Today we are all enamored with stars and the fame and fortune that come with the reference. When it comes to kids many of us live vicariously through the eyes of our little ones. That's not to say that the warm fuzzy feeling we get when we see our children perform and show off the talents that we as parents have passed on, doesn't further fuel our increased desire for showing them off. Often our strong desire to obtain fame in the family leaves us with little common sense. These are the emotions that many unreputable people have become very wealthy playing on. Those that have found it profitable to stroke our desires have also found that our sudden loss of common sense will allow many people to rationalize paying almost anything for the opportunity. As a professional photographer and producer, I've been in the business for almost 20 years so I've seen many things good and bad in my industry. This article will deal with the bad. More precisely modeling and talent agencies, for which there are no shortage.

To start, let's get one thing straight. Top producers and talent scouts are not coming to your local Holiday Inn Express or any other hotel to see your children. It just doesn't happen. These companies are not in town to discover anything but your money. They will tell you things that tease the earlier mentioned desires of fame and fortune, as well as the need to feel special. Oh, they'll make it sound legit by telling you that you're not a shoe in, or you'll go to see other talent scouts to be absolutely sure that you've got the look and talent. But at the end of this process you can be absolutely sure they'll be asking for money. It will come from many itemizations such as Head Shots, Portfolios, and Schooling to refine those obvious God given skills. I've heard of fees as much as $5,000 and up. Would we pay this much for anything else if the seller told us they couldn't promise results of any kind! What most of these phony agencies are not telling you and you must know is that they can't promise you results of any kind. They can't promise that you'll be seen publically; that you'll be in a magazine or on TV, they can't promise you'll make any money. So what is your $5,000 for? It's for their pockets. When I was 21 I freelanced at a large talent agency shooting headshots and portfolios. This agency was later shut down by the state of Georgia for ripping people off. At the time I was young and didn't understand what was going on I was just happy to be making a paycheck. But as time went on it became apparent that the agency had none of its customer's careers in mind in fact I believe in 5 years that didn't find one person a job in acting or modeling. They actually operated out of a large well decorated office in the Atlanta that looked very impressive which helped secure the scam and make it believable. The scam worked like this:

They would hold free testing or searches. These searches would be widely advertised and would tout the fact that the people involved were of national importance. After taking a head shot or two and taking some personal information they would make the call to about 90% of the applicants and invite them to a 2nd round of viewing with supposedly even higher people. The 90% was so that they could make the later claim that if it were only about collecting money they'd be calling everyone. They also know that most parents or especially teenagers will be so overcome with joy at being called and told you have potential that by the time their told to pay money they will because they don't want that special feeling to end. Once in the office they will pretend to look you over and your photos they'll either tell that they will call you or they'll ask you to wait in the lobby. Either way the free time is up, your going to be told that you or your child has potential and with a little refinement and their help you or your child could very possibly be making money and on your way to stardom.

Trust me it will go something like that, some small variables will change but you will then be given a price that will teach you or your child to be a star and get them headshots and portfolio. They may even have several different classes to market.

If you or your child has desires of modeling or being an actor, first and most importantly - keep your head about you! The sad fact is that you need to do it for the enjoyment and love of the craft because the harsh reality is that vast majority of people will never make it out of the local environment. Also don't force your children to do it if they don't want to. Young kids are at an impressionable age and being turned down over and over cannot be a positive way to build self-esteem. I've worked on movies, TV and I've been on large advertising shoots and it can very hard work and sometimes quite demoralizing. I've been in cattle calls were the majority of the girls left in tears being told things like your nose is to wide, your feet too big, your too heavy lose some weight before you come back and much more. A person must really want to be in the business and understand that heartbreak is an every week occurrence.

