Gigless Photographer Takes His Advertising To The Streets, Receives Thousands Of TFP Offers
David Cassey’s viral photo, taken by Jasmine Scott. AI edited.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA — On Friday morning, gigless photographer David Cassey woke up in his basement apartment, put on a nice shirt and tie, and carried his handwritten cardboard sign to a nearby highway median.
“GIGLESS,” the sign read. “HUNGRY 4 SUCCESS. HIRE ME TO SHOOT YOUR NEXT EVENT.”
It turned out to be the not-so-perfect gig search strategy.
A passerby’s photo of him standing on the median holding the sign soon went viral on Twitter, and by Saturday afternoon, he’d been flooded with more than 2000 gig offers.
“A model reached out to me,” the astounded 36-year-old told The Tog Times. “So many other couples, parents, and even some hobos. Quinceañeras, engagements, weddings, christenings, and a ton of children’s birthday parties,” he said, speaking by phone at a Chick-fil-A near where he’d first gone begging — literally — for gigs.
“A couple from San Antonio was wondering if I could shoot their wedding if I can make it there on my own,” he said, with wonder in his voice as he scrolled through the offers. “That’s the issue right now. I’m getting offers but they are TFP — trade for photos only. No one wants to actually pay me money for shooting. That’s a long way from Cali. They did offer to pay for my gas.”
FROM THE BORDER TO THE BAY
Cassey grew up in the border town of El Paso, Texas. He started shooting about 10 years ago when Facebook was inundated with would-be professional photographers. He had bought his first DSLR, a Canon EOS Rebel T5i (700D). The "big brother" to the T5 and a mid-range, top-selling option in 2013, it was commonly sold with the 18-55mm STM lens or an 18-135mm STM lens. It featured a touch-screen LCD, a faster DIGIC 5 processor, better autofocus (9-point all cross-type), and less image noise than its predecessor.
He cut his teeth shooting first his cats and plants, then made his way to shooting birthday parties for his friends’ children. He eventually learned composition and how to keep a level horizon through cityscapes after moving to Houston, TX for “better” gig opportunities.
He finally learned how to shoot in manual mode when he was asked by a stranger to shoot their three-hour wedding for some tacos and tequila. By 2016, he had bought a 35mm f/1.8 lens that changed the way he viewed things, and he immediately started shooting portraits of random people in the streets.
In 2020, he moved to California to start his own photo business. By this time, Cassey had an EOS 5D Mark IV, a professional DSLR renowned for its robust build and 30.4MP sensor. He had also learned to use artificial lighting, somewhat separating himself from “natural light” photographers who only shot events during 5:30am-10am or 4pm-8pm during the summer, earlier in the winter. Then COVID happened.
“I’d been living in the same place now since that time,” he said of his small studio apartment nearby. “No one was hiring. I had made accommodations to shoot portraits via Zoom, but that was stupid. I tried to tell people I’d double mask if I can shoot them in person, but shooting portraits of people with masks on, even for outdoor gigs, was just a vibe killer,” he said.
THE BREAKTHROUGH
Cassey said he did some freelancing — a few headshots for friends and street scenes in L.A. after lockdown. But a month ago, his beloved 5D Mark IV with his 35 1.8 was stolen from a park bench while he was adjusting his lights for a model shoot.
On Friday, he dressed as best he could — “to be presentable to my future clients,” he explained — and set out with his new sign and a stack of resumes in a FedEx envelope.
“It was basically a make-or-break moment,” he said of his gig-search breakthrough. “I wanted to keep my head up high, keep looking forward and see what opportunity would come next. I was thinking, you know, like this was my last stop. If this didn’t work, I’d go back home and give up on my dream. Or I had to start making reels or TikToks.”
He’d only been standing on the median at El Camino Real and San Antonio Road for a couple of hours when a passing driver named Jasmine Scott stopped and asked if she could take his picture and post it online.
“Today I saw this young, gigless man asking for people to take a resume rather than asking for money,” she tweeted around 5 p.m. Friday. “Please RT so we can help David out!”
By mid-afternoon Saturday, Scott’s photos of Cassey and his resume had been retweeted more than 50,000 times.
“It’s been happening very quickly, and I’m in shock,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting that kind of response. It kind of blew up. Unfortunately,” Cassey said, “most of the inquiries are from models that are just starting out, influencers that promise to tag me on their posts, and a few couples who said they’re looking for someone that won’t charge them ‘an arm and a leg’.”
Cassey is considering taking the Texas gig in San Antonio, but that wedding is set for next year. He’s hoping that he’d actually have some clients that would pay for travel, expenses, AND his shooting fee before then.
On a positive note, at this writing, Cassey has about ten solid leads and a down payment for one wedding in July.
“I’m grateful, man,” Cassey stated. “It’s not a perfect strategy, but of the 2000 or so inquires, 50 responded back to me, 35 or so have ghosted me when I sent my pricing guide, but this July wedding is exciting.”
He used the downpayment to buy a used Canon EOS R6 Mark II, a 24.2MP full-frame mirrorless camera. Featuring 40 fps electronic shooting and advanced AI subject tracking, it acts as a refined, faster, and higher-resolution successor to the original R6. He also upgraded to a 35mm 1.4 lens.
“It was a $2,500 camera when it came out,” Cassey said, “but I got it for about $1,200 with the 1.4—the exact down payment of my most recent contract. My landlord will not be happy that I’m not paying his rent again, but thankfully I live in California.”
The Tog Times is the world’s one and only satire news publication for photographers. If you found this useful, hilarious, or personally offensive — you’re in the right place.
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