog or a message board / forum), and then reference the
addition to the relevant Mail Bag in the next Mail Bag instead of
adding your letter referencing the letter in the old Mail Bag to our
new Mail Bag. This should cut down on a lot of my repeat answers,
too, as well as turn older Mail Bags into debate columns and give
people reasons to revisit them (They will be referenced in our subject-organized
Mail Bag archives, also, so our readers can put the letter and the
response in the appropriate context). If we decide to do it this way,
it would be cool. I think we shall do that, maybe as soon as today.
God, I really hate repeating myself, too. Some of the past Mail Bags
make me sound like a broken record as I answer the same questions
over and over again.
We are also toying with the idea of "building" our Mail
Bags by finishing and uploading them at least a week before they are
due. This would allow the search engines to sip on them before they
officially came online and ensure that we wouldn't ever be late again.
We would post the first of the month every time. So, what about those
last-minute E-Mails? If I have the time, I would simply answer them
and add them to the pending Mail Bag Blog Style before it was official!
Interesting.....
Anyway, I finally made some time to go to the beach with my boyfriend
and some of my model friends last weekend. It was an awesome time
for all of us, and Clearwater Beach is excellent for the swimming,
reading, and cooking out. Danielle Cooper, the supreme editor of Tampa
Bay Modeling, is very lucky living in her condo right on Clearwater
Beach. I am tempted to give up my place in south Tampa's Hyde Park
and move over here. We could be neighbors.
Well, as I sit here admiring my lack of tan lines, maybe I should
start on this month's hot Mail Bag for August 2007. Don't forget the
ice, baby.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
August
2007 Modeling Mail Bag Table Of Contents
01.
LETTER OF THE MONTH - Stick Figures
Tampa Bay model Stacy sounds off about weights issues
in the modeling industry.
02.
Three Little Checks
A Tampa Bay model wonders if she should cash three
suspicious checks for a job that she did.
03.
Interview My Model Daughter
A mother thinks that we are a model agency and wants
us to consider her model daughter for representation.
04.
Model School Information
A mother asks if a model school is legitimate.
05.
The Great Modeling War Of 2006 - No, 2007
Another person questions our fight for accountability
and professional credibility for the Tampa Bay modeling industry.
06.
Missing Modeling Links
A Tampa Bay model reports that our links are down.
07.
Independent Modeling Failure
Someone is happy when they think that Independent
Modeling died. If only they knew the truth.
08.
Altering Portfolio Pictures
A Tampa model asks about the difference between range-of-looks
in a portfolio and altering portfolio pictures.
09.
The Great Composite Card Flood Of 2007
How much is too much? The misconceptions about ordering
too many composite cards and the unqualified opinions confusing models.
10.
I Am Going To Sue And Assault You
A Tampa Bay psycho threatens Tampa Bay Modeling with
a lawsuit and model Monica Stevens with assault. Are those police
officers at your door?
11.
Tampa Bay Modeling Is RIGHT!
Tampa Bay Modeling gets help from an unexpected source
- A model agency booker flips and offers to help us in the Tampa Bay
model industry war.
LETTER
OF THE MONTH: Stick Figures
Hi Monica and
Tampa Bay Girls:
Did you hear
about Spain’s recent refusal to employ unhealthy (anorexic-looking)
models in their runway shows? This situation caught my attention,
as I felt it was long overdue. For years the industry has been focused
on setting a standard of beauty that is basically unattainable (not
to mention extremely unhealthy) and spoon-feeding it to the general
public as the normal standard. The industry has insisted that the
waif-like, anorexic, heroin-addicted look is what the public should
aspire to. The result has been an alarming number of teenage girls
developing weight and appearance issues at a disproportionately young
age. These young people are bombarded on a daily basis by the media
with a steady diet of superficial images of artificial beauty that
they cannot attain (without the use of high-dose barbiturates) and
they feel inadequate and worst of all abnormal. Their inferiority
complex is based on the fact that they cannot live up to a standard
set by someone else. This brings up the question "Who set this
ridiculous standard?" Has the industry ever asked itself this
question? Spain finally did and decided to take matters into its own
hands and set the standard themselves by hitting the industry where
it hurts them most...right in the pocketbook!! All of a sudden everyone
had to sit up and take notice! Agencies cried foul while onlookers
applauded a common sense move in a most uncommon industry!
It is important
of course for models to maintain their weight. Models should be slender
and fit as clothes generally look better on trim figures.
But there is a difference between slim and scrawny and fit or fanatical.
Another factor that needs to be taken into consideration by the industry
is who is buying these designer clothes? Do wager wives of millionaire
financiers are not always beguiled by an outfit that they are going
to have trouble fitting into. One of the major complaints of many
females is that designers not longer design realistic clothing. Many
designers design to make a statement rather than to sell (and this
is also why what they do sell is priced astronomically...you have
to price things high to make a profit if you are only going to sell
5 outfits.) Also as one radio talk show host once pointed out female
figures are not of a main concern to many gay designers whose muses
are usually male. Worst of all amidst all of this chaos we have young
people looking on and becoming increasingly more perplexed about their
self images and where they fit into the scheme of things.
I think the tide is about to change again in this industry. As Tampa
Bay Modeling has always said there is room for change. Spain is paving
the way for a new and healthy perspective on a worn-out issue. What
do you girls at Tampa Bay think about this?
