What To Pay Foreign Models

How Much to Pay Foreign Models
Jim Zuckerman

Trying to determine how much to pay people in other countries when you photograph them is a sticky problem. Gone are the days when Third World people are happy to be photographed with nothing exchanged but a smile. Many people now depend on income from tourists who take pictures of them to support their families, and others need and appreciate the extra income. I never mind paying people that I photograph. They give me something special in allowing me to create a memorable photo, and I’m happy to give them something in return.

Dollars go a long way in developing countries, and the money you spend is very small by our standards. Of course, if you pay everyone you photograph on a two or three week trip, this can add up. But if you love photographing other cultures, it’s really a small price to pay.

When I arrange to photograph a model, I always specify that I’m paying for a certain amount of time. Many unsophisticated people think that you only want to take one picture. If you take ten or twenty, that’s obviously more money that you owe them. They don’t understand that it may take that many pictures just to get one good image. Therefore, I make it clear that I’ll be taking many pictures in the span of time we agree on.

I also make it clear that a model release is part of the deal.

When I arrange to photograph models, I always know that I’m paying too much based on the standards of the culture. But I never mind, though, because I get what I want and I’m helping the people who are giving me their time. I also know that there are usually middlemen who are making a percentage of the transaction. For example,
if you ask a hotel concierge or a taxi driver to find cultural dancers to photograph, he will most likely get a commission for his efforts. If your contact has to ask a friend to help out, and that friend asks another friend to find the subjects you want to photograph, all of them will make money on the deal.

The amount of money you pay depends on the amount of time, whether or not the people you photograph are professional performers, what kind of relationship you have with your local guide, and whether or not you have a personal relationship with someone in the culture. My wife is Indonesian, and when we go to Indonesia she can get better prices for models than I could negotiate on my own. A case in point: when I visited Bali for the first time, I had always wanted to photograph exotic Balinese dancers. My taxi driver took me to a dance school and I arranged to shoot two girls for $150. They were young, beautiful, and they had complete costumes and full makeup. I got some great pictures. The following year, after I met my future wife and we spent some time in Bali, she arranged for me to photograph five dancers and I paid only $25!

Let me give you some prices that I’ve paid in various countries. You may be able to do better – or not – but this is what I was able to negotiate. The prices are not per person, but rather the total I paid for all the models involved.

Kenya – five Maasai, three boys and two girls for two hours in afternoon light: $26
Cambodia – four dancers in full costume at Angkor Wat: $40
India – three girls for 1/2 day: $40
Indonesia – one teenage girl as a Javanese bride: $15
Switzerland – one girl in three carnival outfits: $300
Bolivia – six dancers 1/2 drive from the city at a church: $60
Jordan – young girl who put a veil on for me: $ 10
Peru – mother and child for twenty minutes: $ 5

If I photograph people in a village or on the street where I take only a minute or two of their time, I’ll usually pay a dollar in the local currency. This pleases them in almost all instances.

Sometimes a model will agree to pose for me without payment, with only a promise of sending pictures. This doesn’t happen often, but in Korea and Venice, Italy I was able to do this. I then send them a packet of 8x10 prints.

Comments

[Alan G]

Interesting to know how much you pay people. I am a Canadian living in a 3rd world country (Guatemala). I normally get off with 1-5 $USD, but sometimes a glimpse at the digital screen is sufficient for some. I imagine the models would be more cooperative with more cash. I'll give it a try sometime. Thanks!

[Melissa]

This has been very informative. I just traveled to Jamaica and I paid a man $5 for a session this was the first foriegn 'photography' transaction I have made. I have a Masters in International Management so I felt that I could handle the situation quite fine. Well, I thought that I was being very professional by offering him my business card thereby, legitimizing my work. I would have never expected what was to happen next: now..... he is calling me! One other thing I might add is not to give a business card :)

(Please note: that in several cultures the exchange of a business card is highly reguarded I can now see where it might vary 'out in the field' ;) )