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That article was too long.  What was the point?

Where did she go wrong?

It sounds like she assumed everything. She didn't set any upfront agreement about what she expected in return for doing the shoot. And now she's mad that the outcome didn't match her assumptions.

This should never have been done for free.  Is that common in the industry?  Professional photographers, assistants, stylists, models, etc. all working for free?  If so, no wonder the industry is going down the tubes. 

It's a very harsh lesson, but one we all learn, regardless of our profession.  My husband was an electrician for 20+ years and got suckered into doing free work for people based on promises a couple of times early on.  Unsurprisingly the promised "future business" never materialized. 

Bottom line is don't do anything for a by-line, a credit, promise of future work, etc.   Micro is a bit different in that we are shooting on speculation and hoping for sales down the line, but at least we are shooting our own concepts in our own time.  If you are following someone else's brief and schedule everyone involved should be getting a paycheck.  Period.

23 years in the business and she's doing shoots for nothing more than a credit? I don't get these types of people.

I've worked for similar types before and never understood it. They'll all brag about how long they've been in the business, how experienced they are, how sought-after they are, and yet they do spec/free work.

To Helix, Tubed, LisaFX, Paulie Walnuts and Others: You do realize that 95% of fashion editorials are done without contracts?? Usually a verbal agreement, phone or email from the magazine is all that is necessary for this type of gig.

Also, regarding not getting paid, 99.99% of all magazines of this caliber never pay a dime to any photographer. The work is strictly for tearsheets and promotion. The photographer spends money to make the shoot look good, just as they would printing promo cards every year and sending them to potential clients... Its advertising....

As with many artistic fields... Interior designers do "Showcase Homes" and spend thousands out of their own pocket just to make them look good so that when people go for a viewing they can see the designers talent.... or maybe even get their rooms photographed in a high-end magazine.

Anybody here talking about contracts or "shooting for free" has no experience in the Fashion Photography field... 

PS. about 23 years experience and still shooting for "Free". You do this for advertising campaigns that pay 120,000 day rates, which Melissa has done Also, ever hear about "Keeping your art alive" You can't just sit around all day and wait for the money gigs to come to you.... Its about constantly reinventing, recreating, and learning more, everyday... Anyone in an artistic field should know this...

^^^ I'm astonished to read this and, like Sean, have no plans to offer my services for free shoots any time soon. I'm struggling to have much sympathy for Melissa either to be honest __ if she was doing the shoot to 'advertise' her services then writing that blog, naming names and specifying the magazine, etc must surely have just trashed her reputation within the industry forever.

I'm no expert on 'fashion shoots' but isn't the main point to actually show off the clothes? The images might be very moody and arty, if you like that sort of thing, but I can't see much detail of the clothes at all __ they're virtually silhouetted in most of the images. Maybe the editor used fewer of them because of this?

Of course Melissa herself has an 'intern' too, which seems to be the modern term for 'slave'. I wonder how many interns are able to reflect positively on their experiences sometime later and consider that they were appropriately rewarded or benefited with training/opportunities for their services?

Add me to the list of the astonished  

Hard to believe that an entire industry of the magnitude of the fashion photography industry manages to hum along without anyone getting paid or any contracts being signed (99.9% of the time).  Seriously - very hard to believe.  

But if this is the way it is normally done in the fashion industry, then I guess the photogs and others know this going into it, right?  

If this is really how the fashion industry operates, color me happy I am not in that business.  At least if one of my images is used in a magazine I got paid for it.  Not much, but certainly not for free.

This blog should be considered a cautionary tale for doing business without contracts or payment.


So then why on Earth would a professional photographer with 23 years experience get suckered into working for such a low caliber rag for free?  

Sorry, but you seem to be saying on the one hand that this is how it is done 99.9% if the time, "tearsheets and promotion", and then saying that advertising clients don't read these magazines.  How does it work as "promotion" if the paying clients "don't give 2 cents" about these magazines?

Always so much to say about everyone else's business, but nothing to say about his own ...

LOL!  Me too, exactly!  Have him on ignore but sometimes my curiosity gets the better of me.  Nothing new there, though. 

The title of this thread is "Where did she go wrong?"

So presumably we are being asked to comment on, you know, where she went wrong.  Or at least what she might have done to avoid this situation.

I don't see how suggesting that getting a contract and/or getting paid for your efforts is "canning someone else's business model".  

What business model? Working for free without a contract appears to be the norm.

See your previous post but one. Just because something went wrong once doesn't mean the business model is unworkable.
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Maybe you can explain to me how working for free and without a contract (95-99% if the time, according to crimsonverbs) is any kind of "business model"?  Doesn't the term "business model" imply that money will be made at some point?  

From Wikipedia, the purpose of a business:
The owners and operators of a business have as one of their main objectives the receipt or generation of a financial return in exchange for work and acceptance of risk.