All the Best,
Stacy
Hello Stacy,
I found your letter simply brilliant, and totally agree with all of
the points that you have made. You should really think about writing
articles for models (hint, hint).
I think that the modeling industry is full of double-standards, and
that too many opinions from self-proclaimed modeling industry professionals
are passed off as fact. It is so screwed up that this is seen as "beautiful":
Ooh...
The skeletal look is sooooo in! Vogue! Tampa Bay modeling agencies would
sign this healthy model in a second because she is 5' 8'' - That's the
most important thing about being a model, after all. Someone call this
girl an ambulance!
As we have seen,
model agencies have been wrong about many things. They will continue
to be wrong. There is a story that I once read where a plus-size model
in New York tried to find an agency to represent her. They all passed
her over and told her that her look was not marketable and that she
wouldn’t get much work in the modeling industry. The model was
determined, though, and began to find work on her own WITHOUT AN AGENCY.
After she began booking a lot of work in this major modeling market,
the agencies realized that they were wrong and had to choice but to
pay attention to her. That’s right - big, major model and talent
agencies in a fashion capital were WRONG ( Puts these small model
and talent agencies in Tampa Bay in perspective, doesn’t it?
). Keep in mind that plus-size does NOT indicate overweight nor obese,
and it represents a healthy size-to weight-ratio shared by the majority
of the population; most clothes sold in stores are plus-size.
Models need balance. They need to play up to their strengths and be
their natural size instead of taking drastic measures to be a smaller
size which is not natural to them. I saw a model at a go-see once
who looked way too thin and was actually losing her hair! It came
as no surprise that she was an agency model, represented by a Tampa
Bay model agency, who had been referred there by her "professional"
bookers. I felt like calling 911 for her right there. The model in
the picture above looks like she is about to die... seriously. She
needs to leave the runway and check into the nearest hospital. Such
blatant disregard for the models is yet another reason that model
and talent agencies have no business trying to manage the career of
a model or to try to give them guidance. A local Tampa Bay news program
forum once tried to address this issue, and they had a guest panel
of a reputable local model agency owner, some woman who owned some
model magazine (I didn't know who she was and her magazine was more
about lifestyles rather than modeling), and some idiot from a model
school! You know what these model schools are like (wastes of money
and time), the magazine owner wasn't qualified to comment on the subject,
and with the agency owner they only had an actual panel of one. They
did not get anywhere, and I wonder what Einstein booked these people
to represent the legitimate Tampa Bay modeling industry. I sooooooo
wanted to call in and ask the "professional panel" questions
about conflicts of interest and giving bad advice to stupid girls,
but this would have completely ruined the show! As I recall, I DID
try to call in, but couldn't get through. The only calls that they
took were from stage mothers who wanted to live their lives through
their model daughters at the expense of their daughters. The stage
mothers, of course, hungrily ate up the crap that the panel fed them.
Mmmmmmmm... good! Yummy stuff.
Many of the standards that society holds as standards today are unrealistic
and are a result of what model agencies and the fashion industry have
been pushing for decades. Models need to evaluate their range of looks
and push their career with the strengths of what they can do. Change
is coming, but what the main players in the modeling industry don’t
realize or won’t acknowledge is that the change that they see
is not enough. Only when their controlling voice is balanced with
the voices of professionals who wake up to business and market realities
will the needed change come. Booking work as an independent model
is only a part of what is to come.
Oh, and for those
who I am sure will write in and ask, I am not plus sized or
sickly thin. I am a naturally slender, tall model who eats
right and exercises. If I were too thin, I would eat more and go to
my doctor. If I were plus sized, I would seek out plus sized modeling
jobs and not try to be something that I was not. Although I look excellent
in a bikini with my natural body, I am sure that I will gain weight
naturally later in life, and when that happens I will adjust the marketing
of my modeling career to be appropriate for my changing lookset. Now,
if you excuse me, I am craving some oreo cookies and a nice tall glass
of cold milk. Yums!
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Three
Little Checks
Hello,
I was told I was booked on a modeling job and then they sent me 3
amex checks for $500 each --they said I should keep one of them and
send the other to the makeup artist after cashing of course --I am
scared to death that I will go to jail if I try and cash these and
would love to know if anyone knows anything about (omitted) and (omitted)
Models.
Debra, a model from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hi Debra,
A common type of scam is when someone gives you a check or money order
for an amount which is too much and has you send them money back for
the difference. The victim is out the money when the financial instrument
comes back as worthless, and it can take time to confirm this when
the check is routed out of state or out of the country.
Why in the hell do these people expect YOU to pay the makeup artist?
Did you hire them?
DO NOT go to your bank and cash or deposit these checks. Your bank
will charge-back the cash paid out to you against your account if
they come back as bad, and this can overdraw your account and leave
your outstanding checks wide open to bounce for insufficient funds.
The fees alone can cost you a lot of money. If you knowingly deposit
a worthless check into your account, you can get into serious trouble,
too. ALWAYS go their bank or financial institution to cash the check;
in your case it should be Amex. To save time and gas, call up the
financial institution and request a MERCHANT FUNDS VERIFICATION. Give
them the account information and the name, and then request if the
dollar amount will clear at that time. They will either tell you yes
or no (they cannot give you balances or other customer information).
