How it works
A portfolio used to be a real album the model carried to castings, which is why it is called a "book". Today it is mostly digital, on the agency's website, a tablet or a PDF, but a printed book is still often taken to castings.
A good portfolio shows range: portraits and full-length shots, a natural and a styled look, studio and outdoors, first publications. At the start 8–12 strong pictures from tests are enough; later real jobs and tearsheets replace them.
The agency builds the portfolio with the model: it picks the frames that show the model best and suit the market they will work in. Weak pictures come out, even if the model likes them.
In practice
The agency goes through a model's twenty pictures from three tests and keeps ten. The first and last are the strongest portraits, with full-length frames, a natural and a styled look and movement on the street in between. Six months later the two weakest are replaced by a first tearsheet and a catalogue frame.
What to watch for
- Fewer but stronger pictures.
- Open with your strongest frame and close with one.
- Update the portfolio after every important job.
Related terms
Frequently asked
01How many pictures should a portfolio have?
8–12 strong ones at the start, later around 15–20. Quality and range matter more than quantity.
02Do you need a portfolio to get signed?
No. Simple pictures are enough to apply; the portfolio is built after you sign.