This model digitals checklist turns the guide to taking model digitals at home into a list you can tick off during the shoot. Work through it from top to bottom, and remember that agencies differ, so compare it with the instructions of each agency you contact. Print it or keep it open on another device while you shoot.
What should you do before you start?
Prepare everything before you pick up the phone. A stray hair or a smudged lens takes seconds to fix now and a whole reshoot to fix later.
- Clothes. Fitted basics in a plain color, with no logos, slogans or busy patterns.
- Hair. Clean and simply styled, and pinned back for the shots that show your face and neck.
- Makeup. Light or none, so your skin and features look natural.
- Skin, nails and teeth. Check them, because close shots show everything.
- Light. Daylight from a window in front of or beside you, with lamps off.
- Background. A plain wall, with the floor and the wall clear of clutter.
- Phone. Back camera, 1x lens, upright and level, with a clean lens.
Which shots go on a model digitals checklist?
Agencies differ, so the exact list may change, but this order is a typical starting point. Many agencies like a smiling and a non-smiling version of the front-facing shots, so take both for those. If you use ViaCamera, the mode line is only a suggestion: AI-FACE fires when your face is in frame and your eyes are open, so it suits front and three-quarter shots, and AI-BODY fires when it sees you in frame, so it suits side-on, torso and full-length shots. With a timer or a remote, ignore the mode line.
- Front headshot. Head and shoulders, looking at the lens, shoulders square. Mode: AI-FACE.
- Left profile. The same framing, with your face turned fully to the left. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Right profile. The same, turned fully to the right. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Three-quarter. Face and body turned about halfway between front and profile. Mode: AI-FACE.
- Close-up, front. A tighter frame on the face, with hair off the forehead, only if asked. Mode: AI-FACE.
- Torso. From the waist up, arms relaxed, facing front. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Full-length front. Head to feet, arms relaxed at your sides, feet slightly apart. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Full-length side. The same distance, turned fully to one side. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Full-length back. The same again, with your back to the lens. Mode: AI-BODY.
- Full-length three-quarter. Turned about halfway, with a relaxed stance. Mode: AI-BODY.
Leave a little space above your head and below your feet in the full-length shots, so nothing is cut off. Keep the phone at chest height and at the same distance for all the full-length shots. Stand on the same spot between angles so the lighting and the background match.
Small habits that help every shot
Keep your stance the same from one angle to the next, so the set looks like one session. Roll your shoulders back and let your arms hang loosely, and avoid tensing your jaw. Take three or four frames of each angle, so you have a choice when you review.
Leave a short pause between angles to check that the phone has not moved and the light has not changed. If a cloud passes and the room gets darker, wait until it clears before you carry on. A set shot in steady light looks consistent, which makes it easier for an agency to compare.
How do you check the shots after you shoot?
Open each frame at full size and tick off these points before you keep one per angle.
- Eyes. Open, sharp and looking where you intended.
- Blur. Nothing soft on the face, hands or feet.
- Cut-off. No cropped feet, hands or the top of the head.
- Straight lines. Walls and floors look level, with the phone not tilted.
- Matching set. Clothes, hair and light look the same across the photos.
- Honest look. The photos look like you on a normal day.
If no frame of an angle passes every check, shoot that angle again while the setup is still in place. Matching the light and distance on another day is much harder.
How do you save and send them?
Move your chosen frame for each angle into one folder, and leave the rest out. Rename each file with your name and the shot, such as “jane-doe-full-length-front”, using the same pattern for every file.
Before you attach anything, reopen the agency’s submission page and match your files to what it lists, such as the format, any size limit and whether it wants a form or an email.
Send only the shots you were asked for, and keep your originals. Do not apply filters or retouching before you send, since agencies usually want to see you as you are. If you want to understand why, read what model digitals are and the guide to sending polaroids to modeling agencies.