Also ask if there are any stop payments against your check or if there
are any holds or freezes on the account which would prevent the check
from clearing. You will know if the check is good, and if they tell
you yes, go on down there and get it cashed.
Is the financial institution (bank) out of state? If it is a scam,
then this would be very likely. You could call the financial institution
to verify funds and take a chance and deposit it or cash it at your
bank, but keep in mind that it will take several business days to
clear and during that time the money could be withdrawn from the account,
causing it to come back as bad, or they could place a stop payment
on the account, rendering the check unpayable. Think that they won’t
put a stop payment on the check because it will cost them? Think again.
I’ve heard of con artists doing a “poor man’s stop
payment” by calling their bank and reporting their checkbook
lost or stolen in order to freeze the account. Although this is fraud
if they are lying to the bank, it is very difficult to prove and it
doesn’t cost them a dime. The check, or checks, won’t
pay.
As a rule of thumb, NEVER, EVER allow anyone to overpay you with a
check and then request money back for the excess amount.
Think checks are complicated? They really aren’t. Be careful
and use common sense. If someone insists on paying you with a check
or money order, make sure that the check is drawn from a local financial
institution so you can go there and cash it at the source. If it is
an unfamiliar financial institution or it is out of state, insist
on cash or give it at least TEN WORKING DAYS to clear before using
the money.
Oh, and regarding those people, I don’t know anything about
them, but if what they do matches the activity patterns described
in our MODEL SCAM DEFINITION
DATABASE, they are what they do.
Good luck!
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Interview
My Model Daughter
Hi,
I am interested in an interview for my daughter Kimberly. She is currently
featured in a photo in the North Pinellas Times on NPN/ 10/17/06.
She has also appeared in 2 PSA for Saftyville USA and on a local Sacramento
News show. I have copies of the PSA for your review. She also received
many compliments when we auditioned for Nanny 911 – however,
we were not chosen as my children were just not bad enough.
Jennette, the mother of a model from Tampa Bay, Florida
Howdy Jennette,
Um.... Sorry to disappoint you, but we are not a modeling agency, We
cannot book your daughter into modeling jobs. We are a modeling resource
site, and although we cannot represent your daughter, the information
on our site and on Independent Modeling can teach you how to find model
jobs and how to book them yourself. You’re welcome. Oh, and don't
get me started on REALITY TELEVISION. They are exploitive pieces of
garbage set up to make their participants look like idiots. Tampa Bay
Acting's Editor Brain Steel once told me all about the reality television
problem, and I agree with him. Actors who put reality television "roles"
on their resume are often passed up by casting directors, and they deserve
it. These are not professional acting roles any more than being cast
as an extra (background fodder with no screen presence or lines booked
at low wages) is an acting role. Would you like to know what a reality
television show does to someone with genuine talent? They will exploit
that talent and use it against the participant, editing the show to
make the participant look like idiots and crippling their professional
credibility. I bet Tampa model agencies would recommend models and actors
try to book into reality television. Oh, and your children were not
bad enough? That's another can of worms. Who would want to book a misbehaving,
unprofessional model? Oh, wait, Tampa Bay model agencies would represent
such models, as they don't really know what they are doing. That's enough
of my rant- for now.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Model
School Information
My son just paid
a down payment for The (Omitted) Agency. Is
this a reputable company...offering what they claim?
- Cheri, the
mother of a model from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hi Cheri,
Nope. It is a model school, not a modeling agency, and I have NEVER,
EVER seen a modeling school work out for any model.
Supermodel Janice Dickenson tried to go through a model search and a
model school when she first tried to get into modeling when she lived
in South Florida. She didn’t get a single modeling job or any
modeling agency representation from that, and the model school and model
search ended up becoming a complete waste of time and money. Only when
she moved to New York on her own and obtained legitimate agency representation
did she start her modeling career, and her model school portfolio and
“training” were useless in that process.
Janice Dickenson was a talented and photogenic model at that time,
when she was young. If a model school can’t help someone who
can actually model, then God help the schmucks who don’t have
a chance at modeling. In my opinion, model schools and model searches
are total wastes of time and money. Don’t bother. The information
(training) on Tampa Bay Modeling and on Independent Modeling are superior
in every way, will actually help your modeling career, and it won’t
cost you a dime.
Find a legitimate photographer on your own, study up on the modeling
industry, and build your modeling portfolio. Once you have a modeling
portfolio and modeling composite cards / zed cards, THEN you can approach
model agencies for representation and/or book work on your own. NEVER
allow a model agency to refer you to photographers or assist you in
building your portfolio. There is too much risk for a conflict of
interest and you could be scammed. A model agency should only be used
as one of many sources of potential model job booking referrals, and
nothing more. These agencies always overstep their bounds, and it
is unprofessional as well as completely inappropriate.
Oh, and Janice got into modeling back in the 1970's, before the Internet.
Today’s model has many more professional tools and does not
have to depend upon model agencies to have a modeling career or to
book work.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
The
Great Modeling War Of 2006 - No, 2007
Tampa
Bay Modeling,
You so-called models are confused or something. There are lots of
contradictions on this hate site. One contradiction which cracks me
up is this modeling war that you are supposedly waging on the model
scams and the model agencies. You claim to have started it in the
fall of 2006, and now your site has a statement indicating that you
started this spring (2007). What gives? Do you models know what in
the hell you are doing, or can't you keep your lies straight?
