Photographer Level 3 - Straub Collaborative
Edgemere, MD
About the Job
At Straub Collaborative, our teams are well-versed in developing stable workflows and infrastructure to handle 500, 2000, or 50,000 samples at a time. We can be in your distribution center and manage 24-hour turn arounds. We can help you build style guides, manage your DAMs, and leverage your product data in more efficient ways.
We don't stand up and wave our arms. We don't push. We don't overpromise and under-deliver. We sit at YOUR table. And give you exactly what you need — quality, high-volume, fast-turn content — exactly when you need it. With studios and resources around the world, we can help you reach the content scalability and production redundancy you're looking for without losing your brand's uniqueness.
Position Summary:
The Photographer 3 is a practiced master in the art of Photography and Video capture. They have a mastery of strobe and continuous lighting instruments as well as file formats and video codecs. They have an exemplary portfolio of images and video representing their passion and commercial work. This position has a proven understanding of the complete photography and video capture workflow. They are comfortable with originating new visual creative ideas as well as working directly with our clients and following specific style guides. This role is an expert in directing a set and can work well under pressure. They will also mentor and train Photographer Levels 1 and 2 and conduct cross-studio training and process improvement activities.
This position requires you to be an expert proficiency in utilizing all photography and video equipment within the studio. The photographer must be prepared to take a lead role in achieving their individual and team success. They actively participate in preproduction and retrospective meetings. They create the expectations on set for styling and are the last line of defense in quality control of all items before upload.
Essential Functions:
- Executes and captures images and video per the style guide and job worksheet as well as Art Director's vision, validating the quality control of work.
- Participates in the estimation, planning, and execution of location productions for still imagery and video.
- Independently directs photography and video sets such as apparel on model, mannequin, and tabletop.
- Meets and sets daily expectations in naming images & video clips, adding metadata, shot counts, and completing quality control.
- Directing sets include finalizing the work plan and flow with Stylist, HMU, and Models. This may include oversights to other sets on the studio floor for safety, scalability, efficiency, and adherence to client style guides.
- Mentors and trains photography staff on studio standards, guidelines, and technical improvements across Studios.
- Required to create process documentation, including lighting diagrams, go-bys, shooting examples, and set images.
- Provides accurate time assessment for scheduling and client estimates.
- Produces innovative, consistently reproducible solutions within the cost confines of clients. The solutions must be accomplished across the studio's photography staff.
- Actively participates in pre-production and retrospective (post-mortem) meetings and image review process.
- Timely complication of action items assigned to the photographer to help enable the team's success by updating photography and video standards and sharing the documentation globally to send out meeting documentation.
- Processes images according to job specifications, and transfers to the next workflow stage.
- Follows job specifications in documenting proper file names/changes, completing notes on job spreadsheets, and reporting daily status on workload to studio manager and project manager.
- Creates communicates, and documents visual references (lighting diagrams, shooting examples, go-bys) to ensure upload to client standard, as needed.
- Requires excellent communication and project management skills to mentor, train, and provide deliverables across regional studios and work directly with clients.
- Establishes the flow on set with stylists and models as well as style projects as necessary.
- Ensures all documentation is completed promptly. This will include expense reports, reimbursement forms, and time tracking/time-off requests, et. al.
- Follow all studio standards for shooting guidelines, including shooting templates, go-bys, and overlays.
- Builds photosets as needed and completes tear down, including the return and storage of equipment.
- Travel requirements may be up to 10% of the time to Straub's other studio locations. The ability to travel outside of your country of residence is a plus.
Required Skills & Qualifications:
- 7+ years of e-commerce commercial photography and video production experience is required.
- A portfolio of work that demonstrates commercial photography and video expertise with clients in fashion, apparel, footwear, retail, media, beauty, cosmetics, or lifestyle verticals required.
- Experience in using MAC operating systems.
- Proficient in Capture One, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Adobe Premiere.
- Expert knowledge of Canon cameras, Profoto lighting, and all forms of continuous lighting.
- Experience in utilizing production workflow management tools is desired, e.g., Shot Flow.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office software programs, specifically Word, Excel and MS Teams.
- Must have excellent problem-solving ability and creatively respond to set needs.
- Must have proficient necessary math skills and the ability to read, write, and speak English.
- Must have experience with video.
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent education and experience.
Benefits:
The salary range for this full-time position is $70,000 - $80,000, commensurate with experience and skills.
Culture/ EEO Statement:
- Straub Collaborative embraces diversity in a profound way and believes in the power of a shared table to bring people together as we are committed to building a culturally inclusive team. We see diversity and inclusion as central to our organization. This means that we stand up against discrimination and harassment wherever we operate.
- Straub Collaborative is committed to providing equal employment opportunity (EEO) and equal pay to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status regarding public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.
- Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the US. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment Visa at this time.