Now that the project has been completed now would appear to be a good time to review the two roles i was allocated during the project.
- Team coordinator; I decided early on that as we had a good mix of skills and some very proficient team members that I would attempt to co-ordinate rather than 'manage'. Knowing that communication and lack of team work are two of the biggest issues in any project I decided to use a formalised meeting with minutes an agenda and actions as the tool to ensure we didn't fall into either of these two pitfalls. Although this might have been seen to be rather onerous initially I feel this early decision greatly assisted in the timely progression of the project. It gave us a SMART way of working (SMART = Specific Measurable Attainable Relevant Timely) a term often used in business. I took on the responsibility of agenda creation, note taking, providing the minutes and reviewing actions. This simple tool made us able to see our progress, any issues and of course record any decisions. As with all projects they start with the first tentative steps then the pace progressively picks up and you learn how all of the individuals work and work as a team. The team had a blow at the start with the loss of a key team member (Callum) who had been camera lead and was instrumental in forming the team and who was the strongest 'fashion photographer' in the group. We soon overcame this issue when it was confirmed that Callum had moved on and we re-jigged the roles to compensate. The actual role allocation process was a democratic allocation based on skills and peoples desire to take on-board certain responsibilities, always the best way to allocate roles if possible! This was done as a group using a process of asking for volunteers rather than being dictated by any one single person. As we progressed through the project time line we increased the frequency of the meetings and they became less formalised and more fluid to suit the nature of the project and because our process allowed the change. Meeting with our newly formed fashion contributors for example were less suited to an overly formal format. Frequently I felt as if I should have been leading more, but I held back and allowed the team to find their feet. It's easy to end up pushing ideas or failing to listen to team members and alienating them. I feel the softly softly approach worked, and with several very strong team members it would have been alienating and counterproductive. It was clear that we were meeting our targets and working to the best of our abilities taking into account the differing worth ethics and personalities. On several occasions I took on the role of buffer to allow the team to express concerns with organisational or role related issues. Frequently lead positions were shared and on at least one occasion there was some movement of responsibilities. I ensured that between us the tasks were not put at risk by changes by remaining emotionally detached and as professional as possible. Sometimes you just need to be able to stand back and overview progress, whilst highlighting target dates and for this I used a year planner. The planner helped us visualise the time line far better than an electronic plan as we took it to meetings and viewed the dates and deadlines in a simple visual format that was SMART.
We used the 'dropbox' tool throughout the project to share information and also a 'facebook' group. I maintained the files on the dropbox that related to my meetings agendas and minutes.
There were several areas we were less strong as a team, and based on our strengths some areas we excelled at. Fashion itself wasn't a strong-point and we took on advice to seek collaboration. I sourced extra help for day one of the build knowing the build would progress faster that way, and we had been encouraged to seek external experts. Casting had been difficult as we had a strong idea of the East meets West Narrative and I felt the pitch showed up the weaknesses we knew we had at that time. Those included the fashion aspect, and defining the narrative and location for the image. I spent time working on listing various alternate narratives all based around our theme and as a team we decided on the UK based location for the lower end hotel we planned to create. I was also happy to be involved in a number of activities such as visiting the prop store with the team, assisting in buy some props and a few build materials. Finding the male model, and assisting by taking the team to UCA Maidstone to complete the extra casting task set during the project. I assisted with the purchase of the dress, ensured the lights were given the electrical safety test, helped with the set-build, lighting where needed and helped with scenic aspects of the set. Basically where possible I acted as a team player. My Christine Keeler image set us off down the root of shooting through a window, and we have all been involved in research. Within some areas I have taken the lead from those with far more experience than me, such as hair and make-up (via fashion collaborators), post production (the actual edit was completed as a team but the changes were made by those members of the team with strong Phocus and Photoshop skills). Overall the role has been interesting as you get involved in every aspect of the project, and you get to see your fellow team members applying their specific skills and you get to assist, support and learn from them in the process. I have blogged throughout the project and I hope that my roles within the project have assisted along with the other team members in meeting the requirements of the brief and helped to produce a good image.
- Health and Safety Lead;
A fairly straightforward role which consisted of attending a session with Colin and assessing the risks and documenting them before returning the form on time. During the shoot I ensured that we followed the risk assessment. We taped down the carpet, tidied cables, and taped off a safe area for visitors. Gloves were worn and the appropriate tools and steps were used during the build and striking of the set. The risk assessment covered the logistics including the friday before the shoot when Props were brought to the studio. See form below
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