Creepy bullshit
A while ago I got a solicitation for a modelling job through my account on a site which facilitates these endevours. Guy Leroux of "Studio Declic Photo" contacted me through
starmae, which was suspicious in itself. He claimed that the information on my account was incorrect so that he couldn't contact me himself. This was not true, but I like to get paid money for taking my clothes off, and he wanted to do nudes. I was interested.
He wrote me to inform me that I was "not the best looking guy in the world" (a blatant lie) and that:
"You must appeal to a Quebec city French Canadian clientele not multilingual Montreal or Chicago. But there is a model in Quebec who has your style I contacted him many times most reasonable rates awesome tatoos not pretentious a bit ...but as you can guess very busy and has no time for the dates I would need him."
How do pictures appeal to a multilingual audience? Your guess is as good as mine.
"Guy" enquired about exactly how naked I was willing to get, and about my rates. Obviously, he was trying to make me feel like I had to prove that I was good enough to be in his pictures, and to drive down my price. This kind of behaviour raises "the killing edge" in my heart, particularly when I imagine how well it must work on insecure young girls. I told him that I'd do just about anything, and that my rates would depend on travel and lost revenue from work. He sent me the contract, and it didn't look like he was actually going to PAY me, so I declined to respond. Starmae and I both tried to verify his "studio" through a site which he sent us a link to. Neither of us found any mention of "Studio Declic" or Guy Leroux. That kind of stuff creeps me out.
What is even MORE creepy, is that he wrote
starmae a couple of days later:
>Mae Ryan told me to contact you if I am to reserve him for a photo session.
>If so I would be travelling to Fredericton as this is what Ryan told me he
>would prefer.
>
> I need to know what are his fees no comercial rights, no right to sell,
>distribute only rights to portfolio. I am including a copy of the contract.
>
> Also do you know any facilities I can use in Fredericton? Or any remote
>location with a nice abandon building as this would be of interest to me.
Oh boy! An abandoned building at a remote location with a fake photographer! THAT isn't creepy. Not creepy at all. I know how to respond to these kinds of things. Right now the whole issue has me so pissed off and annoyed that I have no recourse but to post the exchange here. Then I can rest. Obviously, I am in italics. "Guy" is, preserving the original text of his emails, all in caps.
93
I haven't been able to verify your "studio" with the link that you sent. I didn't write you back, and I certainly didn't tell you to contact Mae.
I have no interest in working with scumbags who lie to try and smooth their way into the studio. Did you really think that Mae wouldn't contact me and tell me about this? Is this acceptable behaviour on your planet? I didn't "tell you" anything. I certainly will not be working with you in any capacity. I have no idea who you are, seeing that you are not listed on the site that you sent me, and your conduct thus far has been suspicous and sleezy. I will be warning other people about you.
You are not dealing with an insecure little girl who is so desperate to have her picture taken that she'll go along with any creep who can produce a camera. Frankly, I am suspicious of your intentions and your qualifications. Not to mention your lack of ethics in going behind my back to try and schedule a shoot.
Get a fucking grip, "guy."
93
-R.
WHAT PROFESIONALISM! YOU SURE SOUNDED DIFFERENT ON YOUR FIRST EMAIL.
WHATEVER YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY MODEL ON THE PLANET SO GET A LIFE!
FOR THE RECORD THAT WAS YOUR FIRST EMAIL SO TAKE SOME PILLS TILL THE PANICKING IS OVER THAT YOU DO NOT WANT TO WORK WITH ME IS FINE BUT I AM A DULY REGISTERED COMPANY AND PHOTOGRAPHER SO.... GET A LIFE AND GOOD LUCK IN YOUR CAREER
This happens to me all the time. Guy's transgression was severe, but it wasn't "in your face" enough to justify calling him a scumbag from most people's point of view. Many models would have just gone along with things, or simply not responded to him at all. But I have this problem: when people are being idiotic assholes in a semi-polite way, they must be openly scorned, insulted, and attacked. There is nothing more sleazy and cowardly than this kind of bluster. It intimidates people into going along with you. People don't think that they can treat a liar as a liar, because the liar hasn't crossed any socially acceptable "line" of behaviour. Even his defense here, "that was your first email" is a lie. I don't know what the idiot was thinking, because obviously I still have the text of all our correspondences, even if I was so airheaded that I would forget what I wrote a couple of days later.
But what happens when I call him on his crap? He gets defensive and self-righteous. He criticises my "professionalism" (which is basically the same approach taken by the wags at lashtal.com after the moderator decided to falsely accuse me of threatening people over private messages) and, worst of all, he does it all in capital letters. For some reason I have been called upon to excersize my talents as a professional asshole NUMEROUS TIMES this week, which is causing me to reflect on the fact that being myself often upsets my stomach. But still... somebody has to say these things. I guess I'm that somebody.
