Photographer's Assistant Certificate

[dauerad]

Hello,

If you were in the position to hire an assistant, what certifiable photography skills would you want them to have upon arrival? The test of a new cook is the perfect, simple cheese omelet... what's the test of a new assistant photographer?

Does a portfolio say it all or could a certificate take that a bit further?

The adult learning program I teach for has been contemplating establishing a certificate program.

Anthony

[autofocus]

Originally Posted by dauerad

Hello,

If you were in the position to hire an assistant, what certifiable photography skills would you want them to have upon arrival? The test of a new cook is the perfect, simple cheese omelet... what's the test of a new assistant photographer?

Does a portfolio say it all or could a certificate take that a bit further?

The adult learning program I teach for has been contemplating establishing a certificate program.

Anthony

Anthony, I think a portfolio tells more of a photographer's skills both behind the camera and in the digital darkroom. I think almost anybody can learn all the technical aspects of photography, but still may not be able to take a decent photograph that captures the emotion in a photograph. On the other hand, I think there are those people that are somewhat clueless about the left brain technical end of things, yet manage to produce excellent photos on a regular basis. I often refer to these people as unconscious competents.

[robert lamont]

From my experience people ask for a portfolio and love it but when i tell them i don't have any qualifications i don't hear from them again. Frustrating as i have heard so many stories about big dollar pro's totally stuffing it up. In fairness though people seem to remember a bad experience over a good one and i'm sure there are plenty of very good pro's out there, just people seem to remember bad experiences more.

[Sime]

Assistant photographer, or photography assistant? One carries a double wind up, the other carries a camera... :-)

I'd want someone keen, someone that was on time and someone that had either big muscles and a keen eye, or a good portfolio and a keen eye.

S