Lead Photographer What is the role The department operates a perpetually booked studio to produce a range of ecommerce and project-based creative shoots to support brand creative and campaign activity. Managing a full spectrum photographic team to deliver content for a variety of stakeholders and business needs. You will support management too with specialist technical expertise to ensure that all shoots are executed to expert level, there will be a particular focus on elevating the high-volume function of the studio and you will be pivotal in helping to deliver industry leading product and creative photography. You will lead from the front shooting a wide variety of premium ecommerce and lifestyle shoots, capturing best in class fashion imagery to deliver commercial and brand ambitions. You are an experienced team leader who will help motivate and mentor photographers of all levels and promote cross functional collaboration and process improvement. What you will do
* An established, highly capable senior level photographer with experience directing shoots across studio & location environments for a variety of subjects including on model and still life.
* Working hand in glove with top agency models and on-screen talent to effortlessly capture the personality of each brand on every shoot.
* A solid understanding of high-volume throughput studio environment remains an important factor, and you will mentor the photography team at all levels to deliver best in class photography whatever the requirement.
* Undertake both studio and location shoots and contribute to any creative projects and as required.
* Work with creative to develop concept that deliver campaign objectives and shoot structures.
* Maintain documented process for all standard photography requirement’s including on-model, tabletop and creative.
* Support managers to determine lighting requirements, composition, background, as well as any additional specifications as part of seasonal reviews.
* Working collaboratively with studio teams to develop the artistic direction for shoots through planning, pre-production and during production deployments.
* Forward planning to ensure that the team is working efficiently in a fast-paced industry and is able to respond to the changing needs of the business.
* Supervise photography team ensuring that the department’s standards and image selections are suitable for the brand, ensure all freelance contributors have clear understating of requirements.
* Ensure photography team understand the products distinctive qualities are USPs are captured.
* Mentor and train mid-weight, junior and freelance photographers on studio process.
* Support management in the delivery of targets and department goals.
* Track team performance and report on team activity, provide motivation and support for underperforming sets.
* Monitor consistency of photographic output across multiple sets ensuring final assets are true and accurately represent the product.
* Ensure that photographers understand and asset naming conventions at capture stage.
* Contribute to seasonal studio style guide reviews.
* Raise any concerns with management if images are not compliant with style guide “The Standard” or bespoke briefs from the creative team.
* Support with the annual review of processes and workflows to ensure operation is optimised and make recommendations for improvement.
* Safeguarding compliancy when working with 3rd party suppliers, certifying processes are aligned to in-house studio and adhered to stands set out in the style guide.
* Advising on technical specifications and standards.
* Understanding of studio and location best practices in safety, health and welfare management,
* Work in collaboration with creative and operations management to advise on specialist technical issues they may influence the planning or execution of a production.
What you will bring
* Bachelor’s degree in a photographic subject.
* Membership of professional bodies (RPS, BIPP etc…)
* Expert level of experience with studio and location photography.
* Expertise of working on high volume ecommerce studio.
* A commercial photography portfolio that demonstrates expertise in applied techniques and working knowledge of digital photography, lighting, composition and colour quality.
* Extensive knowledge of Canon Camera systems.
* Experience with Elinchrom and Profoto studio lighting systems.
* Proficient in PC & Mac platform.
* Expert knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and Capture One Pro.
* Reliable with the ability to adapt to changing conditions.
* Ability to work under pressure in deadline-driven environment.
* Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail.
* Ability to prioritize/multi-task and follow projects through to completion.
* Strong presentation and communication skills.
* Excellent model direction skills, with extensive on set experience.