Help Wanted
Maybe. We’ve mentioned that we might like to have a 3rd person help take pictures in one of our photo sessions; but weren’t quite sure how to go about finding one. Some people have suggested AFF or similar places; which seem great for meeting open-minded people in general; but we’re looking for a “real” photographer, not just someone to take pictures of us. They would not have to be a professional; but we would like for them to be able to lead us through the session and take better pictures than we can take by ourselves. So, how do you go about researching all of the people that you meet at the various online destinations? Given they type of photographs we are interested in having taken, it seems improper to us to ask anyone who is interested for similar samples. And, how could we be sure that that they are the ones who actually took them anyway?
We know that we don’t have ideal physiques for such photographs, and would not be the best addition to their portfolio. And, we have a few other unusual requirements. So, we don’t think that we would be of much interest to professional or semi-professional photographers. Plus, we take pictures for fun so we would not be willing to pay a lot for their services. Perhaps the best approach would be to find an experienced amateur photographer. When I was in college, it seems like there were always photographers looking for models. In fact, I remember several solicitations to take x-rated shots with my then-girlfriend. Nowadays, I don’t know where to look; especially since were 40-something rather than 20-something.
Have you had someone else take pictures of you? If so, how did it turn out? How did you find the photographer? Would you do it again? Is it something that you would recommend to others? We think that it would be nice to have some high quality photos and for the 2-year anniversary of our participation in HNT. Any ideas or suggestions you have are appreciated.
Well good luck with the search. I have no ideas, but would share if I did have any thoughts. Would asking around at the swingers clubs or the adult toy stores be useful? AAF was helpful for me at one point, but there would be a fee to join or you can’t really respond back to someone. Local Craig’s list doesn’t seem very good – not many participants.
I know 2 people who are open minded enough to do it, and probably not charge much if anything for taking the pictures….but they both live in California. Good luck finding someone! I am sure the pictures will be spectacular.
well, if you place an ad you’ll get plenty of offers, but most are going to want to join in.
make sure you find someone who will do ONLY what you want.
also, they must be cool with the fact that when you’re done they should offer to leave
Being an amateur photographer myself, and very interested in erotic photography, I would jump at an opportunity like this. Craigslist would be a good start. Interview every response until you find one you’re comfortable with. As was already mentioned, make it clear that this person is not to join in and is to respect your space. Any serious photographer, amateur, pro or otherwise will know to keep a respectful distance from nude models. I would interview them before hand, meet somewhere for a beer or coffee and bring some clippings of the types of photos you want so that you are all on the same page.
Photography schools are always a good bet. Students are always looking to expand their portfolios and will often do what’s called “Trade for Prints” or TFP if you’re placing an ad. You don’t charge them for the modeling and they don’t charge you for the photography, but they do give you a small number of free prints and usually they’ll give you a CD with the entire session on it.
Btw, a model is not just a pro, 21 year old anorexic. Any living being on the business end of a camera is considered a model, even if it’s only once. Any photographer that has worked with models at all or that is serious about their craft will want you to sign a model release form. It’s nothing more than an agreement stating what you and the photographer are allowed to do with the photos. I’ll email you with details about those if you want, or you can google the phrase and you should come up with a million of them. Don’t let the idea scare you, it’s a smart thing to do so that a picture of you two doesn’t end up in some stroke mag some where and if it does you can sue the photographer into oblivion. If he/she doesn’t require you to sign one, it would be a good idea to find one or write one up that you’re comfortable with and bring it with you to the shoot.
MCG and CG before you do anything you need to really think and decide if you would want someone else to have the ability to do whatever they wanted with the photos on the internet or otherwise. On the one hand boyfriend above makes excellent points about a “Model Release Form”, however, if what you desire is to have some beautifully erotic photos taken for only YOU to do with whatever you want ( this blog is under your control so whatever you place on your site you have the control over) then what I would suggest is that you make the agreement that they will give you the Camera Card immediately upon finishing the photos and then you can print them yourselves or put them on your computer to do with whatever but the photographer would not leave with the camera card or the ability to print photos of both of you that you have not agreed to or authorized. I believe you could find someone for a reasonable price to do this for you but you need to state your wishes upfront before you proceed. If you don’t mind the photographer having erotic photos of you both then it will be farily simple. As much as you post highly erotic photos of yourself on your website it is another story completely to have another individual with the ability to do whatever with erotic photos of yourself.
Hope you are having a beautiful relaxing weekend.
Most model release forms boil down to the photographer having complete control over the photos BUT you can reword it, make changes and add addenda so that if he does keep copies for himself, there limitation as to what he can do with them. You can add wording in to the agreement so that any use he makes of the photos will require that they be edited to remove any identifying features such as faces, tattoos, etc. from the photos.
