Although we will of course provide you with a good selection of shots in the single session as a solid basis for your portfolio, you will probably wish to add to it from time to time to keep it up to date, when, for instance, you have a change of hair style or colour. Family or candid shots are unlikely to be of sufficient quality to be used in your portfolio, although they might be of use to take along to a future photo-shoot to try and replicate under better conditions. Helpful hint of the day - Never pad out your portfolio with indifferent shots and poor quality photographs ‘cos people generally only remember the BAD ones they see!
Black & White or Colour?
One only has to open a magazine or look at a TV advert to realize that there are an increasing number of images created in black and white, showing that it is important to have both types in your portfolio. It is far easier for the client to sum up your looks by seeing a couple of monochrome shots in front of him/her rather than having to try and imagine them.
How large should a portfolio be?
Everyone has to start somewhere so at first it may only contain a handful of pictures. There is absolutely no point in filling it with second-rate images as people tend to remember the bad as opposed to the good ones. Indeed, it is true to say that as a portfolio is being built, earlier images may lose favour over new ones and be duly exchanged, thus keeping the collection up-to-date and fresh looking.
Starting a portfolio
One should start a portfolio by employing an expert in the field to take a selection of image in a session lasting on-average around 2 hours. This is deliberately a ‘ball-park’ figure allowing for the fact that some wishing to enter into a career in modelling will already have an instinctive feel for what will look good on camera, wheras with others it may take a little longer. In this first session there is absolutely no point in taking along two dozen different outfits to be photographed in. Modelling can be hard work - something that some folks just do not appreciate! After two hours, most will have had enough, certainly for their first session.
How large should the pictures be in your portfolio?
Most agree that 10” by 8” picture is about the right size for a portfolio. However, that is not to say that the model has to try and afford a wad of photographs of this size each time she goes to a photo shoot. What most will do is have a set of smaller images produced, then at their leisure, choose a couple that are good enough to justify the larger prints.As a general rule we have little call for printing anything much larger than 12” by 16” in-house. |
