Working as an Assistant (for a Magazine, Publicist, Photographer, Stylist, etc.)

[softgrey]

editorial- ie- the fashion dept of a magazine is not design related in the least...
you do not design anything...
simply gather together the best of things that other people have designed...

so you do not need to know any design programs...

 

[sylk]

What qualifications do NYC photographers look for when they're looking for an assistant? (besides the obvious such as being punctual, organized, friendly etc) Does one need to know everything there is to know about the equipment a certain photographer uses (lighting, camera, film etc)? Or is it more along the lines of hold the reflector here and get me coffee. I know this question is probably a bit odd coming from a photographer but I'd love to move to NYC and assist so I'm just curious how things go there...

And last but not least, where would I find out if a photographer is looking for an assistant?

 

[BetteT]

In L.A., so I'm guessing it's the same in NY ... It's more about knowing the equipment and being able to set it all up for him, lighting, backdrops, load film (film What's that?! ... I must be getting old, I can actually load film), download images if he's tethered to a laptop, etc. I've seen second assistants who held reflectors and ran for coffee ... but most have only one assistant and he does everything.

An aside: Except the shooter I work with who uses me to help her out too and I am a stylist now. I used to assist her , so I still end up doing reflecting and lighting sometimes, in addition to styling, even when she's got an assistant. (I'm better at it than everyone else, she says ... I've got her eye for her lighting because I have worked with her so long.)

 

[sylk]

Thanks, Bette. I'm a self-taught photographer and the main reason I wanted to get into assisting is to learn the "proper" technical approach etc that photographers that I look up to use. Is there not a 'learning time period' so that the issue that your photographer is experiencing won't happen? Shouldn't the photographer SHOW the assistant how s/he likes things set up etc? ... just thinking out loud ...

 

[BetteT]

I think that most of them expect you to be proficient on the technical apspects of the equipment (at least a lot of the basic stuff) ... and then they will teach you how they like to set things up for lighting, etc.... teach you their way of doing their art.

Most assistants are right out of photography school, so they are usually pretty up to date on the lastest stuff .... that is your direct competition. Some shooters have regular assistants, but a lot of them just pull a freelance assistant when they need one and won't have time or the energy to train.

Also, I have seen sites where freelance assistants are listed ... and they have to fill in the camera and lighting equipment that they know how to work with and give the level of expertise and the names of the shooters they have assisted, as a reference. So it looks like the photographer can select someone who matches what he needs. I would think that the more technical stuff you are trained in, the more often you will get hired.

 

[misskfreshstylii]

Types of personal fashion assistant careers



hey misses&misters..
the title "types of personal fashion assistant careers" is exactly the question i would like to ask all of you... what are the different types of assistants in fashion.. and there pay...

 

[BetteT]

Being a "fashion" assistant is not a career in itself. And they don't call it a "fashion" assistant .. they just call it an assistant, plain and simple. Being an assistant is merely a begining step (an entry level position), hopefully leading to a career in something specific with promotions.

There are as many types of "fashion" assistants as there are jobs in the fashion world ... probably thousands of types. You can assist a designer, a stylist, an editor, a copywriter, a photographer, an accountant, a publicist, a merchandiser, a buyer, a manager, a graphic designer, a publisher, a pattern cutter or any one of thousands of others who work in the fashion biz.

Pay ... starts at nothing, for interns (who are just unpaid assistants), or minimum wage for a entry level paid position. Then as you become more and more valuable to your boss, the pay can go up. And then they might even give you a bigger title (like administrative assistant or office manage or assistant to the buyer, etc.) and more money later on. It varies widely, depending on the person whom you assist, how well you do for them, what they want you to do and how much they need you.

A "personal" assistant is usually someone who helps someone else with personal matters ... dry cleaning, delivering lunch, walking the dog, running errands, meeting service people at the boss's house, etc. Sometimes in the fashion biz, the boss will expect you to do personal errands in addition to working at the office. so it can be both. It's good to find out what they will expect before accepting a job as an assistant.

 

[INDUSTRYWRITER]

Freelance fashion assistant

Hello,
I've been doing some research for editorial jobs and internships and I came across a few people whose job title is freelance fashion assistant. What does this mean? What are their job duties. I just want to explore all of my options.

Thanks

 

[BetteT]

Hm .... If that is a real title with a specific job description, I sure don't know what it refers to. Maybe someone else does know what it is.


Freelance means that it's a person who is hired on contract to do a certain job but is not a real employee. Usually it would be for a limited number of hours or days only and then the freelancer would have to find their next gig. They would be "self employed".

An Assistant ... well we all know what an assistant does ... assists someone else and does the grunt work at their boss's bidding.

"Fashion" ... that's the tough part of the name because it's the most vague. I have no real idea what that means. It could mean assisting anyone in the fashion biz. Most likely not for a photographer, a stylist, or a makeup artist or it would probalby say so instead of "fashion". So that leaves possibly for a magazine editor, for a executive at a clothing or accessories line, or for anyone who works in fashion ... maybe a publicist, a buyer in retail ... anything. This is such a wide open description ... it's almost impossible to tell what type of business your would be working in ... unless it's specified.

 

[INDUSTRYWRITER]

Thank you Bette for responding,

I thought this was a made up job title but then i saw this:

(via Ed2010)
As the Freelance Fashion Assistant he or she will be in charge of all
sample check-ins and immediate sample returns, overseeing our fashion
interns and requesting and typing up fashion photo-shoot credits.

