Life's Little Adventures

Assistant Magazine

Assistant Magazine

 

 

The first issue of Assistant Magazine is out, and is it ever glorious!

This quarterly journal deals with the past, present, and especially with the future of the role of assistants in fashion, fashion photography, style, the visual arts and more as a stepping stone to their own careers.

Seven pages of the beautifully-produced magazine are devoted to me and my time assisting photographer Richard Avedon in the 1950s and early 1960s, his most creative period. In this I left as advice:

"Be invisible. Do your job, but don't be the center of attention.

You are there to work, not to distract."

Assistant is published in France for worldwide distribution, and is completely in English. The quality of reproduction, the paper stock, and of the layouts approaches art-book levels. 

I urge anyone interested in this field to give it a try. http://www.assistantmagazine.com/.

 

 

Photography's Golden Age ended long ago but remains very much alive in my memory. From 1952 through 1965 I was an assistant to the world-famous photographer Richard Avedon during his most creative period, and do I ever have the stories to tell!  Now is the time to reveal all, while I'm still alive and kicking. Tales of personalities, motivations, intrigues, and even the fine details of how it was all done.

What I need to make this project a reality is a co-conspirator to aid in getting the whole, true, uncensored story published -- either as a book, an e-book, or even a documentary for the record.

Anyone interested? Leave a message and I'll get back.

On Being an Assistant Photographer

 

What's Expected of You

Here I'd like to discuss just what it takes to become an assistant to a talented photographer such as Avedon. Especially as a learning experience, and as an apprenticeship before heading out on your own.

The first, and most important point, is to choose your mentor carefully. It should be someone whose work you really admire, and from whom you can learn. To assist the wrong photographer will just be time wasted. Preferably someone located in a major city that is home to various media (magazines, ad agencies, etc.) — Americans should think New York or Los Angeles, Europeans London, Paris, Milan, or Berlin. Places that are hotbeds of creative activity.

The first lesson, therefore, is: Determine who you want to work for and pursue them. Relentlessly.

A second consideration is to make a list of ways in which you can make yourself most useful to the photographer. Some obvious choices are:

• Hardworking.
• Dependable.
• Willing to take direction.
• A strong body that can lift stuff.
• A good, safe driver with a clean record.
• Handiness with tools, paintbrushes, etc.
• Ability to do minor repairs.

Some valuable traits are:

• A well-rounded education, especially with some knowledge of the arts and philosophy.
• Ability to anticipate needs and act without having to be told what to do.
• Ability to live within your means, without becoming a burden. Face it, you're not going to make much until you acquire real skills.
• A good appearance. You are representing the boss. Look it.
• Good language skills, especially English. A smattering of foreign tongues wouldn't hurt, either.
• A good conversationalist.
• Computer savvy.
• Curiosity about the world around you.
• Lastly, a burning passion for photography; a real fire in the belly.

Notice that I said nothing about being a talented photographer. You're there to learn and assist the photographer, not to take the pictures. In the past, darkroom experience would have been a valuable asset; today it would most certainly help to at least be familiar with Adobe Photoshop.

And if you get the job, don't blow it!

The worst case of missed opportunity I ever heard of actually happened in Avedon's studio back in 1965. An international service club had a program of finding trainee jobs for talented but impoverished youth. Avedon agreed to take on a young guy from an underprivileged background and train him in studio ways, paying him a modest wage. He showed up the first day full of enthusiasm and really tried hard to please. We were quite happy with him. The next day, however, he never came to work. Concerned that something might have happened to him, we called his mother. She answered that he just didn't feel like working today, so that was the end of his brief employment.

Another one occurred in 1960 when a trainee decided that a weekend social engagement was more important than assisting on a sudden, unexpected weekend photo assignment. He was told not to return. As long as you are a junior assistant you are expected to be available at any time.

Some other things that could nip a career in the bud are:

• Displays of personal drama. Be cool.
• Taking attention away from the boss by showing too much personality, dressing too sharply, or otherwise being too noticeable. Be invisible at times.
• Contradicting the boss in front of clients. They won't have much confidence in him if even his assistants think he's wrong.
• Allowing your cell phone to ring during jobs. Turn it off.
• Asking stars and VIPs for autographs.
• Being a pest.
• Ordering the most expensive food and drink when dining out with the boss and/or clients.
• Taking your own photos while the boss is taking his.

IS THIS ASKING TOO MUCH? If you think so, you may be better off pursuing a different career.

