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I’m an event organiser whose job inadvertently converges with photography.
My portfolio is currently available on facebook, multiply, and flickr, and covers a broad range of categories.
My involvement in photography covers the following areas:
1. Events (obviously)
Events coverage from setup to tear-down – whether for my own profile or for clients’ records, I cover behind-the-scenes as well as what the general public see on stage / during show time. This include site recce for planning purposes, setup photos for documentation and proof of work done, on show photos for press releases / media write-ups as well as tear-down photos for a complete set of records.
Events that i’ve covered in this category include roadshows, launches, annual dinners, parties, award nights, fashion shows, concerts, regattas, races.
2. Fashion
Besides the occasional fashion/runway shows coverage, did a brief stint doing fashion shoots for an online-magazine that i was involved in for about a year. This not only include taking the actual photos but covers casting for suitable models/talents, liaising with stylists, MUAs, hair-stylists, wardrobe, art directors, as well as photographers and studios.
I don’t only shoot, I plan and execute as well :)
3. Portrait
This is an area where i’m more inclined to explore and expand due to the nature of my work. As an event organiser who prefers to source for my own models/talents rather than through agencies, I’ve built up an extensive database of models/talents, many of whom are new-comers to the industry and whose profiles/portfolios are more often than not, unusable or unsuitable for the type of jobs that they are applying for.
While models/talents these days might do a lot of photoshoots due to the ample supply of eager and willing hobbyist photographers around, the results, while beautifully taken/artistic, do nothing to represent the model/talent in the way agencies/casting houses/production houses want. And the frustration of receiving hundreds upon hundreds of profiles with profile/portfolio photos that simply cannot be submitted led me down the path of portrait photography.
4. Food / Product / Lifestyle
These are some of the categories I have had opportunity to shoot for reviews / editorials / catalogs / menus / advertisements as a “by the way” – just the occasional request.
5. Organised Shoots
The increasingly popular hobbyists photographers’ model shoots sessions these days see an increasingly worrisome trend in exploitation of new models/talents as well as a general decline in good paying jobs and market rates – due to lack of education about market rates as well as the mentality of some who do it just for fun, and it is hurting the industry as a whole. Professional photographers who shoot portraits for models portfolio find their source of income dwindling, models/talents who could have found a lucrative source of income from photoshoot modeling find it increasingly tough to command a good rate.
While I do organise shoots for hobbyists photographers once or twice a month (when time permits) it is getting increasingly difficult to even break-even. I prefer not to compromise on standards and will only hire/supply models/talents who are able to deliver a good shoot session and that comes at a price many hobbyist photographers are simply not willing to pay. In some rare cases, TFP/TFCD shoots are done on request from models/talents and only offered to selected photographers who can deliver quality photos to models.
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My other profile here at Casting Call – http://playthat.tv/castingcall/members/wkhai |
On March 1, 2010