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Scams, Shams & Charlatans

BEAT the latest scams and shams online

The Internet has change our lives forever, but it is all too easy for the rogues and charlatans to set up and publicise their “services” online and a number of modelling scams have migrated to the NET, we say too many are falling for these big and financially lucrative shams.

FAKE Modelling Advice Services

A number of imitation web sites have set up as so called “Modelling Advice” services and have even pinched a fair bit of information from the albamodel.info site - these fake model advice sites are owned by those who seek to exploit such as Internet shams and also photographic studios. They have realised our work at ALBA is doing it's job and steering you away from the shams and so rogue advice sites have been set up to mislead the public into believing they are getting unbiased advice about getting started in modelling – in reality they are not.

Some encourage you to submit snapshots online – then victims are invited to attend a so called “assessment day” costing around £50 up front, the outcome is always that a photo shoot is needed to see how the novice model is in front of the camera. At the end of the shoot – the pictures look great to the untrained eye but then there is the sting and hard sell.

1) Pay £100 deposit otherwise we will delete the pictures,

2) The disc will cost £850

3) You will get 15 prints in a portfolio

Many fall for and agree to pay the amount over 3 months they are then sent away without one single shot or any information or list of agencies to approach having been duped into spending £50 assessment, £100 deposit and £850 – a total of £1,000 Not to mention the cost of the train travel for mother and eager teen of £120

Free photo shoot – kick start your modelling career !

Once again it starts on the Internet and most victims post their snapshots and contact details onto a site claiming to help you to - kick start your modelling career !

The sales person then calls the telephone number the victim has given and tells them they have real potential and can have a free shoot in London …. GREAT !

Therein lies the sting, because the sales person will then state that to ensure you turn up they require a refundable deposit of £50 up front… so then the victim or their parents pay this believing it is refundable upon arrival.

Next part of the sting is 48 hours later the victim is sent an email telling them that if they cancel the appointment then a further £175 will be charged on the card given. BUT this is deliberately misleading as under distance selling laws any person ordering goods or a service has the right the CANCEL within 7 days and have a refund. So to send this frightening mail deliberately misleads the public to thinking they cannot cancel, when by LAW they do have 7 days from the date of ordering goods or a service to cancel and receive a full refund of payment – as the sham is completed by internet and by phone.

Once the victims do get to the shoot in London – sometimes travelling hundreds of miles to get there, hey find at least 5-10 other people having the shoot done at the same time !

Sausage factory tactics and not a shoot dedicated to the victim – often young girls of 12 come away looking like women in their mod twenties and with poses not suitable for a 12 year old child in modelling and the same outcome :

1) Pay £200 deposit otherwise we will delete the pictures,

2) The disc will cost £600- £,2000

3) You will get 15 prints in a portfolio

Misguiding you and so not good practice do not fall for them !

CASTING & Job Offers – Passing OFF as geniune agencies

The Model Academy Ltd – based in the UK has asked us to tell you about this because a company is getting away with falsely using THEIR GOOD name

“ Dear ALBA - We are so upset and think this sham is using our name and that of starnow – to pass off this scam” Ruth Anderson - Co-ordinating Manager - The Model Academy LTD

This scam like many fake job offers online will ask for you bank details offering you an opportunity or /work, and payment for your travel fares that then ask for the fare AND other funds be cleared through YOUR bank, and for you to pass on a fee to another person – before the job is even undertaken ….. RED LIGHTS shudl be going off in your head !

do not agree to this as you may be being set up for money laundering – or worse still they use your name and account details for Fraud.

THE SCAM E MAIL / Advert :

The Model Academy Ltd
1 Atworth Grove
Littleover
Derbyshire
DE23 3WZ

Are you interested in participating in the upcoming fashion show organized by the model academy ltd, Derbyshire, UK. Then this is a chance to show off your talent to the world.We are in search of Models, Photographers, Actors, Actresses, Make-up artists, voice overs and voice actors.We went through your profile and feel that you are qualified to take part in this show.

This EXPO runs from May 20th - May 22nd 2009.