- Gray, someone who is a part of the Tampa Bay modeling inudstry in
Florida
Hello Gray,
The war in the modeling industry is against modeling misconceptions
and model scams in the Tampa Bay modeling industry. It started last
fall, and has been ongoing ever since. We obtained additional allies
in the spring of 2007, and our resolve is stronger than ever.
What you call contradiction is actually complexity. If you can't comprehend
what we are doing, simply admit to it. We don't live in a black and
white world, and there is a lot of gray, ironically the name that
you chose ( Or, perhaps, "Gray" is the name that we chose
to give you just to make your letter more ironic. We'll only know).
Simple cut and dry rules do not apply to all situations. You really
need to obtain all the facts before you judge us.
I am tired of people who try to find things wrong with Tampa Bay Modeling
when they should take the time to look at themselves.
~ Model Monica Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Missing
Modeling Links
Your links do
not work!
- Jamie, a model
from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hello,
Which links? Telling us specifics would go a long way to fixing any
broken links which you may have experienced.
While we admit that we had some link issues just before you sent your
Email, those issues had been resolved at least a day before you sent
it.
On the Tampa Bay Modeling web site itself, we never had any broken
links, despite some major directory work and the change-out of two
buttons on our main navigation menu between July 1 and July 10. Once
the new Mail Bag format was launched, the SEO people on our web team
decided to move the Mail Bag archives to a new directory. Additionally,
we wanted more continuity, so we decided to retrofit all of our mail
bag archives to the new format. The August 2006, September 2006, and
October 2006 Mail Bags took some major work, as each letter and answer
had their own page and this spread-out content had to be combined
into the new one-page format. This work, of course, should have been
seamless, and no one should have experienced any bad links. The old
directories and original Mail Bags, which are accessible through their
search engines, are still up, too. Our people are very good at what
they do.
We did have some issues with our Myspace assets. We still do, but
have managed a temporary fix. It seems that the links that are on
our Myspace Profile and on our Myspace Group worked perfectly until
we did some routine maintenance to them. Myspace changed their database
code and turned all saved HTML links into encoded links routed through
a third party. They screwed up the code, though, because all HTML
links rerouted like this are automatically turned into lowercase text.
Since our main Tampa Bay Modeling directory on the Tampa Hub server
account has uppercase characters, Myspace's software glitch turned
all of our links bad. We quickly figured this out and did a quick
fix to buy us some time. What did we do? We copied all of our site
files into a lowercase directory and uploaded this lowercase mirror
to the server. It did fix the problem, but our web people are not
happy about it because it doubles the size of our site on the server
and creates two versions of our site to maintain. They intend to take
down the mirror site soon, before the search engines index it and
create a logistical issue born from Myspace's bad coding. This decision
especially came quickly when our SEO people assessed that those Myspace
links are not followed by the search engines, rendering lead-in indexing
a total loss (I guess that the spam and other crap on Myspace is ruining
it for everyone). With no advantages to maintaining a mirror, we will
simply create target pages for the links and deal with it.
Future Tampa Bay sites, such as Tampa Bay Photographers, will all
be done in lower case characters in the directories and in the file
names to avoid situations like this. We are hoping that the wonderful
people at Myspace get off their asses and fix this serious issue soon,
as many members are experiencing broken links because of their senseless
rerouting (again, which may have been born from the spam problem that
Myspace is experiencing).
Remind me to buy our web team beers the next time that I hang out
with them. They have tough jobs.
~ Model Monica Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Independent
Modeling Failure
I am so happy
that Independent Modeling has been taken off of the internet. It is
about time that the lies are removed so the truth can be known. I
hope that Tampa Bay Modeling is the next site to fail!
I am one of those model consultants that your pathetic site is so
down on. We are not scams, and have every right to make a living!
Joan, a model consultant from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hello Joan,
You must be referring to the day that the site went down due to some
administrative error regarding the renewal of the domain name.
This has been addressed.
Although Independent Modeling has been idling online for the better
part of the past two years, the site is generating a tremendous profit.
Why on earth would they take down a site which is making money merely
for existing with its current content? The site is only going to become
more profitable as it goes into gear and expands.
Don't even say that the site would be taken down for having misleading
or incorrect information about modeling. The information on Independent
Modeling is excellent. You know that we are right, and only hate us
because we undermine what you do.
What you have observed online and what has been going on behind the
scenes are indeed different things. A lot of work has been done, and
this is about to become obvious.
Although I have already addressed the issues and the flaws with model
consultation schemes, I would think that you would be frustrated with
one of the sources of your information on modeling disappearing.
You are so smart for running a business which adds a middleman to
another middleman. Kind of like the proverbial third wheel, isn't
it? Model consultants are not very bright, which explains the questionable
means that are exploited to obtain their information and their leads.
It is so nice to see you hanging in there and working for free when
you cannot legally make any money referring models to jobs. Are these
successful Tampa model agencies paying you a finders fee for new models?
Didn't think so. That doesn't stop you from telling models that they
do, though, or your unsubstantiated claims that you can help their
modeling careers.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Altering
Portfolio Pictures
Hi Monica and
the Tampa Bay Models,
I was wondering about the extent of how a modeling portfolio pictures
can be adjusted. Is it right to change the way that we look through
Photoshop and other software tools? You keep saying that the best
models have the widest range of looks, and I was wondering if you
ever see technology as being used to artificially increase that range
of looks to make the model's career more marketable.
