Well it seems to be getting a bit quiet around town of late, but that’s just the nature of the business I guess.
This up coming week I have only two days booked for assisting. Now I could sit around and be mopey, but I’ve decided to work on folio images and get my folio looking the way I want it. After a couple of months I realised that I’m not that interested in shooting fashion – though i happily do a little bit here and there – and really miss the time spent in the studio on still life shoots. As a result I’m going back through all my little notebooks and pulling up the shoots I’ve wanted to do for a while, but never got around to it.
In addition to this i’ve been gaining some courage in calling other photographers and letting them know i’m available. It’s not a skill that I am particularly good at but with practice I hope to get over the fear of it. Very rarely will someone on the other end of the phone be unhappy that you called – I guess the more assistants they have to call the easier it is for them to find one.
There are more skills to being a photographer and assistant than just being able to take pictures. One of the most important ones is getting people to know you exist. Theres a great blog by Ian Summers about getting noticed, maybe some interesting techniques need to be implemented during the quiet times. Better yet – implement them during the busy times, and keep the quiet times to a minimum as a result.
