My friends are back! I’ve got the great Anne-Maureen McKeating helping out with AanAB, Grant and Jaime toiling away on The Year in the Life Project and now I’ve roped in my recent Junior Art Buyer, the lovely and talented Kendra Vamplew, to host a brand spanking new bi-weekly feature on HMAb! Let’s start with a little blurb on Kendra for some context:
Kendra Vamplew started as a studio manager and first assistant to a wedding and portrait photographer in Guelph after she completed university. Working there solidified her decision to go back to school for Applied Photography at Sheridan College. Graduating among the top in her class, she then went on to freelance assist in Toronto. Shortly after, she was hired at Leo Burnett as a Junior Art Buyer/DAM Coordinator. During her time there, Kendra assisted on campaigns for Blackberry, Kellogg’s, P&G, and Toronto Tourism and was an integral part of the Bell Art Buying team. She is currently working at Klaxonnez Inc. as an artist rep and producer.
What’s she up to? Take it away Kendra:
Welcome to “The Whole 9 Yards…” where I will attempt to bring photographers, assistants, make-up artists, stylists, and producers together. We have to admit our work environment is generally fast paced and a little hectic, therefore how well do we really know our “colleagues”? Are they snapping at us because they are just having a bad day, or are they really mad because we are standing to close to the camera and ate the last chocolate muffin from the craft table?
The people that have become our support system to keep us going, keep us afloat and keep the pay cheques coming in – how do they really feel? Well, we are about to find out.
This new section of HMAb is an ongoing soapbox about the do’s and don’ts of working in this industry and what we can do to make our relationships better. Rants, odes, frustrations, favourite moments and advice from each other about how to make our lives a little less insane. Tell us your stories and we will share them… ANONYMOUSLY of course! We don’t need to know the names of those you are talking about, just what went down. Send me your stories (kendra.vamplew@gmail.com) and let’s try and make the working environment between everyone a little bit better!
Here is our first, well, rant. This is something that seems to drive all assistants crazy, and apparently (see below) also some photographers. I have heard this story so many times…
Assistant:
“Pay the assistant in a timely manner. Most of us give you 30 days but why wait allllll 30 days? Please don’t make me pester you for 200 bucks. It makes me feel like a douche and it makes you look like one. On that note, the worst thing you can say is “ohhhhh the client hasn’t paid me yet.” I don’t care if you’re waiting for the client to pay you – it’s not my problem. Do you tell Headshots or the caterer that you’ll pay them once the client pays you? On most shoots lunch is more expensive than me, and while lunch was very delicious and everyone loved the Niçoise salad, it didn’t carry all the gear, do all the dishes, or fix the wifi. The Niçoise salad, while wonderful and full of hard-boiled eggs, definitely did not take you aside and quietly tell you that the client’s name is Tim NOT Ted.
P.S. I had someone pay me with an Interac email money transfer™ and I felt like I was in Star Trek. So if you’re looking for a fun way to feel like you’re in the future – pay your assistants with an Interac email money transfer™”.
And here it is direct from a photographer…
Here’s my #1 beef. Many of my assistants have told me about this and each time I’m gobsmacked. It happened to me a couple of times too when I was assisting. Now if you’re a photographer on an ad shoot, you will be making at least a couple thousand dollars (at the very least!). You will also not be paid for the job for like 60-90 days. The assistant on the other hand will be making somewhere around $200. Unless you are a full time assistant, you don’t make much money and are usually living from pay cheque to pay cheque. Having said that, I think it takes a really special kind of asshole to turn around to the assistant who’s been waiting for his or her cheque for a month and say “Sorry. You get paid when I get paid”. This apparently happens a lot. I can name names. And like…wow! While the photographer never says what they’re making on the shoot to the assistant, essentially they’re is saying “Sorry. You get paid your $200 when I get paid my 5 grand”. Amazing. Like a really special kind of asshole!
Well there you have it. First words of advice to the photographers out there… pay the assistant as soon as the job is completed.
So, I’d like to encourage you to share you two cents with us. Email me at kendra.vamplew@gmail.com.
…and that’s the whole 9 yards.
And don’t forget, it’s funding-drive week on HMAb. The short version: I need Physiotherapy in order to keep writing this Blog and I’m appealing to you to help shoulder (pun intended) a bit of this cost. If you enjoy this blog at all, please consider giving. Click on the paypal button to the left. Many, many thanks. Your support is very much appreciated.
{ 45 comments… read them below or add one }
I totally agree. When I was assisting, the worst part of the job was asking high profile photographers for money. You would work on amazing shoots and learn lots but get paid in 90 days(WTH).
It was often better to just take a pass and work with some of the smaller guys (who were just as creative), just so you could put some funds in your bank account.