I asked an agency this, and they couldn't give me a straight answer.
Since model agencies don't really know what they are doing and don't
have any solid knowledge of the modeling industry other than what
agency owners tell them, I am wondering if you have my answer.
Can you give me a good answer to my question, or are you only as good
as these model agencies who keep giving me different answers? Thank
you.
- Chelsea, a model from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hello Chelsea,
There is a difference between establishing a range of looks in a portfolio
and faking your looks outright to misrepresent your modeling looks.
Misrepresentation? That's right. Some models will openly fake their
looks by having their pictures doctored.
When those models do meet someone face to face in a go-see and the
art director or casting professional realizes that they aren't anywhere
near as model-worthy as their portfolio leads them to believe, do
you think that they will book the job? What would probably happen
is that the art director would be pissed of because the model lied
to them, and word would spread to other art directors.
A good modeling portfolio establishes a solid range of looks that
the model can obtain, and this range is rightfully and ethically obtained
through clothing, makeup, hair styles, composition of the photograph,
and art direction from the photographer or art director. Blemishes,
such as pimples and minor scars, are permissible to be removed in
the photographs, but here is where it gets interesting.
If the model has physical characteristics that are always present
and may not be desirable to either themselves or others in the modeling
industry, those characteristic define the base look of the model and
must not be altered. If the model has an odd-shaped nose or a lazy
eye, as examples, altering or fixing these in the photographs goes
far beyond establishing professional range of looks and enters the
territory of misrepresentation.
As Tampa photographer C. A. Passinault of Aurora PhotoArts once told
a group of models, if the model has a look that someone could use
to sell a product or service, the model will book that job. You don't
have to be perfect-looking in the eyes of the majority in order to
make it as a model. This is a subjective business, and it is very
hard to quantify a superficial characteristic such as appearance.
What I think is hot may not be for someone else. It doesn't make either
of us wrong or right. It merely is a difference of opinion, and these
differences are rampant in the modeling industry. If the person who
has another standard of what is an appropriate look for their project
has a modeling job to offer and I don't, it really doesn't matter
what I think in that particular situation, does it?
If a model has something that may be considered to be a flaw in the
eyes of the majority, they should never attempt to cover it up. The
model needs to find the areas that they are strong in and market themselves
that way. The model who feels that they have to fake their pictures
has no business being a model, and they seldom book any work because
they are using deceptive means to market themselves instead of playing
to their strengths and being true to who they are.
The exception and a possible gray area? Tear sheets and fashion modeling.
Some conceptual work is highly modified by the photographer or the
art director, and it should be presented as it is instead of being
indicative of what a model actually looks like. If you must use modified
photographs in your portfolio, make sure that they are the minority
of your portfolio and in their own section. Make sure that there are
plenty of model portfolio pictures that show the TRUE range of the
model. A tear sheet or a highly modified portfolio photograph should
NEVER be used on the front of a composite card. The model should select
a head shot photograph which accurately depicts what they look like,
or what their BASE LOOK as a model is. Brian Steel, the editor over
at Tampa Bay Acting, always tells me that a head shot for actors and
talent should accurately represent what they look like. Models should
follow that example as a rule of thumb.
If you ever misrepresent yourself in your modeling career, it is considered
to be false advertising and it is unethical as well as unprofessional.
Such models seldom have much, if any, career as a professional model.
So, what if you have some serious look-funk going on and can't seem
to book any modeling work? If you have a look that may be considered
to be too unique to be commercially viable and still have a desire
to work in the modeling industry, you can work in non-modeling jobs.
Have you ever looked at some of these Tampa model agency bookers?
Other than Matt, who I find to be capable of modeling, most of these
bookers inspire models to restrain feelings of repulsiveness and to
be politically correct and polite around them. I think that some of
these people secretly want to model, but because they can't, they
feel vindicated by controlling those who they are jealous of. Although
I hardly think of myself as being superficial, I must say that looking
at these agency bookers any more than I have to make me want to vomit.
Many of them are truly ugly and fake on the inside as well as being
unappealing on the outside. Enough said.
As a model, you need to be aware of your strengths as well as your
limitations. There is no such thing as a model who is appropriate
for every booking. Even Supermodels don't book every job.
Know who you are and what you do well. Market yourself that way. Never,
ever fake it. If you have some look-funk going on, play up to it and
show them what you're proud of.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
The
Great Composite Card Flood Of 2007
Hello there Tampa
Bay Modeling,
I have an issue with these ignorant modeling agencies which needs
to be addressed.
Local model agencies tell models that a model should never order more
than 200 composite cards. They indicate that the model needs to update
their cards every six months and that ordering to many is a waste.
I agree that a model should update their cards every six months, although
unless their look has changed drastically (hair color, etc), this
is SELDOM NEEDED, and I have seen many models continue to use their
composite cards for up to two years.
What I do not agree with is the perception of ordering too many comp
cards that model agencies put in model's heads. Models need to stop
looking at the number of cards that they order and start to look at
quality and overall value. If you are getting low to mediocre quality
laser-printed composite cards that 80% of agency-controlled models
use, then you sure can get orders as low as 200 on the cheap. I sell
a lot of high quality composite cards to models with minimum orders
of 950. The stock is 14 PT and UV coated, and it makes laser cards
look pathetic, flimsy, and washed out in comparison.
