Harriet Sztumpf (nee Lewis) - Notting Hill & Ealing 1987 - 1992

Picture Editor/Researcher and Stylist

I am a picture Editor/ picture researcher /photographer /stylist.

At the moment I am freelance as it gives more freedom to move around, meet more people (which is vital in this industry) and choose when you want to work- you don’t have to be tied down to 21 days holiday a year forever! I work mainly for The Sunday Times Style magazine.

After school I went on to complete a Foundation in Art and Design.  From there I went to art College and did a degree in Photography.  Many Uni's/ Colleges offer degrees in Photography, but make sure you pick a practical degree as lots of them are very theory based and don’t teach you anything useful.

I’ve always wanted to work in magazines- it can be very difficult for people to break in to them as most jobs are not advertised- it basically boils down to who you know.  The best thing to do is get as much work experience as possible- don’t be afraid to aim right for your top publications, there may be a waiting list but no one will turn down free help! Be prepared to work for not a lot or nothing at first and stick at it. Its better to be on the spot, lots of the time you will find you are kept on and will eventually be paid. A friend of mine started with work experience (after her degree) at Daze & Confused and after a year of little money she was eventually taken on permanently with a small wage.

You will find that generally the bigger / trendier the magazine the lower the wages.  But its worth having good magazines such as Elle, Vogue, Marie Claire, ES magazine etc on your CV as it opens many doors in the long run-even if you do have to work for nothing for a couple of months. Picture Libraries such as Getty are also a good way to make contacts in the industry as you will speak to them everyday.

Normal day on a picture desk involves discussing ideas for shoots, setting up the shoot (selecting a good team of Photographer, make up artist, model, stylists etc that work well together and finding the right location/ studio), art directing on the shoot (making sure the Stylist, Photographers stick to the look and ideas which your magazine wants), Editing (selecting)

the final images.  We also use Picture Libraries to illustrate articles, e.g. finding an image of a couple on a romantic dinner etc. 

Its a fun industry to be in, its fast paced and varied and you don’t end up liking at your watch every 5 minutes!

I’m happy to be contacted via the Minerva Network Development Office, if anyone wants any advice.