What would get really irritating were the endless phone calls you would make to the high profile shooter (who always came across as your best buddy in person), asking for old invoices to be paid, only for him to tell you after 90 days “you should be talking to my accountant”.
I still think an agency who offers out assistants as well as H&M and stylists would be a good idea. You take 5% for admin and the assistants get paid right away.
Great post!
I try to pay my assistants either in cash or by Interac email money transfer™ the day of the shoot. It’s always bothered me when I hear stories like this or the photographer expecting to get an assistant for free.
Rob,
I think thats a great idea. I’m sure there are a ton of assistants out there who would gladly hand over a small portion of their fees to not have to handle job bookings, invoicing, collections and accounts. Including post production people would be a good idea too.
This clip should pretty much sum it up
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivNptwIrQkI
This issue IS the biggest problem for many assistants, especially these days, when work is more scarce. If we weren’t living paycheck to paycheck before the recession, we definitely are now. Waiting 30-90 days for a mere $200/day is practically like being on welfare!
The assistant in this article hits it right on the head when talking about how we really go to bat for the photographer, many times above and beyond expectation, only to be thanked by having to wait 30+ days for job payment, when catering and other necessities are paid for immediately. I sat on a panel the other night, talking to photo students in my community, about how the assistant is the extra set of eyes, ears, and hands for the photographer; we are the life-blood which many times saves the day when the photographer is too busy focusing on the shot or entertaining the client. Why, then, don’t we get paid in a timely manner. Even an employee who works their 9-5, chained to their cubicle, probably for more thankless work, gets paid within two weeks. Hmmmmm.
Many photographers tell assistants that they will get paid when the client pays them. Why? The client didn’t hire the assistant, the photographer did. I feel that photographers could set aside a bankroll for such production expenses like catering, props, and ASSISTANTS. And just maybe, assistants should be at the top of that list. Many times, photographers do receive an advance on larger productions, and these monies could easily go for paying assistants at the end of the shoot. I have yet to hear a real good reason why, from a photographer, I should have to wait to get paid.
I have tried to be flexible, because I know times are lean. But I’ve also tried to explain this dilemma, without much success, when working with a new photographer for the first time. There are some photographers who will surprise me, and hand me a check at the end of the shoot, telling me that they remember what it was like waiting 30+ days for payment. Oh, happy day!
This is going to be a great series!
Great first post. I like it when asshole is used often.
I recall assisting in Vancouver and one guy who was my regular photog had a bad habit of not paying for like 90 days and then it was often by piecemeal (Can I do $125 here and $250 in two weeks) – it was sad and really a joke of a business. He had me booked to go out of town with him – 3 days prior to it I got a call from a much more respectable shooter wanting me to work with him instead – fewer days even, but I knew I would be paid asap because photog B had respect- I called photog A and said see ya, knowing full well he would stress like mad over this – Finding someone for 5 days straight out of town ain’t easy ya know! He was capital P – Pissed, but I made rent that month and in turn rolled that job into a steady producing gig for photog B. Photog A learned nothing I heard. While he did find another for the gig he paid at his usual pace. Poor sap.
I’ve hired many freelance assistants over the years. This is one suggestion I’d make to every photo assistant out there: Stand up for yourself, and also Act like a businessman. When you respect yourself, then others respect you, and won’t abuse you.
You can tell a lot about an assistant in that initial phone call. (These usually show up when trying to find new assistants in other cities, when I’m shooting on the road). In that initial phone call, there are two types of assistants: Ones that come off like flakes, and ones that seem professional. The professionals will ask basic details about the job to make sure they’re a good fit. (Also shows, to me, that they’re curious and interested). They also seem to be taking notes as we talk. (Shows detail oriented). At the end of the phone call, the professionals usually end like this: “Here are my rates: ___ for a ten hour day, and ___ for each overtime hour, and since this is our first job together, I like to get paid at the end of the day. I’ll bring a W-9 and and Invoice, the day of the shoot. Does that work for you?”
That, to me, indicates that I’m about to hire a good assistant. A guy with his act together. A guy that won’t show up late, or hung over.
Times are tough. It’s time for the pros to separate themselves from the posers. My suggestion: adopt some of these business practices, and you won’t have to spend your time tracking down some dipshit photographer who’s stringing you along for ninety days. Get your money at the end of the day, (and don’t go along with some sob story about them “forgetting their checkbook”, if they’ve agreed to pay you front). If they don’t agree to pay you, then turn down the job. My advice. My feeling: You create your own reality.
At the time I was quite intimidated. I didn’t want to lose the work I was continuing to get by breaching the topic of unpaid and overdue invoices with this photographer. I was also new to the industry and feared losing the sole income I did have.
