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IT MIGHT NOT BE YOU.....It might be your team! VIVYD Magazine Retro Issue
MIGHT NOT BE YOU
It might be your team!
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Not getting published or receiving the recognition that you think you should? Well maybe it is time to upgrade your team. My first thought to this is that you are not alone. As a magazine publisher I turn down countless models seeking publication within my magazine and the reasons would surprise you. Some models take it as a personal attack against them and their work, while still others continue to persist only to keep finding rejection. Although the reasons can be all over the board, here are my top three reasons for not selecting an image or set of images for publication.
The image. This portion falls directly on the photographer and is applicable to probably 75 percent of the images rejected for publication. The photographer is the one who is responsible for the technical aspects of the image. As some of you know publishing an image in print, is not the same as publishing an image for use on the internet. The resolution required for an image to be printed with quality far exceeds that of an image you see on Instagram. Images in print are required to be manipulated and resized to fit layouts within the magazine. Because of this, images submitted have to be sent at higher resolutions in order to maintain picture quality. You would be surprised at how many photographers do not know this. In addition to resolution, images must be technically sound to include composition and in focus. YES, IN FOCUS! I will say this for the cheap seats, “Not all photographers are created the same!” Often in photography just like in any other profession, you get what you pay for. If a photographer is not charging you to shoot usually there is a reason why. And just because he or she has professional equipment that does not mean that they will produce quality work. So, if you are looking at being published on covers, in features, editorials, etc. you might want to ensure that the photographer that you choose produces work that is worthy of being published.
The Make-up Artist. So, of the three reasons the MUA is usually the least notable reason. However, make-up fails do account for a portion of rejections. Lashes falling off, lipstick fades, too natural, too much make-up, and not professionally done as it relates to blending. Depending on the type of submissions makeup can be a deciding factor for selection or rejection. For example, you would not submit for a beauty editorial without any make-up on or the make-up poorly done. Again, this is usually a you get what you pay for situation.
The last factor is the model. So here is where the truth may hurt. Reality, Instagram, and platforms like IG have given people the ability to create their own narrative. You can say or be anyone you want. Fashion brands in effort to get brand ambassadors, have given platforms almost to anyone who is willing to buy their clothes, tag them, and offer discounts to anyone using their codes. Normal everyday people are now modeling without any formal training, any effort into their craft, or without frankly any real resume. Let that sink in for a moment, if a doctor is called a doctor, just because they put DR in front of their name, with no training or effort into being a doctor would they be a doctor? The answer is no. And even if they were able to open a practice, I would bet in short order they would be shut down and maybe even jailed. Now I know that is an extreme example, but I said all of that to say this, there are levels to this industry and just because you are at the beginning level does not mean you are the same as Tara Banks or Heidi Klum. Modeling is just like any other profession or hobby; you will only be as good as the work you put into it. As a model you have to be able to produce the same quality day in day out, with different photographers and different situations. A professional model can create notable work whether the sun shines or the rain falls. I do not say this to be discouraging but for the opposite reason. If you call yourself a model and would like to be taken seriously, then put in the work, do some research, discover which genres of modeling you actually like. I bet that if you take yourself seriously then so will others.
