Infant Baby Modeling

The other posters are correct. We took my daughter to Adkids, who wanted money up front, but would then pay for the headshots, which would be taken every 6 months. My cousin used to book talent for the catalog One Step Ahead, and she used Lily's Talent Agency, which she recommended to me. You submit snapshots, and if they decide to represent you, they do not ask for money up front, but will ask you to pay for headshots. (I believe also every 6 months.) My friend is a working actress in LA, and this is basically her deal too, but she gets headshots once a year.
It really is a huge time commitment though.
http://www.lilystalent.com/core/index.php

While you may have just the absolute cutest baby on the planet, make sure that this would be the life you would envision for your child. Long days, posing under odd lighting, odd locations. Is this what you as a child would have wanted to do? Or did you love to be outside running, not worrying if you got a scrape because "work" day is tomorrow? Or not being able to have a playdate because you have to work?
I know it is money potentially to be earned, but it is also a potentially lost childhood. Make sure if you do decide that this is the life for your child, she may attend 1000's of auditions, shoots and not earn a dime because they went another way or the funding was dropping for the advertising. Or she did the work and the company went belly up(not far fetched in this economy) before her check was cut and cashed.
Make sure you do not put money out for pictures other than at a local picture place like JCP, Sears or Picture People. If the agency is really interested in your child they will pay for the shots because they know they will make money for your child and themselves. If they don't offer this up they aren't sure they could sell your child's look right now. Good luck in whatever you decide. If it were me I'd opt for the playdates and blowing bubbles.

I don't have any personal experience with this other than my girlfriend getting scammed big time when trying to get her teenage daughter into modeling. I don't know how many thousands of dollars they got out of her before she walked away, but you need to be careful! My girlfriend is a highly intelligent person and everything seemed legit, but they started out asking for a small retainer and then the amounts and false promises grew from there. Beware of what you're getting into!

Hi J. -- my triplets were baby models but only because we were approached by an agent - Ford Modeling Agency, we didn't seek it out. We made money but it was a ton of work for me. With a singleton, it may be different.

My advice is DO NOT PAY ANYONE ANY MONEY. The good, honest and top agencies don't require any money, just photos (mostly taken by you -- not a pro) and a letter about you and your child.

I suggest you go online and google "chicago modeling agencies" and their websites should tell you how to submit an application/portfolio for consideration.

Good luck! -- REE

A reputable agency will not charge you ANY money. You send them a picture with your child, their age, and a little about them. If the agency is interested, they will send you back their paperwork along with the information about how to get a work permit for a child. My mom has a friend who's kids were very successful in modeling and acting so that's how I know. I tried it too and one of my girls got "hired" by an agency (I can't even remember their name now!!?)...but it was a huge pain in the @#$%. I hated the driving around to auditions which were usually a waste of time. We weren't cut out for it all but if you think you are, best of luck!

Most of those places are kind of a scam. If you want your daughter to model you will have obtain a work permit. You have to call the local school district and get instructions. I had to go to the local high school with my daughters social security card, birth certificate, letter of intent from an agency, note from the doctor saying she is healthy to model and date of last exam. I would look up agencies and follow their directions on how to send in potential client information EXACTLY. Get together a few cute pics that will not be returned and her size information. Mail them off and then do a follow up email three weeks later. I hope this helps and email me if you have more unanswered questions.
Smiles:) S.

Do NOT pay anyone any money to "represent" your baby as a model. Also do NOT have "professional" pictures taken if the agency pressures you to do so. Babies change so much. A good quality snapshot(s) that shows off her features and personality are fine.

There are several reputable talent agencies in Chicago who represent kids of all ages. A Google search for Chicago talent agencies will produce a good list. You can also go to Act One studios website and they sell a booklet called Act One Reports ($8) which lists all the talent agencies, whether or not they have a kids division, and how to submit pictures.

In order to be a good model the baby must have an easy going personality, no stranger anxiety, and be fairly comfortable in new environments. There are always a lot of people on set with bright lights and big cameras. If your baby is easily intimidated by these things it's not a good fit. Also you need lots of time to make trips into the city for auditions with very little advance notice. These can sometimes take 5 minutes, sometimes 2 hours. If you have the time and patience then it's potentially worth it.

Good luck!

My daughter has been signed up with Ford, Babes N Beaus, and most recently Lilly's, she was offered representation thru Baker & Rowley but we declined.
She has been signed since age 3mos but never booked!
Here's the lowdown:

Ford: She was signed by default. Aria originally signed her years ago but they later merged with Ford and transferred all the clients to Ford. We never heard from them ever. I even called the lady that was suppose to run their children's division but she never returned my call. This was about two years ago.