ANOTHER APPROACH, and for some a better one, is to set yourself up as a FREE-LANCE ASSISTANT, working by the day or job. This allows you to learn from different photographers with varying techniques and to get a better oversight of the entire business. The downside is that work only comes when the photographers' own staffs cannot handle the load, and that there will be dry periods of no income during which you can work on developing your own portfolio. It helps to have worked for a well-known photographer who will recommend your services to others.

 

RIGHT NOW I'm looking to tell my whole story, the whole unvarnished truth about Photography's Golden Age, as the basis for a book, e-book, or documentary. Interested? Leave a comment below and I'll get back to you.

RETURN to Life's Little Adventures blog

The Resurgence of Film Photography

The current (April 2013) issue of Shutterbug Magazine features a lengthy and quite thorough article subtitled "Silver Halide...Still Gleaming?" about discoveries at Photokina 2012 in Cologne, Germany, featuring a real resurgence of interest in "real" photography — the kind with film, darkrooms, and chemicals as opposed to digital. Not only are there new film cameras, there are also new B&W films to put in them! And enlargers for making the prints, as below:

Probably no 20th-century photographer was more renowned for his Black & White images than Richard Avedon (1923-2004), who I assisted from 1952-1956 and 1959-1965. Although he certainly did work in color for fashion and advertising jobs, it was his stunning Black & White photography that made him world famous. 

 

NEW:

Photography's Golden Age ended long ago but remains very much alive in my memory. Now, at the end of 2015, the time is ripe for me to reveal all that happened during Avedon's most creative period. Tales of personalities, motivations, intrigues, and even the fine details of how it was all done. 

What I need to realize this is a co-conspirator to aid in getting the whole, true, uncensored story published -- either as a book, an e-book, or even a documentary.

Anyone interested? Leave a comment and I'll get back to you.

RETURN to Life's Little Adventures blog

Our Studio, Part XXIII

A few weeks ago I was reminiscing about the times in 1968 when my business partner Jim Houghton and I did photographic assignments for Time-Life Books, and especially about our photo essay on the power brokers, movers and shakers in Washington D.C. Completed over a period of several days, it covered no fewer than 63 individuals spread over some 13 pages. This book, The District of Columbia — The Seat of Government, and another one that we did on the Middle Atlantic States were part of the TIME-LIFE Library of America series. Since I haven't seen these books, or even any of the photos, in about 35 years, I did a Google search and found a used copy on Amazon for a mere $4. Here's the story behind it:

 

Photos above are of, left to right, Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen, Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, Speaker of the House John McCormack, and House Minority Leader Gerald Ford.

  

For our first book in in the Time-Life Library of America series, on the Middle Atlantic States, we opted to use a large 8x10 view camera outdoors, emulating the work of Richard Avedon — whom both of us had assisted a few years earlier. This time, however, we chose to use handheld Mamiyaflex TLR cameras loaded with 120 Tri-X film, and portable strobe lights. Since this equipment was small, instead of driving we flew down on the wonderful old Eastern Shuttle, which required no reservations, used old Elektra turboprops, and left from LaGuardia Airport in New York. At Washington National Airport we rented a car, drove to a Holiday Inn in Arlington VA, and then set off for the first sitting in the Capitol Office buildings. This was of the Agricultural Committee, who claimed that this was the only time ever that every member showed up!

 The next day we were to work in the Capitol Building itself, so we drove there and looked for a place to park. The most convenient spot was right under the Capitol steps, from which a door led to where we were going. I doubt if you could get away with this today, what with security precautions, but no one bothered us and we left the car there until late afternoon. The most memorable session that day was of the House Minority Leader, Gerald Ford, who engaged me in a long conversation about building a home darkroom. This was before he became President.

Security was also rather lax at the White House, where we drove right in and parked at the door to the West Wing. A guard did check our papers, but never inspected the vehicle or its contents. Actually, President Johnson was out of town at the time, and we were to photograph his special assistant, Joseph Califano, who was called the "Deputy President for Domestic Affairs" by the New York Times. After we finished, he showed us into the Oval Office for a quick look around. I was sorely tempted to liberate a souvenir, but didn't.

Photos on the right are of Presidential Special Assistant Joseph Califano and his staff.

Now I'm interested in finding the other book in the series, as well as the one we did for Time-Life on gardening.

Photos and book text copyright © 1968 Time Inc., used non-commercially under Fair Use Doctrine to illustrate my story.

Blog text copyright © 2010 by Earl Steinbicker

Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

RETURN TO Our Studio Index.

RETURN TO Current Main Page.