If you truly want to attempt this as a career then be prepared to do a lot of local work. Local theatre is an excellent way to hone your craft as an actor and many theatres offer small classes for very little money that are going to help you more than someone who claims to know the hidden secrets. Many famous actors have been discovered on stage and the majority of them have used stage to work on their craft, and many still return to the stage time and time again. Find a local agent if possible. One who is just and agent and gets paid when they get you a job not by offering to teach also. Once you have an agent have them get you auditions and if they don't have you on one use your local trades to find some yourself. The more auditions you attend the better you'll be at it. Also even in Hollywood you're going to run into the same casting agents and the more times they see your face the more likely they are to remember you. Many actors will tell stories about how a casting agent saw them at a different casting call but thought about them for another job. If you begin to have success at this the rest of the success ladder will be easy to find.

Modeling can be a little bit harder to break into because it's about a look and a specific look and there are no model theatres or modeling clubs. As an actor it's about character and you can always act like another character. However try doing runway, by finding the local apparel mart and asking how you can walk their runway or who they use to book those spots. If you truly think you have the look of a top-notch model, which means the height, weight and looks then the best thing to do is to have someone take a headshot of you and send it to the top agencies. If you call them they will tell you what address to send headshots. Also this means New York or LA. There are some top notch modeling agencies in Chicago but my point is that your local Casablanca is only going to charge you for classes and maybe get you some small jobs but they really don't have that much influence of what the decision makers in New York see. By the way, if you send your pictures off to these agencies, forget about them and be surprised if they call you. Your odds are very low that something will happen. In the mean time find a local agency that will hire you out as a model and do so without charging for classes. You may need a comp card, which will be a card with 3 to 4 photos on it showing many different looks and styles you have. You will want to have these photos taken by different photographers (I'm making my colleagues mad with this one) because every photographer has different styles and will see you or your child differently. If you want your comp card to have originality then will use different photographers. Also check your local trades to see what's going on in your town. Often you will see events or catalog productions listed. Find out what photographers are doing what work and send them your shots. Most of the time a photographer doesn't have the power to choose the models for a paid production shoot but on occasion they will be ask for suggestions and may notify you when there is a need.

Seems like it would be easy since it's a visual medium and viewing a photographer's portfolio would tell you everything you need to know. Its almost that easy but lets look at some details; first don't worry about what equipment a photographer uses, you don't ask any other professions that question and the final results should matter to you most. Second; art photography has its place but if your looking for a photo that shows off your physical appearance the last thing you need is someone who will make you blurry, blown out or anything that keeps the real you from showing through. Third; find a photographer that will let you take your images and print them whenever and wherever you'd like.

The price of a photographer will vary based on popularity, demand and experience. But if you're trying to break into the business then don't spend a fortune on the photographer. Once you have been at it for a while you'll know when you think the time is right for paying a more experienced photographer. Try the photography schools and young photographers for a cheaper sitting fee. Most of those photographers are getting their start in the business and will often be more economical while spending more time with you. Also don't assume that because their just starting out that they won't be a good photographer, look over their work and you should be relatively comfortable with one or two. When I was in school I use to photograph headshots for about ¼ of what I would charge now but I needed the work to help refine my skills and to help build my portfolio.

There are pitfalls to meeting with photographers or supposed agents. I suggest meeting in an office somewhere. If the person doesn't have an office then a public place for the first meeting. No casting agent would be doing business out of their home, but some photographers may have a home studio. Please be safe and take someone with you, many times unreputable people will hold ongoing searches for girls they can take advantage of. In my career I've met many, so avoid those that will not be in a position to help your career. And if they promise to help your career think hard about what it is they can do for you. Most local photographers for instance may have jobs but the scope of their influence is very small, unless they happen to be recognized nationally.

I'll leave with this; it will take a lot of perseverance to make it in any of these industries, so be willing to take the lumps and set backs if you want the best outcome. It can be incredibly exciting. If you're a parent please weigh the harm for the good, is it just for you or does your kid really want it and does he/she like it. My 6 year old son took a local class design for his age group and taught by our local Alliance Theatre Company, he did very well and like it a lot but when I ask him if he wanted to go and audition for part in a local stage production he said "no" and that's were we left it. He wants to take the classes again and when he's ready he will tell us not us telling him.