Babes N Beaus: They accept snapshots for children and babies everyone is accepted with no upfront money however, My daughter never ever got booked in the entire 4 years that she has been with them. We did get a call once that Sears was interested in her and they wanted to know her size, I told them, but no call back happened. Then once he called again to send us to Simon Casting for a casting call for Land of Nod but she didnt get booked for that either.

Baker & Rowley: They wanted us to come in with $75.00 for uploading our daughters pics on the website and do a test. The test consisted of someone that worked there holding her to see if she would cry. We decided not to bring her simply because they asked for money upfront! They also don't have the best BBB Rating either.
And Last.....

Lilly's:
They are suppose to be reputable however after sending pictures of my daughter for 2 years finally when she was three they called for me to bring her in based upon a snapshot I emailed in. Here's the thing we came in with a group of Mom's like 10-12 of them. They did the test (holding your baby or taking your toddler to another room by a staff member) and all of our kids pased the test except one ladies baby cried when staff picked her up so they sent the Mom packing. But for all of us that were invited to have our child represented by Lillys we were given an application and asked to pay 100.00 to have our kids photos uploaded on their website for clients to view. We were also given a handout about a class that the owner teaches on how to get into modeling for 100.00. We had to also turn in a resume with our childs photo on it on cardstock paper for clients to view. The cost at Kinko's was about 15.00. We were also told to register for free on Actors Access.com but to understand that they are not Lilly's and we should still pay Lilly's the 100.00 to be on their site.

Caveat: Today is a year later and she has never been booked or called in for anything! However, I didn't pay the 100.00 for her to be uploaded on their website so perhaps that's why she never got a job. I have received emails recently from an agent there asking me if I was going to schedule a photo shoot for her because he needed some updated photos. He suggested using a photographer named Socko, I called him and he averages 350-500.00 for a photo shoot! I can't afford him! She is only 4!

Disclaimer: I spoke to a parent at the Land of Nod Casting call and she said her son is signed with Lilly's and he works all the time. Except that I have to pay for professional pictures and my daughter will never get booked without them! So I guess there is no way around it. She had great photos from a photagrapher in Chicago called Zoe, she expensive too but a little cheaper than Socko.

Good News:
I did get her booked to do a catalog a couple of days ago on my own. I submitted her pictures myself and they called and she finished the shoot yesterday! Good Fate!

My daughter has been modeling since she was 1, she is now 4 yrs old. We were originally with Lily's talent and Arlene Wilson. We are currently exclusively signed with Ford Model. Lily's Talent was legit and my daughter had a few jobs with them, but they do tend to try to send you on a lot of auditions. I personally chose to just accept confirmed paying jobs and not go to "look see's" or auditions, jut jobs that were a guaranteed paying job. You do have a choice. With driving from the suburbs, gas money, parking and just the inconvenience, I was not about to go on every audition that my child may not even get. NEVER go with a agency that asks for any money what so ever, not even for them to take pictures. Especially with babies, their look changes so fast. Reputable agencies normally don't ask for professional or composites for kids till 5yrs old or after. I still sometimes use snapshots for my daughters pic that is on file for Ford Model. There are so many scams out there beware. You have the choice how many auditions or jobs you want your child to go or be in. Most importantly make sure your child has fun and enjoys it. If they are outgoing and loves people and new environments then it should be lots of fun! Good luck and keep us posted!

Ford has a children's division in Chicago. Check the website for more info. Send in a picture or otherwise follow the directions on the website. You can submit every 6 months. I don't know any other agencies in Chicago. You don't have to pay at a reputable agency. Take your own pictures.

I know a little bit about this because a few friends of mine did a little modeling with their children. I know for a fact that you should never pay an agency, they may take a small cut of your pay when your child books a job. Never pay up front, if they need money up front then it is a scam. The second biggest thing is that your schedule needs to be wide open. My daughter has been asked to join a couple agencies just recently. The problem is that I am not a stay-at-home mom. I can not drop my son off at someones house and call off work to take her to a photo shoot. You need to have complete open availability. I wish you luck and remember to have fun with it, don't make it a career, just make it a fun thing to put a little college money away for your child.

To clarify, the posters are correct, you do not need to pay any money up front at a legit agency, but any agent will take 15% off the top for each job they get your child. And contrary to what some have said, they may very well ask you to get photographs from a professional. Professional actors do not use snapshots, they use 8 x 10 headshots that are shot by a pro photographer and yes, it is expensive. So there is an investment of money as well as time. However, I'm not sure how they handle that with babies since they change so fast.
Reputable talent agencies are accredited and associated with the actor's unions such as SAG and AFTRA. Most of them are located downtown in Chicago. You can do more research online.