Our Studio, Part XXII

 

 CAT SCRATCH FEVER

There's quite a story behind this picture, as you might guess. During the late 1970s our studio, Steinbicker/Houghton Inc., produced the photography for many record album covers, including a few of hard rock icon Ted Nugent (a.k.a. The Motor City Madman) for the CBS Epic label. After doing the cover for his 1977 hit Cat Scratch Fever we were asked to create a promotional photo depicting him as stark raving mad, an image he carefully nourished.

The first thing we needed was a padded cell, or at least the corner of one. That wasn't too hard to fake, but getting a real straight jacket certainly was. I first tried all of the New York prop houses, but no one had this item. Then I thought: "Of course! A medical supply — that's where a mental institution would get them from!"  So I called the nearest supply house and asked. The astonished voice on the other end must have thought I was some pervert looking for a bit of the old S&M fun times, because they answered that yes, they stocked them, but NO they will not sell it to me. After offering to show them a purchase order from CBS describing the photo they wanted taken the supply firm relented, provided I swore to totally destroy the item immediately following the photo session. 

At 1 p.m. on Tuesday, August 2, 1977, Ted Nugent came into the studio, was tied up and placed in the set. He was as friendly and cooperative as could be. How could he not be, being bound like that? And the session took a while as we were using an 8x10 view camera because the client wanted a huge reproduction size. 

Prior to doing his Cat Scratch Fever cover a few weeks earlier, we had also produced the cover photo for his 1976 album Free For All, another studio job. Most of his other albums used performance shots, a type of photography that we avoided as the photographer has no control over the event, and those jobs didn't pay nearly as well.

Album covers in those days were 12 inches square as the records were 12" vinyl LPs. That allowed plenty of space to display photos effectively. After that, though, cassettes were not only too small, but the shape was all wrong, CDs are just a little bit better. The top photo is not quite sharp because it was scanned from a really tiny reproduction, the only one I could find. 

And yes, I did destroy the jacket after the job was done.

Text copyright © 2010 Earl Steinbicker

 Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2013? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

RETURN to Our Studio Index

RETURN to Current Main Page

CHECK OUT both of these albums by clicking on their names in the boxes below:

Our Studio, Part XXI

Photographic Studio Lighting for Hair and Cosmetics

 

Soon after starting our studio in New York we realized that in order to attract high-paying cosmetic, hair, and beauty advertising clients we would have to develop a method of lighting that resulted in flawless textures, and that reduced expensive retouching to a minimum. The problem with hair, for example, is twofold: 

• The surface of hair strands act like a mirror, reflecting everything around them.
• The outer parts of a hairstyle cast shadows on the inner "roots," making them dark and unattractive.

The problem is to get soft light coming evenly from all directions, with hardly anything that might reflect on the surface of the hair.

Beauty and cosmetic photography presents similar problems, although usually not as serious.

Accurate color rendition is essential in this type of photography.

The techniques that we developed brought us the number-one name in hair coloring, Clairol, as a long-term client along with several of the largest names in cosmetics. This photography was used by them on their packaging, publicity, and for advertising.

No secrets last forever, and eventually other photographers adopted the same ideas — spread, probably, by models, spies, free-lance studio assistants, and the clients themselves. Some even underbid us on price.

Anyway, here's how it was done:

Beginning with white paper on the floor, we erected a "tent" around the model using 4x8-foot white panels and a white ceiling. Strobe flash heads were placed at critical positions, bouncing off the white panels to create a soft, even light. The background paper was lit separately from flash heads behind other panels. The front panel, easily movable for access, had a hole in it for the camera lens. The lens of the Hasselblad 500-EL camera was itself shielded with a long, black bellows-type lens shade to minimize flare and increase apparent sharpness.

Getting exact color rendition was achieved by carefully choosing emulsions. Every batch of color film varied slightly, and was tested by our color lab, Duggal Color Projects. They selected the best and sold fairly large quantities to us, which we kept frozen until a few hours before use. Leftover rolls of the size 120 Ektachrome were put back in the freezer.

Today, photographers would almost certainly shoot digitally, probably saving in the RAW format for better tweaking in Photoshop. But the lighting techniques remain the same. 

 

Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

RETURN to Our Studio Index.

RETURN to Current Main Page.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2013? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

Our Studio, Part XX

A Chance Meeting With A King

 

Just two blocks from our Fifth Avenue studio was a wonderful Indian restaurant called the Shalimar. Located on East 29th Street between Madison and Park avenues, it was considered by many to be the best of its kind in New York. In fact, one time we when were doing a job for Air India the client remarked on how lucky we were to be so near to such tasty food. So we began taking our clients there for lunch, and sometimes went by ourselves for dinner after work. 