This expo,being the first is organized as an indoor show and will not be publicized, so it is strictly for invited guests only.

The famous Italian designer Franco moschino would be present as well as many other designers, so if you get this email, it means you have been chosen to participate in the show which would expose you to Top modeling firms and agencies that would be present at this event.

It also creates forum for exchange of ideas, lucrative offers and contacts among all the invited participants from different parts of the world(N:B-We are also hiring few international models). Selected models, dancers, actors and actresses would be well paid.

Qualified models would be taking part in a 15, 30 and 60 seconds TV commercials, Runways and Billboards and qualified actors and actresses would be needed for some sponsors film advert and casting.

All travel Expenses, Food and Accommodations/Hotel to Star Now Fashion Show would be covered by Star Now Agency.

Payment:
The payment method will be via check which is going to be sent to you once you have indicated your interest and we have seen your resume and it is approved.
The check you will receive before the commencement date of the program will include your part payment, air fare cost and accommodation cost. you will be required to get the check cashed, deduct your part payment and you will have the rest sent to an agent that will be in charge of taking care of your needs. this agent will arrange for you accommodation and will be responsible for you throughout the duration of the show.
You will be informed when the check is sent out to you and the necessary info will be given to you.

If you want to come as MODELS, DANCERS, ACTORS, ACTRESSES, MUAs, Voice Overs, Voice Actors in the Star Now Fashion Show, please indicate your talents.
Submit the listed information's below:

Reply with complete stats and photos, including head shot and swimsuit photos in your next e-mail. Please list any training or experience,(none is OK)..

FULL NAME:
Street Address:
City/state/zip code:
Country:
HOME & MOBILE PHONE:
NEAREST AIRPORT:
HEALTH INFORMATION:
Occupation:
Hourly Work Rate:......

Please submit your resume.Include a link to all your online portfolios and any you know. (Compulsory)We welcome all novice and aspiring models, actors and actresses,MUAs If you have a friend you think would be qualified to be selected for this EXPO please let him contact us and send the required information's.
We will be conducting an online screening with your provided Information's.

If selected you'll hear from us via Phone or email telling you the next thing to do.
Sounds great but read it again carefully and note you are having money passed through your account DON'T FALL FOR THESE – THEY ARE SCAMS

Employment Magazine & Newspaper Adverts

Avoid them - Numerous calls have been received by us from parents of children, teenagers and even adults who have answered newspaper or free magazine advertisements adverts by Agencies asking for models, actors and film extra's of all ages and all sizes to apply.

Genuine child, model or casting agencies would never dream of advertising in these publications. Worse still when they apply the victims apply they are told that they have to have a few shots taken to see if they are suitable – say 4 taken and told the shots will go to the agency head office to see if they are suitable.

48 hours later the victim is told by phone that the agency showed those shots to a top fashion client that wants to use that victim for a modelling assignment/ shoot which will pay the victim around £600 - BUT in order for the agency to put that victim forward they must first have a portfolio shoot at a cost of £300

If a genuine agency had shown a client a snap test shot and a client stated they liked the model for work, then no good agency would insist on selling a portfolio to the model - of course those that did pay out the £300 found the assignment disappeared overnight.

High Street Portfolio Packages

Once you are accepted by an agency, they will need some pictures of the worker to start, so that clients can see how the novice looks, however, do not get conned into a "Portfolio Package " by online or high street photographers before seeing a genuine agency.

Within the Models' Guide DVD we are showing a clip online at albamodel.info top agency STORM states clearly – “ please do not fork out large sums on pictures before finding an agency “

Genuine agents just want to see SNAPSHOTS and usually with little or no makeup. They will if they want to take you on recommend professional test photographers once they decide to put you on the books. We have seen many so called "portfolios" which have cost anything between £400 to £3,000 for photographs of poor quality and more than one occasion that made a 12 year old girl look 27, when approaching a top agency they were told that the pictures were totally unsuitable for modelling as a 12 -13 year old girl.

