From Years of Rejection to Professional Hand Model: What I Wish I Knew When I Started

Lotta Kasse

Oct 9

10 min read

Almost eight years ago, I had an idea that I wasn't even sure was possible.

Today, I've been working professionally as a hand model for around a year, and I've worked with major brands and companies that, honestly, I never thought I'd work with in a million years.

Sometimes I still have moments where I think:

How did I actually get here?

Because the girl who first discovered hand modelling had absolutely no idea what she was doing.

There was no clear roadmap. No one was telling me which agencies to contact, what my portfolio should look like, what kind of photographs I needed, or even whether I was approaching the industry in the right way.

I spent years figuring it out through trial and error.

And a lot of rejection.

If I could go back to the beginning and tell myself everything I know now, I genuinely believe the journey would have been easier.

So if you're reading this because you've been thinking about becoming a hand model, you've already started applying and hearing nothing back, or you simply don't know where to start, this is for you.

I'm not going to give you a generic list that you could find anywhere online.

I'm going to tell you what I actually learned.

Before hand modelling, I didn't always love my hands

Growing up, I was very conscious of my hands.

People would make comments about them. Long hands. Witch hands. Things that might seem harmless to someone else but can stay with you when you're young.

For a long time, I felt insecure about them.

But as I got older, something changed. I started looking at my hands differently. I began to appreciate them rather than seeing them through the comments other people had made.

Then, somewhere along the way, I came across something about hand modelling.

And I remember thinking:

Wait... is this actually a thing?

I started Googling it and realised that people really did model their hands professionally.

That was the moment curiosity kicked in.

At first, I didn't even think of it as a career. I was more fascinated by the idea that you could potentially get paid simply for using your hands in photographs and advertising.

I've always been much more comfortable with my hands in front of a camera than my face. I'm still quite shy when it comes to being photographed myself.

So I thought:

Could I actually do this?

I didn't know.

But I wanted to find out.

I had no idea where to start

My first instinct was simply to start taking pictures.

I was outside with my phone, taking photographs of my hands and trying to create something from what I had.

Looking back at those photographs now, I honestly have to laugh a little.

At the time, I was proud of them. I thought they looked good.

Now?

Not quite.

But that's part of the journey.

I eventually collaborated with a photographer I had met through university. It wasn't a free collaboration — I actually paid £80 for the shoot.

At the time, I was simply grateful to have someone taking photographs of my hands and helping me create something that felt more like a portfolio.

But the photographer wasn't experienced in hand modelling, and looking back now, the photographs simply weren't strong enough to take my portfolio where I wanted it to go.

At the time, though, I didn't know that.

And that's an important lesson I've learned since:

You don't know what you don't know.

I applied to agency after agency... and was mostly ignored

Once I started taking hand modelling seriously, I began contacting agencies.

And I mean a lot of agencies.

Dozens and dozens.

I contacted almost every relevant department of every agency I could think of in the UK, and even looked internationally.

I didn't have the knowledge I have now, so I was essentially trying everything.

I would send applications constantly. Sometimes I would apply to multiple agencies in a day.

And then...

Nothing.

Emails were ignored.

Applications disappeared into silence.

And after enough of that, you inevitably start asking yourself questions.

Are my hands actually good enough?

Is there something wrong with my portfolio?

Maybe I'm not what agencies are looking for.

I definitely had moments where I questioned whether my hands were good enough.

But I never completely stopped.

Things would sometimes become quieter. I'd step back for a little while, focus on other things, and then I'd come back to it.

I'd take more photographs.

I'd research again.

I'd apply again.

Because underneath all of that rejection, I still believed that it was possible for me.

That belief mattered.

I didn't know exactly how it was going to happen.

I just knew I didn't want to decide that it was impossible before I had really given it a chance.

Eventually, I realised I needed to do things differently

After a while, I started asking myself a different question.

Instead of:

“Why aren't they accepting me?”

I started asking:

“What can I improve?”

I'd already had the experience of collaborating with a photographer, but I began to realise that I needed much stronger, more professional photographs.

So I started looking for photographers again.

That's when I found another photographer through Fiverr and had a collaboration that changed how I saw the process.

I started understanding the importance of professional images and what they could do for my portfolio.

I also began putting together a more considered portfolio on Canva rather than simply having photographs of my hands.

Slowly, things started to change.

Not overnight.

But slowly.

And that distinction is important.

Sometimes we look at someone's career after they've succeeded and imagine there was one magical moment where everything suddenly worked.

For me, there wasn't.

It was years of small improvements.

Better photographs.

Better presentation.

More knowledge.

More experience.

More confidence.

And continuing to try.

Someone finally saw potential in me

Eventually, I got my first real breakthrough with an agency: Flair Talent.

They saw potential in me.

That meant more to me than they probably realised at the time.

After years of applying and being ignored, someone was finally saying:

We see something here.

I remember being so emotional when I got signed with them that I cried.

But there was another part to the conversation.

They explained that they weren't primarily a hand modelling agency and advised me to apply to Hired Hands, telling me to mention Flair Talent when I reached out because Hired Hands was one of the leading hand modelling agencies in the UK.

So, around a month later, I contacted Hired Hands.

And because I was already signed with Flair Talent, they gave me an opportunity to interview.

I had an actual conversation with them. They asked me questions, I got to talk about myself and my experience, and I believe they also saw something in my personality.

Then they accepted me.

I remember that moment vividly.

I was in the car crying.

Properly crying.

After all those years of trying, wondering, applying and hearing nothing, it was surreal.

It wasn't just about being accepted by an agency.

It represented something much bigger.

This thing I'd been trying to make real for years was finally becoming real.

My first hand modelling job made everything feel real

And then came the moment that really changed everything.

One of the photographers I'd previously collaborated with proposed me for a job with Surcare.

