Photobook Editing: How to ensure a positive collab
Some might find teaming up with other creatives to be tricky, but these three tips can help for an easy collaboration
Over the last few weeks, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with photography student Mathew Dowton, to edit and finalise his photobook called, A Friend of Mine.
I was excited by the chance to join forces with another creative, as through my experiences with editorial work, I have never worked with a photographer before.
Editing someone else’s work is much like trying to solve a puzzle with one of the pieces missing. It can stump you, but with some persistence you’ll be able to figure it out — or at least come close enough for the piece to fit in.
Working alongside a photographer is a great thing. You uncover alternative styles and pick up new skills that further your own practice. I know from my partnership, I gained valuable insight into the production of photobooks and photobook editing, ensuring a generally positive experience. But there’s a lot to learn when it comes to working with creative individuals, whether you’re the photographer or the editor.
I’m going to share some pointers on how to respect each other’s style and help you on the fast track to building a strong work relationship, one that is based on collaboration and communication — rather than confusion and frustration.
1. Communication Is Key to a Successful Partnership
It is essential to be able to communicate effectively with your photographer. For some, communicating effectively means communicating in person. For many, it means communicating through online platforms.
Understanding how you can reach out to your fellow creative and making sure you are able to find alternative meet-up times, is the first step towards a successful collaborative relationship.
From my own experience, I found emailing to be one of the more efficient ways to keep in touch with people. Plus, it adds a touch of professionalism to the project. In saying this, different people/projects will have alternative preferences that could better suit them, so prepare to adjust your own forms of communication in order to meet in the middle.
This was achieved in my case by organising both in person meetings as well as emailing.
Whether it’s Text, Email, Call, Messenger, Facebook Message — there are so many ways to get in touch with people nowadays. Communication is important to keep everyone up-to-date and on the same page.
When you first meet your collaborative partner, finding out how you prefer to contact each other will help for a smoother time while working, making things easier when it comes to scheduling.
This is also the perfect time to share your availability with each other, because organisation through this process is a MUST.
2. Respecting Their Style
Editing is such a good feeling, right? It’s that ‘Ahhhh yes, I’ve made it better!’ sort of feeling. But editing can also be tense — when the tone is different, or you feel like your edits are going to get shot down. Sometimes people have a rigid idea of what they want, and it can make things seem awkward. Luckily, being sure to understand the overall style and learning to work with it, will ensure for an easier process.
This is where respecting someone else’s style saves you from inflicting your personal choice on their work, which may not fit with their goal. At the end of the day, your style is going to be different to theirs, so you will have to make some adjustments on how you edit.
This brings me to active listening and noting what your collaborative partner wants. While adding your opinion is great way to enthuse ideas and brainstorm, it’s really up to the author.
After my first photobook editing experience, I was rather nervous but soon became optimistic as it became clear what the end goal of the photobook was. What I needed to focus on was deliberation between myself and the author and correcting grammatical errors. There were a lot of different takes and angles to be considered to allow for the best version to shine through.
Of course, some decisions were easier than others; adding spacing to dialogue or changing the fonts of captions to differentiate between the photographer’s voice and the subject.
You can use your time to create a style guide beforehand, one that the author approves of, or have meetings to discuss the tone and style suggestions. This will help you decide what you should cover throughout the editorial process and how it fits within the project.
3. Openly Stress Your Queries and Brainstorm Together
Giving criticism can be challenging, and it’s important to be gentle. People react differently based on their confidence in handling feedback. Understanding this will help you choose the best approach.
Personally, my partnership was very comfortable and casual, so this really opened the door for easy conversation and input. While following the style of the photographer, I was able to offer solutions and ask if my opinion felt like a good fit within the photobook.
Collaboration can seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be a negative experience. Admitting when something didn’t work, understanding why, trying a different approach next time, and continually adapting with your collaborative partner, can lead to success.
Working with other creative individuals is a rewarding experience. It offers the chance to work on impactful and personal projects, make valuable industry connections, and grow as an editor, something I can say will stick with me for future project collabs.