One time in 1979 my business partner Jim Houghton and I went for our usual dinner. At the table next to us was seated a quite distinguished-looking Middle-Eastern gentleman who was dining alone and receiving extra attention from the wait staff. At one point he turned to us and remarked that this was indeed the very best Indian restaurant in town, and that he came here every time he was in New York. He then said "let me introduce myself — I am the King of Afghanistan." 

And indeed he was. He then went on to recount the troubles visited upon his nation by the Soviet occupation (1979-1989), and how he had gone into exile and was now living in Rome. His meal finished, he rose and said goodbye as the entire restaurant staff practically bowed to him. They also did not present him with anything as crass as a bill. 

After he left, the owner came over to us and expounded on how honored his restaurant was to serve the king whenever he was in town.

Mohammed Zahir Shah (portrait, right) was born in 1914, educated in France, and became king in 1933 at the tender age of 19 — although real power remained in the hands of his uncles until the 1960s. His main achievement was in opening his landlocked country to the West and in creating a national university. He was deposed in 1973 by a cousin opposed to those reforms, living in exile in Rome until his return to Kabul in 2002. There he renounced the title of king and was given the new title of "Father of the Nation." Seriously ill and frail, he died at his home in Kabul's Presidential Compound in 2007.

 

Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2013? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

RETURN to Our Studio Index.

RETURN to Current Main Page.

The Avedon Years, Part XXXII

Music and the Wind Makes the Studio Hum

When I first joined the Avedon Studio in September 1952, there was no music and only a small Vornado fan to make fashions blow a little bit. After the move to East 49th Street in 1954 a Columbia Hi-Fi LP Record Player was added to enliven the sittings with mostly show tunes and jazz. That little fan soon gave way to a larger one mounted on a dolly, and the fashion shots showed much more movement.

Somewhere along the line, probably after moving to East 58th Street, we discovered the fabulously effective Mole Richardson Wind Machine (photo, above), long a standard tool in Hollywood movie studios. This device puts just as much wind as you want, exactly where you want it and nowhere else.

To further liven things up, at Dick's request I replaced the record player with a stereo amplifier, a Garrard record changer, and two large wall-mounted speakers just behind the camera position and aimed at the set. This set the mood with music by such performers as Sinatra, Fitzgerald, Satchmo, Miles Davis, Brubeck and others, along with Broadway tunes.

It all worked out so well that when I and my business partner opened our own studio in 1965, one of the first things we bought was the same model Mole Richardson Wind Machine — despite its almost outrageous cost. Along with this we installed a powerful amplifier, record changer, and really huge speakers, playing mostly rock, especially Beatles, Stones, Doors, Pink Floyd and others.

RETURN to Avedon Years Index .

RETURN to Current Main Page.

 

Our Studio, Part XIX

Previously on this thread

Photographing Chicago

(The Band, Not The City)

It was in the Winter of 1972 that we got a plum assignment from one of our favorite clients, CBS Columbia Records. This was to travel to a remote part of Colorado to photograph the pop-rock band Chicago as they were recording their sixth album, Chicago VI, released in 1973. Why would they do this in such an out-of-the-way place? Why not?

James Guercio, the group's producer from 1968 until 1977, owned the historic Caribou Ranch and over 4,000 acres of land surrounding it since 1971. In 1972 he converted the barn into a state-of-the-art recording studio, and added living quarters for the musicians and everyone else associated with the projects. Between then and its fiery demise in 1985 it was a choice recording venue for dozens and dozens of the very greatest names in music — rock, pop, jazz, and classical. After the fire it became a working ranch and in 1995 was sold to Boulder County as a nature park.

My business partner Jim Houghton and I flew to Denver with John Berg, then the highly talented Vice-President for Creative Services of CBS Columbia Records (now Sony). John was also the designer of Chicago's famous logo, which remains in use today. At the Denver airport we rented a station wagon and drove up into the mountains past Boulder and Nederland, turning west for about five miles on a dirt road to the Caribou Ranch.

That first night we met the band and relaxed with them in the main ranch house, polishing off many bottles of Heineken beer. It was then that I noticed a revolver on the table next to my chair, a sign that this was really the Wild West. It was a .44 Magnum and it was loaded. Years later this casual attitude toward guns resulted in tragedy when a leading member of the band accidentally shot himself dead.