On the up side it forced me to develop the confidence and ability to collect and confront.
It came at the cost of being owed $8,000 from one photographer for 6 months.
I ate a lot of pasta that year.
Awesome post. I’d like to hear some justification from the other side.
So what is an assistant to do? I am a full time freelance assistant with a good client base. Work in Montreal has not suffered as much as work in other major cities, so I can’t say I’m suffering, but the belt has been tightened a little. A majority of my clients need reminding to pay up within 30 days, and some were very clear up front. Assistants and digital techs will be paid after the client pays up. So in the ad world, that means 80-90 days. On some larger shoots, spanning several days or weeks, the invoice are regularly in the thousands and not hundreds of dollars. I’m talking the assistant pay with extra hours and expenses. Now for me to wait 3 months to get that does hurt.
I guess I’m saying if 80% of my income, comes from 20% of my clients, and half of them only pay up towards the 90 day mark, what am I to do?
As I type this, I am reviewing my unpaid invoices and they are all over 3 weeks old. Actually have one that is over 90 days and still hasn’t been paid. Phone calls have been made and the answer is the same. “Client has paid us yet”.
In nearly 30 years of shooting it has always been on Friday for FT Assistants, end of the shoot for daily assistants. Always. Never even thought about any other way.
I hear stories and shake my head. Being a hot-shot, much sought after, killer shooter doesn’t absolve one from being a jerk and an outright thief. At least not in my book.
Assistants – want a really easy way to get paid on time?
Accept Credit Cards.
Seriously – this gets you paid immediately and then the photographer can float the payment on their credit card until they get paid by the client. They probably paid for that Niçoise salad lunch with a credit card, so why not pay you the same way?
PayPal is super easy to get setup – or you can go all out with a full-on merchant account. Either way you’ll end up paying some transaction fees (about 3% with PayPal) but it’s totally worth it if you get paid immediately instead of waiting 30-60-90 days.
There’s even a new startup called Square (coming soon) that will allow anyone to accept credit card payments via their smartphone. How great would that be – at the end of the shoot day you have the photographer hand you a credit card and BAM! you get paid.
As someone said previously – as an assistant you are running a business. Act like your a business and you’ll get more respect.
Another method that I suggest for assistants, if you’re squeamish about talking money with a new photographer client — offer to follow up the phone call with an email. Get his email address when you’re on the phone with them, and then, when you get home, open your Response Template, and confirm the shoot dates that you discussed, and the details, and then also include a TERMS paragraph too, when you make it crystal clear that, with new clients, you always get paid the day of. This also leaves a (e)paper trail if the photographer balks later. Just make sure you send this email the day you get the call, or the next day, so everything is stated right up front. Good luck. Yes, be a businessman. At least on paper.
Thanks to all for responding! Its great to hear feedback and to get conversations rolling, that’s what this section is all about!
It’s hard to see both sides I’m sure and I can’t say I don’t agree with Tim when he says, “The client didn’t hire the assistant, the photographer did”. I also agree with Sympathetic Photographer that assistants out there need to stand up for themselves, but just getting started fairly recently in my career and having assisted in the past, I definitely understand the assistant side and hear Jeremy when he says it can be intimidating to ask for the money. You want to make sure your next job is lined up and that you haven’t burned any bridges. Let’s face it.. bottom line – its an artsy industry that can be volatile.
That said… I have also worked for an agency and have had to tell photographers that sorry.. “the client hasn’t paid us so we can’t pay you”. It really is a vicious circle and terrible news to deliver. I think it ends up being relative.
I would be great to hear some justification from the other side (as Simon said) to understand where these photographers may really be coming from and why they can’t pay their assistants on time. If there is no justification… then seriously… why?
The sad truth is that many assistants who don’t get paid after 30+ days are afraid to contact the photographer about payment because they are concerned the photographer won’t want to book them again. And with work being so tight in 2009 I don’t really blame them.
My favorite example of this happening to me was that I emailed a photographer about 6 weeks after I invoiced, curious about the status of said invoice and he told me he was waiting to get paid.. BUT if I really needed the money he could cut me a cheque and I could come pick it up. What I want to know is, if you can cut a cheque for me to come pick up, why can’t you just right that little cheque and put a 54 cent stamp on it and mail it to me??
If everything is being paid for by credit card, even more reason to be able to pay me in a timely manner with a cheque.
“My suggestion: adopt some of these business practices, and you won’t have to spend your time tracking down some dipshit photographer who’s stringing you along for ninety days.”
It’s not just hacks or dipshits. It’s everyone. It’s the charming friendly photographers too. It seems as though it’s industry standard to ignore the 30 day terms on the assistant’s invoice, when the 30 day terms are supposed to be industry standard for assistants.