The question that haunts me is: What goes on in these people's heads? Seriously. How do you rationalize this kind of minor intimidation and sneaking behind someone's back? What the fuck is WRONG with people?
starmae, which was suspicious in itself. He claimed that the information on my account was incorrect so that he couldn't contact me himself. This was not true, but I like to get paid money for taking my clothes off, and he wanted to do nudes. I was interested.
He wrote me to inform me that I was "not the best looking guy in the world" (a blatant lie) and that:
"You must appeal to a Quebec city French Canadian clientele not multilingual Montreal or Chicago. But there is a model in Quebec who has your style I contacted him many times most reasonable rates awesome tatoos not pretentious a bit ...but as you can guess very busy and has no time for the dates I would need him."
How do pictures appeal to a multilingual audience? Your guess is as good as mine.
"Guy" enquired about exactly how naked I was willing to get, and about my rates. Obviously, he was trying to make me feel like I had to prove that I was good enough to be in his pictures, and to drive down my price. This kind of behaviour raises "the killing edge" in my heart, particularly when I imagine how well it must work on insecure young girls. I told him that I'd do just about anything, and that my rates would depend on travel and lost revenue from work. He sent me the contract, and it didn't look like he was actually going to PAY me, so I declined to respond. Starmae and I both tried to verify his "studio" through a site which he sent us a link to. Neither of us found any mention of "Studio Declic" or Guy Leroux. That kind of stuff creeps me out.
What is even MORE creepy, is that he wrote
starmae a couple of days later:
>Mae Ryan told me to contact you if I am to reserve him for a photo session.
>If so I would be travelling to Fredericton as this is what Ryan told me he
>would prefer.
>
> I need to know what are his fees no comercial rights, no right to sell,
>distribute only rights to portfolio. I am including a copy of the contract.
>
> Also do you know any facilities I can use in Fredericton? Or any remote
>location with a nice abandon building as this would be of interest to me.
Oh boy! An abandoned building at a remote location with a fake photographer! THAT isn't creepy. Not creepy at all. I know how to respond to these kinds of things. Right now the whole issue has me so pissed off and annoyed that I have no recourse but to post the exchange here. Then I can rest. Obviously, I am in italics. "Guy" is, preserving the original text of his emails, all in caps.
93
I haven't been able to verify your "studio" with the link that you sent. I didn't write you back, and I certainly didn't tell you to contact Mae.
I have no interest in working with scumbags who lie to try and smooth their way into the studio. Did you really think that Mae wouldn't contact me and tell me about this? Is this acceptable behaviour on your planet? I didn't "tell you" anything. I certainly will not be working with you in any capacity. I have no idea who you are, seeing that you are not listed on the site that you sent me, and your conduct thus far has been suspicous and sleezy. I will be warning other people about you.
You are not dealing with an insecure little girl who is so desperate to have her picture taken that she'll go along with any creep who can produce a camera. Frankly, I am suspicious of your intentions and your qualifications. Not to mention your lack of ethics in going behind my back to try and schedule a shoot.
Get a fucking grip, "guy."
93
-R.
WHAT PROFESIONALISM! YOU SURE SOUNDED DIFFERENT ON YOUR FIRST EMAIL.
WHATEVER YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY MODEL ON THE PLANET SO GET A LIFE!
FOR THE RECORD THAT WAS YOUR FIRST EMAIL SO TAKE SOME PILLS TILL THE PANICKING IS OVER THAT YOU DO NOT WANT TO WORK WITH ME IS FINE BUT I AM A DULY REGISTERED COMPANY AND PHOTOGRAPHER SO.... GET A LIFE AND GOOD LUCK IN YOUR CAREER
This happens to me all the time. Guy's transgression was severe, but it wasn't "in your face" enough to justify calling him a scumbag from most people's point of view. Many models would have just gone along with things, or simply not responded to him at all. But I have this problem: when people are being idiotic assholes in a semi-polite way, they must be openly scorned, insulted, and attacked. There is nothing more sleazy and cowardly than this kind of bluster. It intimidates people into going along with you. People don't think that they can treat a liar as a liar, because the liar hasn't crossed any socially acceptable "line" of behaviour. Even his defense here, "that was your first email" is a lie. I don't know what the idiot was thinking, because obviously I still have the text of all our correspondences, even if I was so airheaded that I would forget what I wrote a couple of days later.
But what happens when I call him on his crap? He gets defensive and self-righteous. He criticises my "professionalism" (which is basically the same approach taken by the wags at lashtal.com after the moderator decided to falsely accuse me of threatening people over private messages) and, worst of all, he does it all in capital letters. For some reason I have been called upon to excersize my talents as a professional asshole NUMEROUS TIMES this week, which is causing me to reflect on the fact that being myself often upsets my stomach. But still... somebody has to say these things. I guess I'm that somebody.
The question that haunts me is: What goes on in these people's heads? Seriously. How do you rationalize this kind of minor intimidation and sneaking behind someone's back? What the fuck is WRONG with people?