This gave me a better understanding

Thanks again

 

[VintageDolly]

I'm a freelance fashion assistant.

My job duties are:
- sourcing on behalf of the stylist
- doing returns (or the interns do it)
- coordinating, calling agencies, makeup and hair
- finding tearsheets for references

...that's all I can remember

My boss (stylist) allows me to do styling for some jobs so I'm credited as a stylist as well.

Hope that helps

 

[BetteT]

VintageDolly ... I'm a stylist ... so I would call anyone who assists me a "stylist's" assistant ... not a "fashion" assistant. Just to be more specific.

But that is what I was trying to explain ... being a "fashion" assistant is not a specific job at all. It's just an assistant who happens to work in the fashion biz, somehow. You can work for anyone doing anything ... it's depends on the person hiring you.

I found some other threads from a long time ago about assistant jobs and I think we can start a thread about it, in general ... so I am merging them all together.

 

[BetteT]

Thank you Bette for responding,

I thought this was a made up job title but then i saw this:

(via Ed2010)
As the Freelance Fashion Assistant he or she will be in charge of all
sample check-ins and immediate sample returns, overseeing our fashion
interns and requesting and typing up fashion photo-shoot credits.

This gave me a better understanding

Thanks again

Based on that job description, I would guess that it would be for a designer, but more likely a publicist that reps several designers. You'd be working in thier sample room receiving the samples that stylists have pulled, after they have been used for a shoot ... and then you'd follow up to make sure the designer is properly credited in the magazines and probably send the tears to the designer as proof that the publicist has been doing her job ... getting the clothes featured in magazines.

 

[prosperk]

Hello,
I've been doing some research for editorial jobs and internships and I came across a few people whose job title is freelance fashion assistant. What does this mean? What are their job duties. I just want to explore all of my options.

Thanks

That would be the gofer who goes for clothes, accessories, burgers, coffees and anything else they're ordered to go for. Think what's-her-name blundering through Manhattan in TDWP fetching and carrying for Meryl Streep.

Advantages include making up your own business cards and using them to blagg things or bluff your way into events and second-rate night clubs. Oh, and you also make contacts that could prove useful at some point.

But you need to work in a restaurant to pay the rent, unless you have a trust fund.

PK

 

[Cicciolina]

Freelance fashion assistant to me, are usually people who are hired by a magazine/other fashion related company for a set period of time (a month, 6 months, whatever) to be a gofer, as other people have pointed out. The point of a freelance though is that they have greater flexibility of course, and they will get paid slightly higher than a staff assistant, but they run the risk of not having constant work. They are often hired during busy periods when relying on masthead assistants and interns aren't enough. It's a decent job if you can get it (it's good to do whilst studying) as it can expose you to the fashion industry with no long-term commitment. However a lot of freelance fashion assistants I've met are angling out for a masthead job.

 

[xbryony]

I was wondering if anyone could help me, not sure if this is the right thread but I'll try anyway...
I'm studying Fashion Journalism in London but it's really not occupying me enough, so I figured assisting stylists on shoots on a freelance basis would be the best way of building up experience and contacts and stop me moaning about being bored and wasting my time.
Should I just e-mail a ton of London based stylists offering a helping hand if they need any extra assistance? It's difficult to intern for magazines whilst at uni as most UK companies require to Mon-Fri, which wouldnt fit in with my course - so annoying that they don't have a similar system as in NY with fitting them alongside your course. I have only interned at Glamour in the fashion cupboard so far for 4 weeks, but I'm a fast learner and really determined so I'll pick everything up.
Also is there anywhere I can find some sort of directory of UK based established stylists and/or contact details where I don't need to pay a subscription fee?
Sorry for the rant question! x

 

[BetteT]

Yes on contacting them directly.

And I don't know about a directory in the UK. I know that you have to pay to get that info here in the US.

Another possibility is to contact the agencies who rep stylists ... and see if they will pass your communicaiton along to the stylist. Many won't, but some might take a liking to you and pass it along. However ... most agencies here (US) already have a list of newer stylists who are avaialbe to assist which the stylists they rep can use, if needed. To get on that list, you actually need to be a stylist with a portfolio in most cases. Ask the agencies ... they can probably advise you.

 

[Cicciolina]

xbryony could you even speak to the staff at Glamour and see if they are able to point you in the right direction - in terms of other stylists or agencies? That could make it easier for you as well, as they'll be giving you a leg up Good luck!

 

[GWOD]

Just a quick question: how much professional experience would normally be required to be taken on as an assistant for most fashion-related jobs (designer, stylist etc).
I'm currently able to work full-time and have about 3 years experience in general retail and over 6 months experience in women's retail.

 

[BetteT]

I don't think it's a matter of professional experience in a lot of cases ... but that would be entirely up to the person you would be assisting ... and what they intend to have you do for them.

Usually assistants are just gofers .... they go fer coffee, and go fer other errands ... and do a lot of simple but grueling grunt work, answer phones, take messages, organize things, put things away. So, often, all it requires is a strong back and a strong work ethic. But, sometimes it requires a car to run around and do errands, sometimes it requires some basic competer skills to input data, sometimes it requires knowledge of sewing, ironing, steaming etc. if you are to assist a stylist. So .... there really is no "standard" requirements to be an assistant ... other than that you need to impress your prospective boss sufficiently so that he or she thinks that you can do the job, will be reliable, hard working and have a good attitude.