In one case a young lady went to her local high street photographer and paid over £1,700. All the photographs were shot by the same photographer and on the same day at the same location. The pictures were not even enlarged to the correct size and not up to the very high standard expected of a model and were completely useless and a waste of money to the novice.

Yes, genuine agencies ONCE they take a model on do suggest test shot photographs to get the portfolio started, but these are not expensive (usually around £150 -£250) and are only needed until the model starts to get assignments and then their own working shots or tear sheets from magazines, are also put into the portfolio to build up a good book. You should also have a hair & make up artist at the shoot to ensure top quality photos and this will usually add £30- £50 to the cost.

NOTE - If a top agency has great confidence in a model's potential that agency may agree to pay for the initial photographs for the novice to get started and the cost of that is then repaid to the agency by the model when he or she gets paid for assignments. However, you should ensure that you find out what they will charge later for the photographs as this can sometimes be a shock to find out you owe a lot of money and it is taken from your earnings.

HOTEL scouting shams - Bogus Model & Casting Agents

This has to be one of the biggest and most successful cons throughout the UK in this industry. Alba has in the past received hundreds of calls from people of all ages who have been conned out of varying sums between £50 to £250 per person by bogus casting and model agencies which set up in different hotel conference rooms throughout the UK over a weekend period and then held so called casting seminars for anyone age 0 -70 years of age.

These agencies perform their casting seminars in different towns in various areas throughout the whole of the UK. More often than not they have very catchy names or even illegally use a genuine agency name ( like Elite UK) to make themselves appear to be totally genuine when they are not.

The public are convinced into parting with £250 - £300 for pictures and the promise is the casting agency will take pictures and find the hopeful at least one top agency which will offer the hopeful a contract. The promise is that if the applicant does not receive the offer of a contract from an agency within a set period of time the money paid by the applicant will be refunded.

Sounds too good to be true and frankly it is !

I find it very sad to have to tell people that they have been conned. Many people have paid up front money they could have saved if they had come to Alba in the first place. So be warned. Prevention is so much better than cure; because you will never get your money back from this type of scam. Stick to Alba A-List agents

Expensive Model Training

I have seen a number of males and females who have paid at least £200 - £300 for a one day modelling course. All of theses people were told that without doing the course they would not be accepted by an agency. Sadly they are not fully trained after that one expensive day.

Often this is the only income that some agencies have and they do little else for the model once they have attended a course and paid.

We recently heard of model Days being held in London where teens turn up and are supposed to “meet agencies and photographers” – they are then photographed and actually give out their personal details to anyone there – VERY RISKY and then afterwards some pictures turned up on the Internet advertising items they have no idea they would be appearing for – an absolute and clear exploitation of young vulnerable teenagers !

This is not how genuine ALBA or AMA agencies practice for genuine modelling courses see http://www.themodelworkshop.co.uk/

Free Photographic Shots - Time for prints (tfp)

It is a sad but true fact that nowadays you do not get something for nothing. It can be very flattering when someone asks to take your picture or offers to do a photographic shoot for you for nothing. But remember that there are very few things in life which cost nothing.

First, you should never put yourself in a vulnerable position. So tell your relatives or person you live with where you are going and give the exact location address. You must always take someone sensible of adult age with you. A genuine person (photographer) will not mind you doing this, if you do not then you are being foolish as you are already vulnerable even if you do know the person, take another adult with you, a large number of sexual assaults and rapes are statistically proven that the victim knew and trusted it's attacker. So don't be stupid be safe!

Never sign anything or any forms given to you either before, at, or after the shoot. These may be what is known in the business as "Model Release Forms" and if you are silly enough to sign them, then you may be signing away your right to say where they are published and most certainly any payment for them to be published.

This does happen frequently, to those male and females who want to go into fashion modelling and especially to young eager to achieve women who are also foolish enough to be persuaded into taking their tops off or to pose nude. Never ever do this if you want to go into fashion modelling or television presenting; glamour and fashion modelling do not mix.

Please note that these guidelines have been put together after real cases have come to light.

If you have a case that is not highlighted below and you feel would be of help to others then please do let us know by e-mail we offer complete confidentiality albamodel.info