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Manuscripts Photographer, and Photography Assistant, Harvard Law School Library, Historical & Special Collections, Cambridge MA

Posted April 27, 2014

Manuscripts Photographer, and Photography Assistant (2 positions)

Harvard Law School Library, Historical & Special Collections

Harvard Law School

(20 hours of photography; no benefits)

Duties: The Harvard Law School Library Historical & Special Collections and Digital Lab seek the immediate availability of a skilled and creative team of two individuals to photograph bound manuscripts. We will provide the digital camera, lens, copy stand, and laptop; you will provide experience and enthusiasm in the enterprise of generating “good images” rapidly, while safely handing rare materials. The Root Room in the Harvard Law School Library will serve as the venue for the photo shoots.The purpose of this 20-hour assignment is to benchmark hourly rates of production and per-image costs. 

Qualifications, Photographer:

  • Experience in copy stand photography, ideally of bound books
  • Preferred experience with Canon’s EOS Rebel T3 Digital Photo Professional software
  • Comfort with technology; good attention to file naming and organization

Qualifications, Photography Assistant:

  • Experience handling special collections materials (particularly bound manuscripts and rare books)
  • Interest in contributing to innovating new workflows for digitizing special collections

Schedule: 20 hours of photography, at negotiated schedule (between 9:30 to 4:30 pm, M-F) spanning 3-5 business days 

Salary: negotiable (either at per-image or hourly rate)

There is a possibility of extending this assignment through the spring and summer of 2014, at the discretion of the funder.

To apply: Please submit statements of qualification, interest, and expected salary–either individually or as a team–by email to Stephen Chapman, [email protected] and Karen Beck, [email protected]. Stephen is Manager, Digital Strategy for Collections in the Digital Lab; Karen is Manager, Historical & Special Collections. No phone calls please.