Some of you will be amazed that all of the photos I do lately are done with all of my lighting on the camera (plus sunlight). I use the built-in flash on my Olympus C-3000-Zoom and their optional accessory flash which goes on a sidebar and has a swivel head. I use the swivel head to bounce light off the ceiling, which largely cancels the light from my built-in flash.
What is the advantage here? Well, very low equipment cost. Also, I don't have to tip off the hotel management that I'm a photographer by carrying in the sort of cases that scream "equipment." I can look like an ordinary check-in.
When in a hotel room, put anything that might identify the hotel out of sight. Without those, a hotel room is just a collection of "off the shelf" furniture. With them, you are probably in much greater peril of legal difficulties.
Digital photography is definitely the way to go. I generally start a shoot around 1 p.m., finish around 3:30 p.m. and have the photos on display by 9 or 10 p.m. With film, I wouldn't even have it back from the lab (if it's a quality lab) until the next day at the earliest. And then if I shot 8 rolls of film, I could look forward to about 16 hours of scanning as well.
I don't allow male partners after the initial meeting. They can drop the girl off and pick her up afterward. Also, if I find myself negotiating with him instead of her, I go to the next name on the list. I have no time for "Mr. Junior Pimp" types. As a result, I've had minimal grief from male partners.
As a matter of fact, I allow NO ONE at the shoot, unless they are working with me (which in itself is a rarity). I like to develop some trust with the model, and with her S.O. or best friend there, that leap of faith doesn't happen and when she leaves she doesn't trust me a smidgeon more than she did when the shoot started.
For anyone clicking on my signature to visit the site, it is offline being moved to a new server and being redesigned. It will be up with basic content in a few days and all content should be back online in a month or less.
Also, never pay the model until after the shoot and never start the shoot without a signed release. Otherwise, nothing is stopping her from walking out the door (if you try to stop her, you'll likely be breaking the law and opening yourself to serious trouble). If you leave signing the release to the end of the shoot, you are open to her renegotiating the fee. (These lessons were learned early in my career, so heed them dearly.)
Don't begin until you have a basic understanding of the rules for documenting your model's age and keeping the required records.
If you are interviewing girls before you shoot them (and you should), be sure to check their age before you show them anything a minor shouldn't be shown. Otherwise, you might be open to "corrupting a minor" charges.
For anyone clicking on my signature to visit the site, it is offline being moved to a new server and being redesigned. It will be up with basic content in a few days and all content should be back online in a month or less.
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