I think you will be hard pressed to find a good photographer that won’t want to keep copies of the photos, particularly if he’s doing the shoot for free.
I agree with boyfriends last comment. Unfortunately, most photographers, amateurs included, will want to retain copies for their portfolios, especially if they are doing the shoot for free or near free.
My husband is an amateur photographer and he takes the majority of my pictures. I do have another photographer that I work with on occasion, but he found me online and we met several times (with my husband) in very public places prior to my agreeing to working with him. He did take some of my favorite pics (my very first HNT, and the last HNT I featured though I added my own effects to both)BUT he does have copies. I signed a release form prior to shooting and part of the release dealt with his use of the photos. Other than his portfolio, he cannot use the photos for any other purpose without my written consent. So far this has worked well but I am sure there are those shady individuals out there who could care less whether or not they have a signed agreement as to such.
I’d send the hubby over to help you, free of charge, and with you retaining the memory card and therefore all copies of said photos, but alas we’re in Virginia and you are in Ohio
Best of luck on your search!
I think Craigslist is your best bet. There are a lot of people out there with photography skills who aren’t doing that for their profession. I’m sure you can find someone with photo knowledge and a sense of adventure! I agree with others though, definitely make sure you set ground rules first so you don’t have some guy trying to jump in bed with you (if that’s not what you want)!
Rosie: I’m not sure how many photographers hand out on AFF as opposed to people who like to take pictures. I think we could find some to help fairly easily. But, we’re looking for someone with good photography skills. I expect were in for a long interviewing process no mater what rout we ultimately decide on.
Michelle: That’s the problem. I’ve “met” several amateur photographers on the internet who seem to do good work (judging by what they post on Flickr) but no-one around her. Blogland is a wonderful community; but, sometimes, there is no substitute for being local
Exile: That’s what we’re afraid of. We aren’t looking to take photographs as a beginning of something. We don’t need a pretense to play. If we want to swing, we’ll head to one of the local swing clubs.
Boyfriend: First, thanks for your long and detailed comment. It has given us a lot of things to research and think about. We would not mind doing TFP with a reputable photographer. Of course there is no magic bullet for determining who is reputable is and skilled. I remember the model solicitations on the bulletin boards from my college days. Of course, life was much less complicated then. We’d definitely want a release or some other contract type form saying who can do what. We don’t post our faces on the internet; bit a lot of photographers have on-line portfolios so I’m not sure how we’d reconcile that.
P.S. It’s a shame that you aren’t around here. The photographs you post on hour blog are very good.
Interested Reader: That would be the optimum; I wonder how much it would cost. Most photographers, it seem want to be able to do something with the pictures they take. Even wedding photographers like to use them for advertising and promotional purposes. And, these days, more and more advertising and promotions happens on the web. I wonder of we could find one that would be willing to surrender their rights.
The kids were out of the house for most of the weekend, and we got in the pool today. So it was very relaxing.
Boyfriend: That’s kind of what we figured. We just want the photos for our own private use. Years ago, it would not have mattered so much. Unfortunately, with everything being digital these days, things don’t fade into obscurity like they once did. I know there is no such thing as a free lunch. But I would like to find someone who has “compatible” interests.
Jen: Your photos look good no mater who is taking them. I know photographers put a lot of time and money into their craft so I understand why the want to keep something. I’d like to think that we could find one that would honor an agreement that worked for both of us. Maybe we can come up with something else valuable to trade. I wonder if there are any bartering wed sides around. I wish your husband was closer too. There MUST be someone like him or boyfriend in Ohio.
AlwaysCurious: As Rosie said earlier, craigslist around her is pretty skimpy. One of the drawbacks of living around here. We’ll look, but based upon what everyone has said, I don’t think we’ll find anyone in time for our two-year HNT anniversary post.
Everyone: This was a lot more involved than we thought. We’ll keep you all posted on our progress. Like many things, the logistics would certainly be easier of we were independently wealthy. Then we wouldn’t have to worry where the photos turned up.
Your photos are just fine. I would not bring a third party into your life. You will lose control of where and how your photos are used. Besides that, who can you really trust not to cause you grief in your home town. To much chance of gossip, which will possibly affect your children.
I enjoy home brewed photos much more than the professionally done, photoshopped ones.
Richard: You hit the nail on the head. It’s all about trust. *If* we could find someone trustworthy that would respect our wishes and desires then it might be fun to do. We like our snapshots too; but, when we look at them, we can see what might have been if we could have just done this or that with the camera. We’ll look around and see what turns up. After that the next step depends on what we find.