SHOULD YOU DO PHOTOSHOOTS FOR FREE?

There is so much debate in the fashion industry about whether or not creatives should work for free. It's a good debate to be having, and we DO need to discuss free work vs paid work. However, is there ever a place for free work?

My personal opinion is: yes. 

When I first started out, I had zero experience shooting portraits. I didn't have a portfolio to speak of. I needed to break in.

The way I did that was by shooting a lot of free work. And yes, sometimes that free work was for brands who ended up using those images to sell their products. 

Have I ever regretted it? Not once. 

I'm not suggesting that you all go out and spend years upon years creating free imagery, and feeling exploited. It's about doing something strategic. 

I began my career by approaching customers that I knew I wanted to work with that would represent my brand well and offered them my services for free. That often involved one shoot, with which I would provide a handful of free images for them to use. 

Pretty much all of those shoots lead to me being hired (and paid real money!) by those very customers (and many more). 

Shooting for free allowed me to prove myself to brands, but also to others. It gave me the opportunity to build my portfolio, and show them what I could do. I got to add work to my portfolio, be associated with large companies, and get paid in the long term.