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The internet has been given a splash of glamour with the arrival of

Model Agency Net (www.modelagency.net).

The service is intended to solve a perennial headache for photographers

and creative directors - finding just the right face for a modelling

assignment without having to wade through a host of unsuitable portfolios

or comp cards.

The web site features a search facility that can track down the right

model by gender, race, physical characteristics and modelling speciality,

then display digital images and vital statistics. The site also features a

New Faces section, where young hopefuls can try their luck, and creative

community areas where creative folk can mingle and network.

Phil Pickard, a Midlands-based photographer and the site’s creator and

managing director, claims that the site fills a pressing need: ”I’ve got a

shoe-box full of comp cards going back 30 years,” he said. ”They’re a

nightmare to use because they are cumbersome and out of date. CD-Roms have

the same problem - they start to need updating as soon as they are

released. The web site can be updated 24 hours a day.”

He added: ”There are plenty of pretty-looking model agency sites around,

but try booking a model from them - we’re the only site that uses a

shopping basket and makes it easy to follow it through.”

Pickard claims that the site will have around 20 per cent of the UK’s

agencies on board by September. Rather than high traffic, Pickard is

aiming for quality of use. ”If we only get 500 visits a day, but they’re

from creative directors, I’m not bothered,” he claimed.

Models pay a fee to use MAN. Agencies receive commission for each model

featured, and are given their own web pages.