Finding an Assistant

Generally, an assistant isn't going to shoot. They are there to help you in other ways that are vitally important to your success.


Setting up and moving lights and holding a reflector, and maybe grabbing lenses. That's all valuable experience with learning potential. You'll also learn a lot just from observation.

With the digital age on us and only getting more evolved the assistant needs to know photoshop, aperture, light room ect. The more they know the more valuable and marketable they are. When I am on a shoot I like to know that I hand off my card to the assistant and they upload, categorize, add metadata, store in external hard drive, make DVD's ect. That is valuable to me and helps keep the work in the studio to a minimum.

But, assistants and even second shooters are a dime a dozen. Actually they're even cheaper to come by usually  with beginners. A good, experienced staffer can make some money. Someone needing experience is going to have a hard time even finding someone to tag along with.

A lot of people don't want to help the newbies b/c they see just how much damage many of those newcomers are wreaking on the industry. Others just don't want to help future competition and are easily threatened. Make the goal to make friends and get to know your peers. I don't see it that way. I see it as an opportunity to teach them to right things. Yes, good assistants will one day be your competition but that's okay too, if you are confident and good it doesn't matter.