If you wait 90+ days, you are effectively putting freelance assistants out of business. If I have to take another job, I can’t be available for all your gigs, as much as I’d like to be. I’m sure Fillmores is a lovely place but I am a lousy dancer. Think about it.
(About paying your assistants in 30 days or less. Not about strippers at Fillmores.)
You asked for it…. Here is a response from a photographer who is stuck in a bad situation…
“I completely understand the latest blog, but I am in a situation, where I
am owed about $48K from one client, and have no money to pay the
crew. I can’t, in reality CANT pay until I get my money. I have been
very transparent to my crew letting them know we are in a hard spot,
and don’t have any money in the bank. If they don’t pay their bills this
month, neither will I. I have let them know that, and have set a track
record in the past that I will pay them the day of or within a week when
there’s money. But, I don’t have it. It sucks.
I am glad that this conversation is going, because of it, I emailed all of
my crew today just keeping them in the loop and knowing where we
are. I offered to help them with any bills that they have or to buy lunch
if they need it, just to get us all through these next few weeks.”
Wow.. although this photographer can’t pay the team, they are willing to do what they can to help them out and are being open and honest about it. I think that’s great. It’s awesome that this 1st post on the blog is already starting to open communication between those in the industry. Thanks Heather!
Maybe this is also a lesson for photographers to push clients to give them an advance so they can at least pay for the basics at a shoot and wait for the rest to come. Thank you to this photographer for stepping forward and sharing this story.
If you don’t feel comfortable posting on the blog feel free to email me and I will post anonymously for you! Keep’em coming.
Just a couple of quick responses.
First, to all the assistants who are covering expenses, I mean costs that are more than $20. You are no longer an assistant, you’re a production co ordinator and should be compensated accordingly. Don’t get fooled by shooters who ask you to pick up some coffees and fruit for crew breakfast or cover lunch or rent a van. You have moved out of the assistants market and into production. Sure you will still be loading film/cards and schlepping gear but you are also being asked to do things that require funds.
When I started assisting things were fine until I started working for larger shoots and began to be asked to get transportation or sort out catering for a week long shoot. The day I started laying down my Amex card at Enterprise, my rates went up by 80%. Every single client agreed and I got my new rates. Maybe one or two photographers asked that I started billing the client direct but I didn’t mind; the added revenue was a good offset to the lengthened terms. If the photographer really doesn’t like it and objects, ask him for his credit card to book caterers and tell him to book the van online using his cards. Tough love people.
Secondly, who gets into a client for 48k without getting any sort of advance? Maybe he got it already and spent it on necessities but I kind of doubt it. That sort of scenario is totally unprofessional, from both sides of the matter; a client should never have a photographer bankroll the entire shoot, you’re putting your company’s name on line. Likewise, a photographer needs to plan their productions smartly. Understanding a proper budget and production plan is paramount to a long lasting career. So, ask for that advance and set some cash aside for the crew, even a partial payment and Great Caesar’s Ghost, start banking some of your cash for a rainy day or an extended, drawn out, payment terms from your client. Tough love baby.
R
I just received this email.. Torontonian assistants… YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!!!! Apparently assistants over the pond also share this problem.
This assistant below lives in London and struggles with the same frustration as you. At least they have figured out a way to be prepared…
“If only it was 30 days in the UK! After living by the 30 day terms while I assisted in Sydney I was shocked to find out that it is the norm to wait 3 months to be paid here. 80 percent of the people I work for (editorial and advertising) will NOT pay me until they have been paid. This is the standard that photographers and their agencies use on struggling assistants in London. If you question this with them and get annoyed – they will NOT use you again.
I’m regularly having to chase people for payment, one photographer hasn’t paid me for an ad job nine months ago, often it’s down to the fact that most photographers are useless at organising anything outside of taking a photograph. Unfortunately he’s a rather busy and semi-large photographer in London who owns a photographic agency. But I can’t see him using me again out of embarrassment. But if I don’t chase the money he will just forget to pay me. This is not the first time this has happened – another photographer didn’t pay me for close to a year for a couple days of editorial. It wasn’t a lot but on principle I chased him for it. Not that he didn’t have the money, he just doesn’t “do” paper work. He is now a publisher of one of the best-known independent fashion mags out of London that’s sold worldwide. A magazine I would have loved to approach at some stage. Hopefully he doesn’t remember me!
The worst I’ve had it is not being paid for a 2 week advertising job because the photographer “forgot” to send the invoice into his client and never got paid. He was too embarrassed to talk to his client about it (it was then nearly a year later) and I had to tear up my own invoice to him.