I am sick and tired of these agencies misleading models when the high
quality cards only cost a little bit more and are well worth the investment.
Every now and then, I find myself educating a model who has been confused
by an agency who doesn't care about putting quality into a modeling
career, and it is annoying.
I refuse to put my name and the name of my photography company on
comp cards that are printed cheaply. If this is what a model wants,
I will give them their comp card files without my brand on it. The
agencies have no problem putting their stickers on cheap laser cards,
and that alone speaks volumes on how much they know and care.
- Chris, a model portfolio photographer from Tampa Bay, Florida
Hi Chris,
I completely agree with you. My composite cards are on 14 PT, too,
and when I order them I have to order 1,000 at a time, not because
I am "buying too many comp cards", but because I am investing
in the quality that comes from setting up a printing press. Professional
quality is an investment, and the good number of cards is the only
way to keep it cost-effective, as most of what you pay goes into setting
up the print press plate and the high quality paper stock. Such cards
are well-worth it even if I was to only get 200 at a time at the same
price, and I obtain extra cards as a benefit of the quality printing
service.
So, what do I do with my 800 extra cards? Well, I use them.
Models in the Tampa Bay modeling market are stupid if they are content
to be solely represented by one model agency. If you have your career
controlled by the opinionated bookers at a single agency, then you
are an idiot, and, yes, 1,000 cards would never be used. I doubt that
the bookers would even send out more than five composite cards in
six months, simply because they play favorites and don't really know
what they are doing.
A smart, professional model takes charge of their own career
and does not allow others to call the shots. They use opportunity
multipliers
in their modeling careers, and these opportunity multipliers consume
composite cards.
The smart professional model obtains representation non-exclusively
and with several model and talent agencies, using each agency as a
source of model jobs and nothing more. Since agencies work for the
model, the model agency has NO BUSINESS telling the model
what to do and has no place attempting to manage the model.
The model agency must be kept in their place, and any agency which
tries to "educate" the model and tell them what to do oversteps
their appropriate bounds, sets the model up for an abusive business
relationship, and is a working conflict of interest.
If you worked for a business, would you try to educate the business
and tell them what to do? Of course not! This is what these agencies
try to pull every day, though, and they expect models to accept it
as normal practice.
A model and talent agency is only supposed to make money by booking
models into work. This saying, of course, is slightly inaccurate because
a model agency does not actually book anyone into any job. They merely
refer a model to a job lead, and once there it is still up to the
model to actually land the job.
When a model and talent agency tries to tell a model to do anything
or fill their heads up with information that is more to their benefit
than it is to the benefit of the model, can you really trust what
they say? Consider their motivation! Model and talent agencies also
work for other models, which are your competition, so any advice that
they give you should be suspect. Because model agencies work for several
different competing businesses (models), they should be viewed as
working conflicts of interest because that is exactly what they are!
They never have the best interest of the model in mind because they
have their own interests and the interests of their favorite models
in mind when they try to manage and educate the model.
Do I trust Tampa model and talent agencies? No. I keep them in their
appropriate place, working for me, and look out for my own modeling
career while using them as sources of job leads. This is what all
models need to do. Model and talent agencies are not the only legitimate
way of having a professional modeling career, and they are not the
"credible" modeling industry, and as soon as people wake
up and realize that, the more legitimate these agencies will become
because they will be forced to mind their own business and do what
they are supposed to do.
Don't even get me started about these so-called model consultants,
model managers, model searches, and any model job commercial claiming
that they are looking for models and that "no experience"
is necessary. No business or art director in their right mind will
book any model without experience or a professional portfolio and
composite cards which demonstrates their range of looks and their
experience. Investing time and money into an amateur is simply bad
business and is way too risky. These model consultants and managers
are useless, too, as they are middlemen to middlemen (agencies), and
the only thing that they do is take your money and run.
I have never seen any of that shit work out, and have never seen any
model consultant or manager turn out to be legitimate.
A smart, professional model finds job leads on their own, too. This
is why 1,000 cards is never too much, although the number of cards
should not be what the model is concerned about. The model should
be more concerned about the quality of the composite card and overall
value, because that alone speaks volumes about how serious and professional
that they are about their modeling career.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
I
Am Going To Sue And Assault You
You are going
to be sued. You have slandered me and I am going to sue you.
Your Tampa modeling site failure is going to be put out of its misery.
Monica, after your dumbass modeling site is out of business, if you
are as cute as you claim to be, I'll give you a job. I will
have my way with you as much as I want and
then slap you down when you try to
share one of your stupid opinions with anyone. I will break
you and turn you into the slut that you want
to become.
- Dick, a glamour modeling photographer from Tampa Bay, Florida
The first part
of your letter was amusing, but the second part aimed at me crosses
the line. Your IP information and real identity have been forwarded
to the authorities. Are you threatening me with assault? Do
you have some sick rape fantasy about me? You should know better, and
you need to realize that I refuse to allow you to victimize me or anyone
else. Everyone has basic rights, and one right that we enjoy is freedom
of speech. This speaks volumes about the motivation behind glamour modeling
photographers and their motivation to trick stupid girls into
posing nude for them. You pathetic excuses for professionals
really have no respect for anyone, and that includes yourselves! I will
say that, in my experience, I have never met a glamour modeling photographer
who was a legitimate professional. I have never met a glamour modeling
photographer who could do anything positive for a modeling career. In
my opinion, glamour modeling photographers are pathetic dirt-bags
who use photography as a means to take advantage of women.