The next morning was devoted to choosing a location for the photos. The natural choice was the long-abandoned ghost town of Caribou near the former Blue Bird silver mine, not far away but difficult to get to. There was a dirt trail that really required using a 4WD truck, but Jim and I chose to rough it on snowmobiles following the path of what's left of the former Denver, Boulder & Western Railroad, which linked Caribou with the outside world from 1904 until 1919. That's me on my borrowed Ski-Doo, about to take off.The other one was for Jim Houghton, who took the photo.

The trail was rough in spots, and I managed to spill the thing three times, but was always able to get it back upright. The worst part was when we came to a ravine over which the railroad once had a bridge. Since this structure was no longer there, we had to go steeply down to the creek, cross it, and up the other side. Lots of fun. 

Anyway, the ghost town of Caribou was a wonderful location, looking like the ruined remains of an old Hollywood set for a Western flick. So we headed back, and that afternoon returned by truck via the longer route while the band got there on horses. Jim's photos looked for all the world like stills from old-time cowboy movies, and were just what was wanted.

Today the area is a nature park from which snowmobiles are excluded, as are even trail bikes. The only way to get from the ranch to the ghost town is on foot via the Switzerland Trail. Environmentally this is a good thing, but those Ski-Doos sure were great to drive. 

 

Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

CLICK HERE for more about Colorado.

RETURN to Our Studio Index 

RETURN to Current Main Page.

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2013? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

Our Studio, Part XVIII

Previously on this thread

Photo Location Vans

When Jim Houghton and I first started our photo studio in New York way back in 1965, going on location was a drag — literally: we had to drag our equipment, props, and everything else to the chosen spot by subway or bus, unless there was enough of a budget for taxis. As our clientele grew, we began to rent cars, usually station wagons, from Hertz. Although we had no credit cards then, I did still have an account with Hertz, left over from the time I was the studio manager for the famous photographer Richard Avedon.

The first major improvement occurred in late spring of 1966, when we got an assignment to do several days of catalog fashion photography for Abercrombie & Fitch out in the Hamptons (the southeastern end of Long Island, New York). This involved dozens of items of clothing along with winter props such as skis (it was a Christmas catalog), and loads of styrofoam "snow."  So we needed a truck as well as a wagon.

We rented a large step-van truck and put together a makeshift dressing room in it. This also held all of the merchandise, the props and equipment, and served as a working area for the stylist. It was driven by a freelance assistant that we hired for the job. I rode in the cab along with him and one of the models; Jim, the stylist, client, and two models went in a rented station wagon. The two vehicles stayed in touch while looking for locations via walkie-talkie; this was long before cell phones.

After that we realized the need for a better way to work on location.

Then help arrived. A guy (I think his name was Bob) started a location van business geared to the still photography business. The first vehicle was a full-size Dodge van converted with a pop-up top and sufficient space for smaller jobs. One very useful feature was a car phone (remember, this was in the late 1960s, long before cell phones), and another was a 110-volt generator to power lights and special effects equipment. We often used this van in New York's Central Park. Bob, or whatever his name was, also provided a great picnic lunch. The clients, models, and stylists came by taxi or rental car.

As his business grew, he acquired other vans and hired drivers for them. The one we liked best was a huge Dodge Travco motor home (RV) in which everyone could travel together in comfort. This looked very much like the one on the left. We took this to such exotic places as New Hope PA, East Hampton NY, and the Upper Hudson Valley in NY. Again, this was equipped with phone and generator, plus a bathroom and a tiny kitchen.

Bob's big van was used on our infamous night job of the rock group AC/DC on a closed stretch of highway on Staten Island. Not only did it have to carry (and feed) the band and us, but also people from Atlantic Records as well as provide power for the smoke machines and strobe lights. The resulting photo was used on the back cover of their great album "Highway to Hell."

One problem with vans in New York City is that often the best way in and out of Manhattan is via the Lincoln, Holland, Queens Midtown or Brooklyn-Battery tunnels. Ordinarily, motor homes and camper vans are not allowed through these because of the propane tanks they carry. Bob's vans did not have propane, but he still always had to prove to the toll taker or police that it was okay. 

Another good vehicle for big location jobs is a regular tour bus. In the late 1970s we had an assignment for TWA that took us through New England and then down to Washington DC, all in a period of three days. This involved several models including children, and promoted the airline's guided bus tours. The bus itself was also a prop, so it had to be kept clean. For Washington we had to get a police permit to photograph in the streets. When we parked in front of the Capitol we were ordered to leave by the Capitol Police, who would not honor a permit from the city. Fortunately, I had already taken the photos before we were forced to depart.

RETURN to Our Studio Index.

RETURN to Current Main Page.

 

Interested in photography? Check out my "Assisting Avedon" blog.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2013? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.