Unbounded By Words Photography

Thomas Delauer

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Delivering a Poster!

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80/20 business facebook

Why I quit Facebook?

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One of my Facebook covers I made in the past.

Technically I am taking a month break, but if it goes really well it will be indefinite. Have you ever heard of the 80/20 rule? 20% of what you do will make 80% of your income. Facebook was no longer in my 20%. I recently did an inventory on things that were making me money vs things that were just time consuming for this year. In the past Facebook made up most of my income.

What changed you ask? The answer is Facebook. The algorithm kept changing over and over, and I would keep adapting and once I figured it out, it would change again. I had a Facebook page for my photography it was reaching in the thousands and through it I was getting clients. Then Facebook went on the market and started to only show your page to less than 15% of your fans, unless you pay for the rest to see.

The mistake I made when I started, I invited all of my friends to like my page. Now my friends are more likely the 15% that Facebook shows my work to. The interactions dropped significantly. So I created another Facebook page, this time I didn't advertise it to my friends, it too reached the 2,000 likes but very organically. I was averaging 100 likes per post, and a few comments. I could work with that. I also created another page to be more fashion based. Then the algorithm changed again this time the pages which both had organic followers were averaging 6-20 people reach per post. So I abandoned the Facebook page entirely. I noticed some of the great photographers I followed who had of 175k likes were averaging about 100 likes when they were averaging 2,000 likes!

I begin focusing on the Facebook Profile. I noticed that if you changed your profile pic or your cover, Facebook notified all of your friends. That too changed. The likes and interactions were getting smaller and smaller, and quite a few people who follow me say they never saw my work anymore on their timeline. I used to network on Facebook with other creative, but that too begin to go down, my timeline became very uninteresting very quickly. I caught myself more interested in the trending section. Facebook became more of a newspaper than a social platform. I had the gossip section, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian and other Hollywood unnecessary drama. Government news and conspiracies, occasional weather channel news and etc. I find myself wasting time for no reason on Facebook.

I didn't write this for people to feel sorry for me, nor to stick it to Facebook. I always believe a company should be free to do with its product however they wish to do with it, as long it doesn't infringe on peoples rights or privacy, of course. Facebook is no longer a mutual relationship to me, I would drive traffic to their site and it no longer would drive traffic to my site. It took too much of my time and I had nothing to show for it. For other people it is still very beneficial, their numbers were really high before Facebook changed, so they are still in the green, but for small businesses and freelancers we must find another way. It is always better to have your own site and build traffic to it vs building traffic to an organization site that will shut down eventually.

As business owners or freelancers we should always keep an inventory of our work and see what is cutting into our productivity. For me Facebook was one of them, what is one of yours? In the comments below tell me what is cutting into your productivity or what has helped you make 80% of your income.

-Clyph Jean-Philippe
www.ubwinc.com
Instagram :@ubwinc

application model ubwinc

UBWINC Model Application

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Model Casting Calls

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Angee Clorissa Clyph

Angee

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Christian Clyph fitness

Christian

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slider

contd. I want to be a freelance model! Social Media

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Article facebook facebook page

contd. I want to be a freelance model! Facebook Page

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contd. I want to be a freelance model! Photoshoot

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contd. I want to be a freelance model! Photoshoot

Now you have a date for the photo-shoot! Make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the week, and make sure you are well rested the day before the shoot. Since this is your first shoot, more likely you will not have a wardrobe stylist. So go through your clothes and try them on. Make sure they are form fitting, the style is current or fashion forward. Do not wear clothing that have logos on them, a big design that is cartoonish. Do not wear clothes that have so many things going on, unless you are really trained in fashion. If your wardrobe collection is not going to work then go shopping. You can go to stores like Marshalls, Ross, and etc to save you money.

After you have all your clothes picked out make sure they are ironed. Also have your photo-shoot kit ready. It will consist of clothes pin ,to pin clothing that needs to be pinned, baby oil (in case you are doing a shoot that is showing allot of skin), hair brush, comb, hair spray and your makeup kit in case the MUA goes MIA. Female models should bring accessories like bangles, earrings, necklaces and etc. Male models bring watches, neck ties, and hair gel. Go to sleep early!

Day of the shoot comes, and all of a sudden you do not feel like doing the shoot. That feeling is very natural, even as photographers we face this from time to time. As a professional you have to put that aside and continue with the shoot as planned. One if you do not go it will come off as unprofessional and rude to the photographer, MUA, and anyone else who are involved. Two, they will notify their friends who will happen to be photographers and MUA to not work with you. So we are going to go the professional route, you will do your normal routine ritual except we will not put anything on the face no moisturizer no makeup unless you do not have a MUA.