If I were you, I would prepare for the pissed off models out there who
are planning lawsuits against you for taking their pictures and selling
them to the adult entertainment industry. You have much larger problems
than threatening baseless lawsuits against Tampa Bay Modeling or making
criminal threats against me.
Although we know who you are, let's pretend for a moment that you
only sent the first part of your letter threatening legal decimation
and career devastation and that we didn't bother investigating your
identity.
I would assume from your letter that you were either a sleazy guy
with a camera claiming to be a photographer or are a booker at one
of these pathetic, impotent Tampa model agencies. You could have also
been an agency owner, going by your tone. It is obvious, though, that
you feel threatened by the Tampa Bay Modeling web site and feel that
we have published something that reflects poorly on you to the point
of tarnishing that sterling reputation that you think you have.
Stop deluding yourself. Face up to the facts.
We publish opinions on this web site and are honestly trying to improve
the integrity of the Tampa Bay modeling industry. We have the right
to ask the questions that models should have been asking all along,
and have the right to help make model agencies and others accountable
for what they do.
We haven't slandered anyone, which, by the way, would be considered
libel when in the form of anything written. We believe that you are
what you do and that you are who you associate with. If you feel that
strongly that we have attacked you in some way, you are either doing
something unethical, illegal, misleading, or you feel that what is
on the Tampa Bay Modeling site will undermine your business in some
way (To those of limited mentalities that would have to resort to
scams in order to make money because you're no good enough to have
any legitimate career, this simply means that you think that the Tampa
Bay Modeling site will make you lose money or close down your business).
Want to sue us? Go right ahead. Just remember that you have the burden
of proof with a lawsuit that may prove to be frivolous, and that we
will sue you right back as well as take any additional measures which
apply. If you wish to waste your money and your time and risk making
your situation much worse, go right ahead.
If you feel strong enough about Tampa Bay Modeling to consider taking
legal action against us, I am guessing that you may have been talking
about us to people and business affiliates that you know. I'll even
throw human nature into the equation and will guess that you have
been bad-mouthing this site to everyone that you know. Well, opinions
are fine, but let it be known that calling this site a model scam
or telling people anything which is not true IS slander. We are not
doing anything wrong, and we are not a model scam. You already know
this, though. You and the people that you know do know what has been
said about us, and I am sure that you would not want this to be brought
out anywhere, especially when you have no proof or facts to back up
any slanderous allegations about us.
Wouldn't your clients and friends just love being dragged into court
during our countersuit? Just remember to tell them that lying under
oath is perjury, and it is a crime.
The best thing that you can do if you hate the Tampa Bay Modeling
web site is to simply ignore us and hope that we are not as widely
read as your fears tell you. You already know, though, that Tampa
Bay Modeling has the dominate voice in the Tampa Bay modeling industry,
and that just annoys the hell out of you.
Good.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
Tampa
Bay Modeling Is RIGHT!
Hello Monica,
I just wanted to write to let you know that you have been correct
with every thing that you have stated. Your site has some of the best
modeling information on it anywhere. I would also like to tell you
that what you have to say about Tampa model agencies is more true
than you could imagine.
How can I know this? Because I am a model agency booker here in Tampa.
Please keep in mind that I one of the better ones who has had a lot
of experience in this business. I don't hate you like many of the
others do because I realize that you are only out to help models,
and you have done a lot to make Tampa model agencies own up to the
unethical and illegal things that they are guilty of!
Consider me a friend. I will continue to help you on the inside, and
will send you letters as much as my schedule allows to let you know
what is going on.
Now that you have a friend working on the inside, I can confirm that
you have been 100% correct about agencies. Most agency bookers ARE
minimum wage workers with minimal training and limited knowledge about
the modeling industry. They spend a lot of their time cold calling
businesses to see if they need models without understanding the how
and why behind what they are doing. When someone does need models,
the bookers will often send their favorite models, mostly models who
compromise to do special favors for them, and not models that actually
are the best choices for the business and what they need. Most model
agency bookers wouldn't know the difference between a good picture
or a bad one, and don’t know how to put together an effective
modeling portfolio or professional zeds. Many of the photographers
on our referral lists are glorified salespeople who are not professional
photographers and are only on the list as an exchange of favors or
because they are doing illegal kickbacks. Trust me on this. Even though
the agency can lose its license by making money from pictures and
zeds, they do. Why? Because of greed and the surprisingly low risk
of getting caught. A lot of what goes on in these Tampa model agencies
is bullshit, and we all know it. If you need additional people to
collaborate what I am saying, you only have to ask any booker who
is no longer working in the business. The stories that they could
tell you could sink ships! If you ever really want to put these agencies
out of business, you should round up some of these bookers and contact
the state attorney. Bookers know all of the details of what goes on
at their model agencies, and have ways of obtaining proof. The good
bookers can be very helpful to your cause, and we may help you win
your war sooner.
