If you’re paid upfront then go by all means. If this person is aware there are gonna be photographers and will bring their own chances are this person doesn’t want to buy what’s offered.

Some of the other photographers may get pissed, but business is business. They should get pissed at the organizers or plainly just choose not to participate under those terms, I wouldn’t.

By blurry you mean out of focus or motion blur? I’m gonna assume it’s depth of focus that’s missing here.

2.2 seems a bit shallow for a moving target, I’d close to about 5.6, bump the iso up one stop and the flash should go up a stop or a stop and a half. That’ll give you enough depth to work with.

Are you professionally shooting eyelashes or what?

I mean, I’ve seen like a thousand over edited self portraits of a girl lit by a single a candle crying a tear of blood into a mirror.

But as long as you don’t try that one, I’d say you’re good.

I’d look up a local MMA fighter and reply with his name in the signature, just in case

This is the answer you’re looking for.

Is your friend an artist who does some sort of creative work related to portraying human nature? If so, I’d lend weight to their opinion. If not, disregard, he’s just speaking out of his ass.

The thing about freedom of speech is that everyone is allowed to have an opinion, but it doesn’t make everyone’s opinions worth a damn.

If you’re gonna listen to the opinions of everybody you’re never gonna do shit. You’ve got to have the backbone to listen to somebody and confidently reply “I understand your point of view, but I also think you don’t know a damn about what you’re talking about.”

Not unlike people without medical qualifications having an opinion on vaccines IMHO.

Grab a photo from a photographer you like and replicate it exactly. Model, background, lighting, styling, postproduction, lens choice, cropping.

Literally try to make it so when you see the photos side to side it’s hard to distinguish them.

It’s hard but very fun and will force you to really master the technical aspects. It will change your future jobs forever.

Court side to the Tennis Shanghai Open, no tickets, no credentials, nothing. Just walked right into into welding a big lens and a “fuck off, I’m working face”

I started with a nikon F3, can’t remember the lens.

A whole bunch of things in happened in between

Today I own probably 20 top quality lenses for F mount and 3-4 bodies. like 4-5 of strobes, about 5 speedlights, like 20 light modifiers, a bunch of lighstands & tripods, accesories, backgrounds, knick knacks, props, model clothing & lingerie, bags, led panels, a big neon sign, a smoke machine, two large boxes of homemade light fixtures, a large box of makeup, jewelry and hair styling accesories (i’m a bald guy).

So, think carefully if this is the path you really wanna go down. Drugs may be cheaper.

Magazines have never paid bro, even vogue is known for shelling only 200-300 for a full editorial. It’s a cost of doing business as that’s your foot on the door for advertising work. Sad as it is, free work is not new.

You do you, but plenty of photographers do it that way and do legit work.

But trying to bunch the creeps with real photographers just doing regular TFP tells a world about you, peace out.

Agree, plenty of guys with a camera are trying to do that shit.

But if the model says he’s got a got portfolio and references from other models, doesn’t sound sound like it’s the case.