The shoot is done, it turned out better than we had hope for, and you thank everyone for making this day special. The photographer will tell you when you should start expecting to see pictures. You are very excited and anxious to see the picture, but do not hound or beat around the bush to your photographer, or they will get frustrated and rush through your images. Be patient and genuine, when the deadline is up, feel free to kindly ask how things are going and when will the pictures be ready.

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Intro- I want to be a freelance model!

contd. Networking-Finding a Photographer/MUA Part 2

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contd. Networking-Finding a Photographer/MUA

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I want to be a freelance model! (Networking-Finding a Photographer/MUA) contd.

So now you have your physique the way it needs to be, your skin is radiant, and your hair is healthy, what now? Let’s start networking! The best advice I can give you is create a separate facebook account. You will have fans that will be respectful and fans that are darn right creepy. You do not want your family members expose to this or engage in arguments on your professional profile. Now that you have created a separate facebook account or not, go to the search option on facebook and search for your local makeup artist and photographer. Once you have found photographers, look at their work, if it belongs in a magazine, does not look like the models ex boyfriend/girlfriend took the picture, and they do shoots that relate to your niche then add them. For makeup artist you will judge their work solely on their craft not the quality of the picture. If it looks like something you can do, do not pursue, unless you happen to be a great makeup artist. This whole paragraph seems to benefit females more, but it is still beneficial for male models. Makeup Artist or MUA have connections with photographers, and could refer you to other photographers that may be looking for someone like you.

Now that you have added several photographers and MUAs begin contacting them. Tell them you like their work, be honest, and that if they ever need a model to please consider you. As a photographer I like this approach allot! Models that approach me like this are more likely to shoot with me for free. Messages I do not like or find to be rude go like this. “How much do you charge” at first it seems innocent, it is completely ok if you are willing to pay. The photographer goes into details about his or her pricing package and then the model says “I was hoping to do a TF shoot with you” TF meaning free. It would have been better if they had asked this in the beginning, instead of having the photographer waste his or her time.

So let say there is a photographer you really want to shoot TF with, it is fine to ask “Hi my name is XYZ, I love your work (be honest) and wanted to see if you would be interested in doing a TF shoot with me?” if he or she says no, and tells you his or her price and you cannot afford it, do not respond back with “I don’t pay for photos”. Instead reply telling them thank you for responding and unfortunately you are unable to afford to pay for photos, but in the future if they have a casting that you fit, to please consider you. You are more likely to be considered and sometimes the photographer will cave in if they really like your look. Do not do small talks, for example “How are you doing?...I like your work…. And you go on and on till you finally ask the real question you wanted to ask. I call it beating around the bush, you are not the only one that will beat around the bush, after a photographer receives so many they will classify you as “those models”. So be respectful of their time.

<Back Continue Reading ---> Networking-Finding a Photographer/MUA Part 2

Intro- I want to be a freelance model!

contd. I want to be a freelance model! Hair

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I want to be a freelance model! (Hair) contd.

The next part of your body that should get the most attention after your skin is your hair. Like my friend Michael Ramsey has told me in the past, “Hair is like tires on a car, put a crappy tire on a very nice car the car will look crappy, put great tires on a crappy car, the car looks great” There are hair styles that we love, but understand it has to fit your face. If you are blessed with a high forehead you do not want to accent it more with a hairstyle that pulls your hair back. So when choosing a hairstyle set your preferences to the side and select the hairstyle that is the best fit for you. If you have a hard time choosing one, go to a professional hair stylist and discuss it with them. They will have a better idea of what you should do.

Once you have the hairstyle you want, keep it for at least a year. Diversity in hair style sounds great but it can really limit you in booking clients or with an agency. The client does not want surprises, so when they see your portfolio full of flavor hairstyle of the week, they will be very hesitant to hire you. They want to make sure you show up exactly the way you present yourself in the picture, not be surprised by a sudden different hairstyle. Female models have a little more freedom, it is ok to straighten, or curl it, but do not cut the hair to a different hairstyle.

Maintaining your hair is very important, keeping your hair it’s natural color will be an easier route, but if you prefer to dye it, make sure it stays the same color and your roots are done periodically especially before a photo-shoot. Never do a shoot with the roots of your hair a different color then the rest of the hair. Always, like your skin, apply moisturizer. The thicker the hair the more important it is to have it moisturize. You will have fewer breakage issues and your hair will appear healthier. When it comes to dyeing your hair, refrain from DIY hair dyes that you get from the store, they will damage your hair especially if you do not know what you are doing. Go to a professional hairstylist and they will do a great job of getting the hair color you want and they will make sure it looks natural. Take care of split ends, females have a natural understanding, but male models need to start paying more attention to their hair.

Teeth is simple, go to a dentist. Your body is an investment do not cheap out on it.

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Intro- I want to be a freelance model!