The best car show security in California took to social media to remind photogs attending car show to show some respect and not touch the models.
Car shows are a great way for photographers to break out of their shells and shoot both cars and car models/import models in a fun and safe environment. But according to Kuya Abe AKA Abe Ubaldo of Kuya protection, it looks like some photogs are taking advantage of this situation to almost bully models, both physically and verbally. Check out his Instagram post below to see what I mean.
The following post reads,
“This past weekend at Extreme Autofest I noticed some photographers get super aggressive at telling models how to pose to the point of actually grabbing them to the pose how he wanted…warned a couple not to do that again since the model looked to intimidated to say something and thanked me after…A lot of these models come for FREE and pay out of their pocket to be at shows to meet fans and interact with photographers for possible PAID work…so if you didn’t PAY them for a shoot then you don’t have ANY call to tell them how to pose how you want PERIOD…NEVER PUT YOUR HANDS ON ANY MODEL WITHOUT CONSENT…KUYA means BIG BROTHER..and these girls are all my little sisters…You don’t wanna see a mad KUYA… “
Thankfully, Extreme Autofest is one of the bigger car shows where the vendors can afford to hire security for its models. However, the large majority of models posing for car shows at smaller shows (e.g. everywhere else pretty much) either don’t have a budget to bring their own security, are doing it just for the exposure, don’t have a friend to bring along or don’t know how to say no to aggressive photogs. Enter in a handful of pushy photogs and you’ve got a recipe for disaster.
This problem comes from a lack of respect. Car show models are there to do a job and that’s to promote a car, booth, and/or product. That means attracting crowds of people through their sex appeal. That, however, is not an invitation to verbally harass or touch them. You wouldn’t harass or touch a perfect stranger in public so why is it OK at a car show?
Car show models are just regular humans like you and I and I’m sure don’t mind entertaining a couple of poses if you ask politely. They’re there to spread either their reputation or whatever they’re promoting on social media and if that means striking a couple of poses, that’s how it is. The key word is polite and from a foundation of respect.
So, the next time you’re out at a car show and want to practice your photog skills on some car show models, put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself if your requests aren’t being unreasonable. Learn to read social cues from them such as signs of stress, shifting eyes, and sighs as signals that they need space.
And by all means, do not touch the models or else you’ll have a huge hand on your shoulder ala Kuya Abe to tell you to lay off.