It became my very first paid hand modelling job.

I was paid £300.

And there was a celebrity on set.

I remember thinking:

What is actually happening right now?

This wasn't a photograph I had taken at home anymore.

This wasn't me emailing another agency and waiting for a response.

This was a real campaign.

A real set.

A real client.

Real money.

People were actually hiring me to do this.

And the fact that the celebrity I worked alongside later started following me made the whole experience feel even more surreal.

I remember being so grateful to the photographer who had helped me get that opportunity that I bought him something and wrote him a note to thank him.

Because I knew that this was a turning point.

This was the beginning of my breakthrough as a hand model.

And that was at the beginning of 2026.

From there, things started to move.

I began building more experience, working with more brands and understanding what it actually meant to be a professional hand model.

Then came the campaigns I never imagined I'd do

Once the first job happened, I started getting more opportunities.

Primark was another huge moment for me.

And then there was the Pringles campaign.

That was another one of those moments where I genuinely thought:

What the hell is going on?

Something I had once viewed as a distant possibility had become part of my actual life.

I was working on campaigns for companies I never imagined I'd work with.

These weren't just photographs I was taking for myself anymore.

I was on professional sets, working with established companies and being trusted to do a job.

And that is something I don't take for granted.

When I think back to the girl who was taking random pictures of her hands outside with her phone, it feels surreal.

But getting signed isn't the finish line

This is probably one of the biggest things I wish I had understood earlier.

When you're aspiring to become a model, getting signed can feel like the ultimate goal.

You imagine:

Once an agency accepts me, I'll be set.

I certainly thought that.

But getting signed isn't the finish line.

It's the beginning.

You can be put forward for jobs and still not be selected.

You can have quiet periods.

You can go through weeks where nothing seems to be happening.

And sometimes your agency can suggest you for a job, but ultimately the decision belongs to the brand or client.

That part was difficult for me to understand at first.

I thought that once I was signed, the bookings would naturally follow.

They don't always.

And I think that's one of the less glamorous parts of modelling that people don't talk about enough.

The quiet periods can make you question yourself.

But I've learned that not getting a particular job isn't the same thing as not being good enough.

Sometimes you're simply not the person the client chooses for that particular brief.

And that's okay.

I'm still learning this myself.

Every job has taught me something

Working professionally has taught me that hand modelling is much more than having a pair of hands that look good on camera.

It's taught me professionalism.

It's taught me neutrality.

It's taught me how important it is to listen.

To follow instructions.

To understand what you're doing.

To stay focused.

To be adaptable.

And, most importantly, to be professional as a whole.

When you're working on a real campaign, you're part of a much bigger production.

You're not just turning up and putting your hands in front of a camera.

You're working with photographers, directors, clients, stylists, production teams and other people who all need you to do your part properly.

The more jobs I do, the more I understand that being good at the job is only one part of being someone people want to work with again.

What I wish I knew when I started

If I could sit down with the version of myself who had just discovered hand modelling, I would tell her a few things.

Don't assume rejection means you're not good enough.

I spent years being ignored.

If I had taken every unanswered email as proof that I wasn't good enough, I would have stopped.

Sometimes rejection is information.

Sometimes it tells you something needs improving.

And sometimes it simply means you weren't right for that particular agency, client or brief.

You have to learn the difference.

Invest in your portfolio.

I didn't understand this at the beginning.

I thought taking photographs was enough.

It wasn't.

As I gained experience, I realised how much professional photography, presentation and a strong portfolio can change how you're perceived.

Don't be afraid to keep learning.

You don't have to know everything when you start.

I certainly didn't.

My knowledge came from experience.

Every photographer, application, rejection, agency, campaign and job taught me something.

Build relationships.

One of the photographers I've worked with continues to work with me and send me opportunities.

That taught me that your relationships can become part of your career.

It's not always just about agencies.

The people you meet on set and the people you work with can become part of your professional network.

And finally:

Don't expect getting signed to mean you've made it.

You haven't.

You've started.

Almost eight years later...

Fast forward to now, and I'm signed with more than nine agencies.

I'm incredibly grateful.

I've worked with major brands and companies I never imagined I'd work with.

I've been on sets I never thought I'd be on.

I've built relationships with photographers and people in the industry who have helped me grow.

And yet, I still see this as just the beginning.

Because that's something I understand now that I didn't understand when I started:

Hand modelling isn't something you simply “achieve” and then finish.

It's an ongoing journey.

You continue building your portfolio.

You continue gaining experience.

You continue meeting people.

You continue learning.

You continue putting yourself forward.

There will be busy periods.

There will be quiet periods.

There will be jobs you get and jobs you don't.

And that's all part of it.

If you're where I was eight years ago...

Maybe you're reading this because you've been thinking about hand modelling but don't know where to begin.

Maybe you've already sent applications and been ignored.

Maybe you've looked at other hand models and thought:

“What do they have that I don't?”

Maybe you're wondering whether it's even possible.

I can't promise you that your journey will happen quickly.

Mine certainly didn't.

I can't promise you won't be rejected.

You probably will be.

And I can't promise that every agency, photographer or brand will see what you see in yourself.

But I can tell you something I know for certain:

I was once in your position.

I had no roadmap.

I didn't know what I was doing.

I sent countless applications and heard nothing.

I questioned whether my hands were good enough.

I created photographs I was proud of at the time that I now look back at and think, what was I doing?

I had quiet periods.

I had to learn.

I had to improve.

And I had to keep going.

Almost eight years later, I'm now working professionally as a hand model and have worked with major brands and companies that the younger version of me couldn't have imagined.

And honestly?

Sometimes I still can't believe it.

So if there's one thing I want you to take away from my story, it's this:

You don't need to have the whole journey figured out before you begin.