The only bright side of it all is whilst I struggle to pay rent every month at least I know I’m always owed several thousand pounds. I tend to run a buffer of a thousand in the bank and 4-5000 pounds that I’m expecting.”
Wow.. sounds tough. That idea of having an “assisting agency” sounds better all the time. No dealing with the muss and fuss.. just assisting.
Please keep the posts coming and remember (photographers, stylists, makeup artists, producers etc.. this is not just for assistants!) send me any rants, ravs or odes so we can keep our communication going!
While I don’t want to re direct the pointy finger of blame, in defense of some photographers; agencies don’t always pay on time. We are all at the mercy of cash flow – account people don’t chase the client, the client doesn’t pay the agency, the agency doesn’t pay the photographer, the photographer can’t pay the crew. So who is at the bottom of this trickle-down effect? Unfairly, the photographer and the crew. Unfortunately as an agency Art Buyer, chasing money is now a part of my job description. My apologies in advance.
From the perspective of a former studio manager and a freelance photo assistant there are some things a person can do to speed up the payment process.
1) Bring a prepared invoice to the shoot. This should include both the photographer’s job number for the shoot and the name of the client. Studio managers juggle an amazing amount of paperwork and being able to easily match up invoices to jobs can save hours in going through paperwork.
2) If you can’t bring a prepared invoice to the shoot, deliver a finished invoice via e-mail the next day. The more time you take to send off your invoices the longer it takes to get paid, not only that but you have proof that the invoice was sent.
3) Stick to the terms of your invoice, include a interest charge in the invoice if it isn’t paid on time. If the client hasn’t been paid the photographer yet and they’re late this gives you some some wiggle room to knock off a couple of points on your invoice to speed up payment and still make yourself look like the good guy.
4) Studios and photographers have credit cards to cover production expenses. Whenever I had to have a assistant go out to get lunch, expendibles, props, ect. I always made sure they had the studio card before they left the door. If this isn’t available, keep your receipts and get a check that day, write the client name on all the receipts.
Assistants are not banks and you pay interest on whatever you charge, now days that can be up to 23% even if you have a stellar credit rating.
5) Accept Paypal and credit cards.
6) The studio manager can be your best friend, be nice to them. Photographers often make suggestions about who they like to work with, but from my discussions with other studio managers they are the ones who make the calls to book assistants.
7) Always be a professional.
You forgot to mention an editorial job where sometimes the assistant is the one making more money than the photographer when all is said and done. And, lets not forget the fact that magazines notoriously hold off paying you for as long as they possibly can.
And, on the commercial side, there are often times when the photographer doesn’t get paid until the agency get’s paid. Same scenario as the Photog/Assistant relationship.
Everyone has to learn to accept less than ideal situations when times are hard. Normally I pay my assistants shortly after they invoice me. But, with less and less money coming in, I’ve had to switch to a “pay when I get paid” model especially when a large amount of work is editorial. When jobs are commercial I get paid faster and so does my assistant.
I got ripped a couple years ago by an ad client because they filed for chapter 11 after I invoiced the agency. The agency didn’t get paid so I didn’t get paid. I had paid a couple people out of respect before it happened and I ended up being out of pocket for this. I’m all for paying crew and talent as soon as possible but as a photographer you really do have to be careful especially in difficult economic times. What if the client goes bankrupt? Or what if the agency goes bankrupt? A photographer could quickly find him/herself bankrupt if they were to pay everyone before they were paid, especially in advertising where crew and talent could easily hit 20 or 30k on an average job.
I can appreciate that times are tough, but bringing up how tough the extremely rare editorial job is, where the assistant might make slightly more only further emphasizes the position assistants are in. We can compare income at the end of the year. The bottom line is that assistants arent banks and shouldnt be used to float your business expenses. If you’re having trouble covering those expenses in a timely manner, you need a business line of credit you can dip into until you get paid. We arent here to supply you with an interest free loan
Run a proper, professional, upstanding, ‘lead as an example’ business. Hire an accountant. Pay your suppliers, especially assistants, in a timely manner, ie. at the end of the week. Use your revolving line of credit as it is meant to be, to keep yourself afloat. As Murray Koeffler said to me on set, “are you going to do a good job of this or are you a lout?”
There are situations where everyone but the photographer gets paid. Photographers aren’t banks either. We take on all the financing most of the time and take all of the risk (creatively and financially). Assistants move some gear around, go home and have a beer. Photographer’s work isn’t done until the final images are delivered. So yeah, you want to compare income at the end of the year… damn right the photog better be making more. I’m not at all diminishing what an assistant provides, I’m just pointing out, when the day is done they’re done and the photog is far from done.
@Ian: Sometimes situations happen that are out of ones control and while you do your best to do exactly what you’re saying, in the end it’s not possible.
