Safety
First
Keeping yourself safe in the fashion industry
can be one of the most difficult tasks. We tend
to meet with people we only know on a limited
basis. We speak with them on various
websites and sometimes make assumptions,
based on their personality, which leads us to
believe they are safe to work with.
Without a second thought we drive to a
photographer's home or studio, just knowing
limited information about them. For the most
part, people look at us as though we are crazy
when we tell them how we meet the
photographers we work with.
Be that as it may, that is the industry we work
in. By taking the proper precautions we can
save ourselves from making a horrible
decision, and working with the wrong person.
If you are ever getting bad vibes from
someone, the biggest clue is to go with your
gut. If they are saying things that are making
you uncomfortable, there's a slight chance
they will do the same after you choose to
work with them and it will show in your photos.
So is it really worth it?
by Sharon Boisvert
No. Always go with your gut. Of course, there
are many other things to make sure the
photographer we are working with is safe.
Checking references is a great start to
ensuring our safety. In checking those
references, though, it is important to
remember that each model’s experience may
differ. Mixed reviews are not always the
easiest to go by, which is why we should get
as many references as possible. This
includes references that the photographer
did not provide. Be sure to view their previous
work and look for people who were tagged
in the image, or comments from those to
seem to be familiar and have worked with the
individual in the past.
After we make the decision to work with
someone, there are even more steps we can
take to ensure our safety.