Lesson Learned

A very well known fashion photographer had been asking me to trade for a while. Being a broke college student, I couldn't afford the time off or travel to get down to the city. I really thought the images would benefit my portfolio, so I eventually did make it happen. I was 20 years old.

He was very cordial and personable. He picked me up from the train station, and parked illegally at Grant's Tomb. Being a NYC native, he knew exactly how long he could get away with being parked there. As one would imagine, the park, located in upper Manhattan, was buzzing with hundreds of people. And I was expected to pose bold, with the confidence and sex appeal of a fashion model. I was nervous. 

He had a young apprentice who shlepped his gear around for him. The apprentice's most important job was basically to hold an enormous (and very heavy) umbrella out, so that the general public could not see that I was naked. I was amazed that the umbrella alone didn't get us removed from the site immediately.

So, we spent about two hours photographing. We did several wardrobe changes (though I was, essentially, nude) and moved about the park. I even posed with a passerby's Great Dane, who was probably taller than me, and definitely weighed more than me.

Afterwards, he bought me a snack (huge bonus), dropped me off at 34th street, and sent me on my way.

Weeks, months, years went by, and I never saw any images. After several reminders in the first few months, I just dropped it, and chalked it up to a lesson learned.

Anyway, this year, the same photographer reaches out to me again and proposes that we do another trade. I expressed surprise that he would make such a proposal without ever having honored our original agreement. He sent me this image with a sincere apology, and the promise that he would send me the remaining files in the next two weeks. I do think this is a nice image, and alas, I'm still waiting for the rest.

Because these images 'did not fit' into the project he was shooting for, he wishes to remain anonymous, but is allowing me to use the images however I please. So here you go. Maybe you'll see the rest of this set, and maybe you won't. 

Two reservations I have made since this shoot;

1.) I do not trade with photographers, unless I am guaranteed to be a part of the final product (given that my participation in the project will benefit me). Otherwise, there must be a written agreement that I have rights to use the photos in a way that would benefit me. (And/or we shoot for a specific project of mine).

2.) I do not pose in cemeteries/memorial sites. I believe it is disrespectful to the dead and their families. (I honestly never imagined that I would have to make this point PRIOR to a shoot, but there you have it).