Bottom line, if it comes down to keeping my lights on or having an assistant (or stylist, or whoever) get paid in 90 days instead of 5 days… I’ll choose keeping my lights on every time.
AND the real bottom line is, if the assistant knows this is your policy all they have to do is say no to the job. PERIOD.
Nobody is denying that you deserve to make more than an assistant, but its disingenuous to look for sympathy over the rare editorial when the vast majority of the time, you are making far more. And nobody is asking to be paid in 5 days. 30 days is fair. The photographer is the one who hired the help and is responsible for paying the help in a timely manner. You’re required to shoulder the financial responsibility. its part of your job. This has nothing to do with treating you as a bank and isnt anything more than a standard business practice. A line of credit, with a fair interest rate, should keep you from having to turn your lights out.
Sadly, your real bottom line doesnt hold up in the real world. I know very few assistants who can afford to turn down a job, regardless of the photographers payment policy. I’d rather work and be paid in 90 days than not work at all. It doesnt mean you have to take advantage of us.
You keep saying “the rare editorial”. Rare? Rare in terms of there are less work than there used to be, yes. But there are many photographers who most of their business is editorial. So, to them hiring an assistant for editorial work is not rare… it’s everything.
“I’d rather work and be paid in 90 days than not work at all. It doesn’t mean you have to take advantage of us.”
And that is your business decision. Nobody is taking advantage of anybody. The photographer made a business decision to do a shoot for $xxx knowing they probably weren’t getting paid for 90+ days and the assistant must make that same business decision if that is the photographers policy.
If I’m bringing in money left and right, my assistant gets paid a few days after they invoice me. But if things are slow and money is tight I have to make tougher business decisions and have tougher policies. That is just common sense.
I guess you’re saying assistants should be immune to the downturn and get everything they would in good times and not need to make tough business decisions. Unfortunately, that’s not the way the world works… It’s called “trickle down economics” for a reason and it works the same in good times and in bad times.
I understand being idealistic and thinking how things should work. But, I’m guessing you don’t want to be an assistant forever. And if you think idealistic thinking is going to work any better for you when you’re a photographer, I’m sorry to report it won’t. I used to be as idealistic as anyone. even more so. I can’t tell you how much work I’ve turned away because of bad terms or fees. But unless your in a rare position of being one of the upper 10-20% of photographers who can just about write their own terms, you’re in for a rude awakening and you may look back at these assisting terms as the good old days.
Are you assisting because you love assisting and that is your career goal or are you assisting because you want to learn more about photography and the photography business (good and bad)? I’m sure most photographers take on work that isn’t ideal because they love what they do (which is part of the problem and how bad terms grab hold with more photogs making bad business decisions than good). Well, assisting is no different… it’s just a lower step on the ladder. Also, don’t discount what you’re learning (again, good or bad)
If you stand by your convictions and turn down work… good for you. But just as you had to make a business decision to do that, the photog has to make their own business decisions. Speaking for myself, I’m not trying to take advantage of anyone, I’m trying to keep my doors open.
‘rare editorial’ meaning the rate one you get in which assistant is making more money, not the frequency in which you take editorial jobs. If a photographer’s bread and butter is editorial and his or her assistants are consistently making more money, then maybe he or she needs to reassess
Thats not quite what Trickle Down Economics means, but I can see where you’re going with that regardless. This has absolutely nothing to do with tough business decisions and everything to do with poor business management. Unless you went to the Leibovitz School of Business, I think you’d agree that being 60 days delinquent on an invoice is not a good business practice. There needs to be a financial buffer on your end to ensure that your workers get paid on time (again, a line of credit would work beautifully). Its a responsibility you accept the minute you hire someone. This is independent of the economic downturn. The amount of work decreased, but the way in which the business is run shouldnt have to be affected. I say all of this in broad terms and dont mean to make it personal.
In response to your other points, I dont assist because I like it (God have mercy on the masochist who does). I do it because I want to learn, otherwise I would’ve high tailed it long ago. I dont discount the experience I’ve gotten. Its been great. But theres no reason it has to be so economically challenging
“This has absolutely nothing to do with tough business decisions and everything to do with poor business management.”
There are thousands of reasons why poor business management has nothing to do with it. There are factors in any business that are out of your control.
“being 60 days delinquent on an invoice is not a good business practice.”
Which is why you let the people you work with know your terms up front. You’re not delinquent if everyone agreed on the terms.
“The amount of work decreased, but the way in which the business is run shouldn’t have to be affected.”
That statement just makes no sense. “Hey, we aren’t getting any work… but if we keep running our business the same way, we’ll be fine.”
