Need a camera in 60 seconds. Not a week.
Instant Match is the on-demand layer of Picturental — for kit and for people. Post what you need. The nearest available provider accepts in real time. Your card is held, not charged, until the job is done. Book gear and you go and collect it; book crew and they come to you.
How Instant Match works
Five steps. Sixty seconds. Real money.
One flow, built around film + photo work — gear and crew both run on it. The requester doesn't wait. The provider doesn't haggle. Everyone gets paid.
- 1
Post a request
Category (a camera, or a gaffer), what you need, postcode, duration, budget. Five fields, thirty seconds.
- 2
The nearest is asked first
The closest online provider within 19 miles gets it alone, with a 60-second timer. If they pass, it widens to the next nearest.
- 3
First accept wins
The fastest yes locks the job. The requester's card is authorised. Losing providers see “Job taken.”
- 4
Meet up
Gear: the provider photographs the kit at handover. Crew: they check in on set with your code. Either way the clock starts.
- 5
Wrap + payout
You confirm the kit is back, or the job is done. Funds capture and transfer to the provider's Stripe account.
If you need gear or crew
Same-day. No haggling. No DMs.
- Post once, providers compete for you
- Gear you collect; crew come to your shoot
- 60-second match window
- Pay only if someone accepts — no providers, no charge
- Live chat opens the moment a job is locked
If you rent out gear or work as crew
Toggle online. Get pinged for work.
- One-tap Online toggle from your dashboard
- Full-screen accept alert with the whole job up front
- Get paid 85% of the budget straight to Stripe
- Decline freely — your listings still show in regular search
- Crew jobs only ping members with a published crew profile
Trust + safety
Built for high-value kit and real call sheets.
Instant Match piggy-backs every protection Picturental already runs — and adds the things on-demand needs.
Two-layer ID verification
Stripe Identity + Picturental's own forensic ID checker — same pipeline as regular bookings.
Authorised, not charged
The requester's card is authorised the moment a provider accepts, and only actually charged once the return — or the job — is confirmed.
Codes at every handover
A four-digit code read out in person starts the job and releases the payout, so neither can be faked from a sofa. Gear adds a timestamped photo of the kit.
Real-time everything
Live request fan-out, accept-wins atomic, live status flips for both parties. No polling.
When to use it
Built for shoots that don't schedule themselves.
“My B-camera op cancelled an hour before call time. Instant Match found me an FX3 nearby in 4 minutes.”
Music-video DP
“Client added a green screen shot to today's brief. Booked a Camden studio with 30 minutes notice.”
Commercial producer
“I keep my drone online during quiet weekday afternoons. Three jobs last month, all under 3km away.”
Drone pilot
Try it on your next shoot.
Posting a request is free. You only pay if a provider accepts. Cancel anytime — funds release back to your card.