Let me tell you a story. This may not have actually happened to me,
and it could be one that I heard, because I wish to stay undercover,
working to assist you behind enemy lines.
A Tampa model agency owner, who shall remain nameless, opened his
agency one morning and had all of the agency bookers look at the Tampa
Bay Modeling web site. The model agency owner was whining about your
site and how it was giving us all a bad name. The bookers were referred
to the site so they could be horrified and be able to warn people
about it, but when the bookers actually began to read it, it opened
many eyes to what was really going on. Many of the bookers who really
had no idea that what they were doing was wrong learned about it and
either quit or tried their best to change their ways. It backfired
on the agency owner, and many of the bookers began referring models
to your site to help them. Unfortunately, a good number of bookers
are shady, anyway, and those are the ones who are pissed about the
Tampa Bay Modeling web site and Independent Modeling.
You have more friends in Tampa model agencies than you realize. Many
of us are sick of our shady colleagues and the bad name that THEY
are giving us. We are ashamed of the modeling industry here in the
Tampa Bay area, and like you only want to make it more reputable.
I like what I do, and if the business was more legitimate, I'd be
a very happy booker.
Please continue doing what you do. You have the attention of the entire
modeling industry, and many of us respect you and refer others to
your site. The people who hate your site are the model scams and the
unethical people who are afraid of you. You wouldn't believe how effective
Tampa Bay Modeling has been in shaking up the modeling industry here
in Tampa. Many model scams and the unprofessional parasites in this
market have lost a lot of business, and they hate you for it. I couldn't
tell you how many models know about Tampa Bay Modeling and how many
regularly read what is on your site! Keep it up!
Another thing - Independent Modeling. All of the Tampa model agencies
are aware of this site and what it can do. They are all afraid of
it and that talon database. If you ever start to update it, it will
take a lot of business away from the agencies, and this is a nightmare
for agency owners. Yes, they will laugh about it and dismiss it, but
deep down inside they all know that it works and can work even better
once it is updated regularly.
Monica, what you and the models are doing by keeping your names a
secret is smart. I know of many bookers and others in the modeling
industry who would like to have your head on a platter and make an
example of you. Many would refuse to book you into any jobs if they
knew who you were. Stay safe, and be encouraged by knowing that we
are not all bad and that you have many friends here behind enemy lines.
- Red
Hi Red,
Thanks for your Email. You have stated your case as well as I ever
could.
Because I spend a lot of time in many of these Tampa Bay model and
talent agencies talking to bookers and getting sent on go see's, I
always knew that Tampa Bay Modeling was right. As a matter of fact,
I wouldn't volunteer so much of my time to Tampa Bay Modeling and
Independent Modeling if I was not sure that we were doing the right
thing. I believe in what we are doing, and I know what is on our sites
works and that we are helping the integrity of the modeling market.
We are helping a lot of people have professional careers in the modeling
industry while avoiding the pitfalls. We have always stated that if
we only helped one model avoid a scam, then this would all be worth
it. We are now receiving reports that hundreds of models have been
helped. This, my friend, is more than worth it!
Going back to Tampa model and talent agencies, I'm a smart model and
I don't go in to agencies throwing an attitude and bringing up Tampa
Bay Modeling or any other modeling web site. I keep my mouth shut
and my eyes and ears open. No, I am not ashamed of being an independent
professional model, but in some instances being tactful is the best
course of action. As long as they are not doing anything wrong that
I can see or they are not trying to pull a scam on me, there is no
need to bring up subjects which bookers or their agencies see as unpleasant.
Plus, I don't want them knowing who I really am because of the reasons
that you listed. I am well aware the many people hate me as Monica
Stevens, the super model bitch of Tampa Bay.
Since I don't talk about my controversial pseudonym or the sites that
I contribute to, I have limited knowledge about how bookers and the
agencies are reacting to all of this, and it is refreshing, as well
as interesting, to see the point of view of someone who is working
in a model agency.
Thank you so much for your fascinating letter. Please write as much
as you would like. This industry war is about to go into high gear,
and any feedback that you can provide will prove to be helpful.
~ Model Monica
Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
CLOSING
BY MODEL MONICA STEVENS
Another excellent
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag comes to a close. This was a good batch
of letters, and now that we are caught up with old mail, we can now
settle for a more leisurely pace. We are going to be working on our
Mail Bag archives, and will be linking older Mail Bags to relevant
content within the Tampa Bay Modeling web site. In related news, I
hear from top Tampa Bay model Danielle Cooper that Tampa Bay Modeling
is getting some cool stuff like bumber stickers and shirts. I can't
wait! Now, if only there was a way to curb my rambling and to make
my responses shorter. I will work on that, starting in the September
Mail Bag! See you all next month.
~ Model Monica Stevens,
Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
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what YOU think! If you wish to add to one of Monica's answers or disagree
with her and want to post an answer of your own, please let us know
what letter and month you are replying to and if we see that it is
relevant we may add it to that month's archive. We will let you know
if new content such as letters have been added to mail bag archives!
E-MAIL:
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C/O
Monica Stevens, Tampa Bay Modeling Mail Bag Editor
THIS
MAIL BAG IS SUBJECT TO EDITING AND CONTENT CHANGE AT ANY TIME AND
WITHOUT WARNING.
UPDATED
09/26/09
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