“But there’s no reason it has to be so economically challenging”
Well, you’re learning exactly what it’s like to be a photographer. :-)
You said before that the photographer was taking advantage of you. I don’t see it that way. I see it as both sides needing to accept less than ideal terms in a less than ideal climate. I only do this when I absolutely have to (i.e. no cash flow because of less work). Now, if you’re talking about a photographer who is sitting on piles of money and still saying “I’m not paying you til I get paid” then yes, they are taking advantage of you.
Generation Y!! Assisting was always an apprenticeship where I come from. Learning was the number one reason for doing it. If it just a job then you have other issues. You want to get paid on a regular time frame get a real job. We are ALL on the 60 – 90 day time frame. If you are suggesting that the photographer get a financial cushion then you should heed the same advice. There is a reason why this industry is not for everyone! You gotta really want to do this, and part of that is living with the realities of being a freelancer. Be that a photographer or an assistant.
This is in no way anybody taking advantage of anybody. The business has always been this way. If you are flush you pay right away if your not you wait until the client pays you. Very simple.
I’d love to know who the anonymous posters are. If you believe in what you are saying, put your name to it. They sound like some of the rants on craigslist. If a shoot is over $6,000 I request (and get) progressive billing. The shoot should never leave your control.
I totally agree with Ian. I, and many of my assistant friends, would like to see some names, so then maybe when you call us we can say no, because I can’t think of any time that a photographer has booked me and then proceeded to tell me when they plan on paying me.. be it the next week or in 60+ days.
Just Sayin’, I can’t even tell you how many times I have tried to get a line of credit/cushion and been flat out denied because I have zero money in the bank because no one is paying on time. It’s a lot easier for a photographer making thousands more a year to get a line of credit than for someone just barely living over the poverty line.
Helen… I guess you just forgot to include your last name. Maybe you should leave your name so we know who not to ask.
I work with the same assistants all the time. They know the terms. If they say no, that is fine with me, I don’t hold it against them. The point is, they CAN say no.
And, you’re assuming photographers are making thousands more a year. That’s the whole point. Times are tough and that isn’t necessarily the case. And I’ll say it one more time and then I’m done. If I have to deal with a less than ideal situation based on the people who hire me and when that happens, those that I am hiring have to deal with a less than ideal situation.
Frankly, up until the last couple months I’ve never paid an assistant longer than a week after they invoiced me, even when magazines were routinely paying longer than 60-90 days. But as my business becomes more challenging I have to make adjustments that help MY business not yours. I don’t understand why assistants should be immune to tougher payment terms. Welcome to the world of photography. Would you rather the photographer go out of business and never pay you?
Over and out.
I don’t think that delaying paying your assistants (or other suppliers) helps your business at all. Rather, it hinders it’s growth. Word gets out. To help your business you have to take the high road at all times. The so called tough times provide a bit of weeding.
“I think it takes a really special kind of asshole to turn around to the assistant who’s been waiting for his or her cheque for a month and say ‘Sorry. You get paid when I get paid’. ”
I think that sums it up.
Warm regards,
Rebecca Baran
also:
“If you hear it enough times – I can’t pay you until I get paid – you start to convince yourself that this is the way business is done. Immediately after reading the post I made a couple of email money transfers. I hope others were ‘inspired’ to do the same. The last thing I want to aid in is a good assistant’s decision to stop assisting and then to start working in another industry.”
I know I should just not post anything else it’s like poking an angry bear but I can’t help myself.
“Assistants move some gear around, go home and have a beer.”
and theeeeeeeen:
“I’m not at all diminishing what an assistant provides.”
Wait wait – “Assistants move some gear around, go home and have a beer.”
I love you. Who cleaned your toilet? Me. Who gave your squirmy client a tampon? Oh yeah, thaaaaat’d be me. I can’t afford beer.
“Bottom line, if it comes down to keeping my lights on or having an assistant (or stylist, or whoever) get paid in 90 days instead of 5 days… I’ll choose keeping my lights on every time.”
No one said anything about getting paid in five days. Who ever gets paid in five days? Even regular 9-5 people get paid every two weeks. Asking to be paid in 30 days is not unreasonable. One month. 30 days. One month. I’m no businessologist but if your electricity is getting cut off then you’re doing something wrong. I don’t have to say anything else about this because someone else did it better “A line of credit, with a fair interest rate, should keep you from having to turn your lights out.”
“I guess you’re saying assistants should be immune to the downturn and get everything they would in good times and not need to make tough business decisions.”
