The Nuker model, when applied to the inner regions of ``core'' galaxies, is shown to produce systematic biases in the determination of the core ``break-radii''. These radii can easily be (and often have been, see Trujillo et al. 2003) over-estimated by more than 100%. Moreover, due to curvature in the outer profiles of early-type galaxies (i.e., beyond the break-radius), none of the Nuker model parameters are found to be robust quantities. A new empirical model that simultaneously describes both the inner and outer light-profiles of elliptical galaxies (and bulges in general) is presented. It consists of a Sérsic function with an inner power-law and a variable transition region.