Remember when your friend said, “You have such pretty hands”.
We are here to tell you that you can model your hands!
Sounds crazy?
Well, it isn't. Keep reading to find out how you can build an entire career off your pretty hands.
- What Is a Hand Model?
- Requirements for Being a Hand Model.
- What Do Hand Models Do?
- Skills for a Hand Model.
- How to Become a Hand Model?
- Hand Model Salary.
What Is a Hand Model?
It's just as the name says; a Hand Model is a person whose hands are used for modeling.
They use their hands to showcase products, services, and so on.
Have you ever watched an ad where the person opened a can of malt? The hands used to open the can are the models.
How about the more obvious nail salon ad? The hands used to showcase the nail artist's work are the models.
A hand model is a parts model because only their hands are used in the commercial, picture, etc.
But not just anyone can become a hand model. Here are the qualities you must have before you dive into this career:
Requirements for Being a Hand Model
Just as how a full-body model needs to meet certain requirements, a Hand Model also needs to have some qualities—but for their hands.
If your hands meet these qualities, then you should consider a career in hand modeling:
- No massive scars: Tiny scars can be edited in the video-making process — although it will be better not to have any—however, huge scars may not be so easy to cover up.
- No Tattoos: Except for an ad where this is specifically required, most hand-modeling gigs give preference to people without tats.
- Neat fingers: No one likes dirty fingers, and neither should you. Especially not if you're trying to build a career with them.
- Proper structure: it's nobody's fault if your hands have natural defects — especially not yours. However, uneven fingers, an extra finger, blemishes, and uneven skin tones may reduce your chances of landing a good hand-modeling gig.
If you want to meet these requirements, you should:
- Take good care of your hands.
- Eat healthily.
- Don't involve in extreme activities that may cause harm to your hands.
Useful Link: How to Audition for Commercials?
What Do Hand Models Do?
Although you may have never noticed, hand models are very popular. They are in your favorite ads and commercials.
They show the usability of products and services as well as how their physical properties will look in your own hands.
A hand model is a person that applies the toothpaste to the toothbrush in the commercial that made you buy that toothpaste.
They are the person that wears the wedding ring in the jewelry store ad.
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They are the person that applies lotion to their hands on the skincare website's product page.
So you see, hand models are very common. And necessary.
A real-life scenario of how hand models work is; Jesse, a small business owner who is just trying to start her nail salon. To show you how good her services are, she hires a hand model for a photo op who wears the manicures Jesse had done.
Jesse uses the picture on her poster, ads, etc, and potential customers see how good she is. And, just like that, the hand model saves the day!
Skills for a Hand Model
While it's awesome that you have nice hands, the work doesn't stop there. You also need to have certain skills to cement your place as a qualified hand model. Here are some of them:
- Gesturing and flickering: Some gigs may require that you gesture your fingers and hands in a certain manner. To ensure your hands can move properly, engage in hand exercises—massages, if necessary, and don't put them in positions that will lead to cramps.
- Flexibility: You may get a ton of casting calls, so you should be able to move your hands in different ways and styles to adapt to the different requirements you will be getting
- Strength: Although you don't have to be entirely buff, you still need to have basic strength. This is because you may need to carry heavy materials for an extended period depending on the gig.
- Maintaining position: For many reasons, you need to be able to maintain a position, style, or stance for an extended period.
Useful Link: How to Get Background Acting Work?
How to Become a Hand Model?
If you don't have any experience but want to get opportunities as a hand model asap, follow these tips:
- Assess your hands: Do they meet the requirements listed above? Do you have clear skin? How about scars and blemishes? Are they refined? If you are certain that your hands deserve to be on screen, then go for it.
- Watch and study other hand models: Your hands alone won't take you to the top. You also need to watch, study and practice the works of other hand models. Watch commercials where hand models were used and take note of key movements.
- Care for your hands: No biting your fingernails. No engaging in dangerous activities. Always maintain proper hygiene. You should also go for a manicure before a shoot.
- Build a portfolio: Despite how cool it would have been, you will not get calls straight away from people asking you to become their hand model. To get to that point, however, you need to build a portfolio to showcase how well your hands can advertise their products or services. Get a professional photographer to help you with pictures and try to recreate other works. Or just do your own thing.
- Reach out to modeling agencies: Find the websites of agencies hiring hand models, contact them through their preferred medium, attach your portfolio, and hope for the best. This requires a bit of effort because it may not be easy to find agencies recruiting for your role. However, websites like allcasting helps you gather readily available hand-modeling gigs so you can just apply directly.
Hand Model Salary
As a hand model, your salary is estimated to be $52,308 per year at $25 per hour.
Now that you know who a hand model is, what they do, how they do it, and even how much they earn. We know you're excited to jumpstart a career on this path, so we'll help you get started. Sign up on allcasting now to find your first gig.