Who said that? Where did anyone say that? Going from working 4 days a week to working 0-2 isn’t being “immune to the downturn.” The recession has effected everyone in the industry. If I’m hardly working, how can I say no to work? Like the other guy said, “I’d rather work and be paid in 90 days than not work at all.” No one has ever told me that I’ll be waiting 90 days to be paid. It’s only AFTER the job is done do I hear that. And by “hear that” I mean “when I call and ask them where my money is.” If all the people you hire on a regular basis know that you take a long time to pay, do you think they like it? Maybe when they go get that beer after they “move some gear around” you won’t get invited. :(
If your assistant is making more than you on an editorial gig, hire a cheaper assistant. Or like this fellow said: “If a photographer’s bread and butter is editorial and his or her assistants are consistently making more money, then maybe he or she needs to reassess.”
Ms. Rebecca “let’s see if I become a waitress after I post this” Baran
ding ding ding – you have reached the internet’s limit of repeated replies. do not proceed. do not engage any further and step away from the keyboard.
I totally agree with Steven’s post, accept credit cards.
I am also amazed how many photographers here are not paying thru a payroll service and paying unemployment and with holding taxes, and yes on freelancers. You get audited and you are screwed. Argue it here all you want, with the IRS you will lose the argument.
To Brook:
http://gregceoblog.com/paying-your-assistants-on-time#comments
I’ve been talking to this fellow about this topic. About five years ago, I tried to be an adult, and I got all my insurance in order, and tried to learn about Workmans Comp, and Payroll, and “employer of record”, (and then, I got really boring at parties). Anyway, we started doing withholding on Assistants at that time. I’m betting I’m about one in a million doing it, nationwide, but I’d be curious if others are. The whole topic is a Giant Grey Mess, and one that’s not sorted out easily.
The big question is: Is a freelance assistant an Independent Contractor, or are they a Part Time Employee.
Here is this mystery list of Twenty Questions:
http://ohioline.osu.edu/cd-fact/1179.html
(Note that even here, the words “may be an employee” are used).
Whatever the case, I still don’t know the official government ruling on it, but I’ve not met one other photographer that takes out taxes on freelance assistants. To me, when I read those Twenty Questions, almost all of them apply to freelance assistants, therefore, to me, making them part time employees.
Complex stuff. I wish somebody would just announce a firm policy.
TYLER GREY
what you don’t get is that you get a portfolio piece after the fact!! you may not have been paid but you still got something out of it!!!!! the crew that you regret paying ahead of time would have got nothing had you not paid them!! pretty sad buddy!!
Jeremy
i here ya!! been there but not that bad!!! It sure doesn’t pay to be the nice guy …….i must add you pay the fastest of them all!
Times are Tough
i understand were you are coming from but you need to contact your employees to let them know this ahead of time. also must be able to pay out of there own pocket if need be after 60 days. Only acceptable if spoken to previous!!!!! Money is the most awkward thing to talk about to me and many others …just keep that in mind
P.S. i would also like to know who u are ??……but i think i already know!!
To most of the photographers
Doing it as an apprenticeship isn’t what all assistants do. I teach more then a photographer teaches me!! thats why im busy and some are not. Do you really want someone learning while on your $140,000 campaign or handling the files your $500.00 editorial gig. This is a full time job and i need to pay bills too and doesn’t help having jackasses saying its just a intern or apprenticeship
Thanks for starting this discussion. I’ve been assisting for about 9 years. Late payment has always been an (unfortunate) aspect of this business. I’ve seen the frequency come and go, but nothing like this past year. Rates cut after the fact, invoices 90+ days out, and the like. I’ve had to have sit-downs with a few people, and point out: “You have taken advantage of my patience/good nature. Pay me now, or I set the Labor Board on you.” When it gets to that point, the working relationship is over. Sucks, but I’ve got bills to pay, too. I still can’t wrap my head around how (many) photographers think it is acceptable to treat photo assistants this way.
Take note: when an assistant is calling you on an invoice, no matter how polite we may seem on the phone, we’ve got a mantra of “pay me, you fucking asshole!” on repeat, in the back of our heads. Especially, those of you out there who don’t appear to be tightening your own belts. I should feel sympathy for you, who just bought a “faster” engine for your RACING PORSCHE?!?! (GFY Carl) Why should we be the assholes, for expecting to be paid for services rendered? Balls on these clowns.
I’d like to think my days of assisting are numbered. Not because I don’t like assisting. Quite the contrary, I love my job. I am damn good at it, too. But no way am I going to be on the phones at 50, asking form my $350. Like many assistants, I shoot little jobs, once in a while. I don’t get an assistant unless I can pay them. Simple as that. I will never be “that guy”.
/rant
Been this way forever. I started freelancing, in Hollywood, for TV commercial production houses in the 1970s. Pay was always slow because the Production Company was waiting for the As Agency to pay them. Seems like after all these years someone would have found a way to pay in a timely manner.
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