Company: WWF International – Singapore Title: Coordinator WWF Photo & Video Database
Job Description:

I. Mission of the Department:
Ensure the success of WWF’s global conservation goals by communicating the organisation’s work, profile and values to the widest possible range of media and audiences by creating and leveraging its photo and video databases.

II. Major Functions:
Responsible for the day-to-day digitization and online Quality Control of the digital imagery on Global Photo Network (GPN) and Global Video Network (GVN), WWF’s online photo/video search and download service on the intranet, thereby ensuring consistency and compliance to WWF’s Global Standards.

Also for providing support and help desk for the WWF Network with regard to digital image management on the GPN/GVN as well as to Quality Control and workflow implementation in the local offices.

III. Major Duties and Responsibilities:
• Responsible for the ongoing digitization process (scanning/conversions, captioning and key wording of photos and videos);
• Assists in monitoring the quality of the information in the Databases and ensures that it is kept complete, up to date, and accurate;
• Assists in the dissemination of information about the status of the databases, modifications, tips, incentives to update images description etc. throughout the WWF Network;
• In conjunction with the Manager, develops and implements a Quality Control (QC) strategy for the GPN/GVN, in co-ordination with the GPN/GVN Manager, the Managing Photo and Video Editors, and the Information Management Specialist;
• Ensures that the minimum quality standards (visual, technical, legal, metadata) are kept up-to-date with regard to technical industry standards, legal requirements, and WWF’s visual brand identity;
• Monitors user feedback and provides support for local GPN/GVN administrators in WWF Network offices, including a Help Desk;
• Provides and maintains user guidelines and manuals for GPN/GVN related activities as well as “best practices” information in electronic form on WWF’s intranet;
• Assists local GPN/GVN administrators in the development and implementation of an appropriate digital image management workflow and of an internal QC process;
• Assists in the development and maintenance of WWF’s Global Classification System with regard to GPN/GVN needs;
• Compiles, analyses and publishes statistical data about the GPN/GVN use on a regular basis.
• Responsible for implementing rights and metadata standards for WWF’s Photo & Video content in the Global Photo + Video Network platforms.
• Respond to internal and external rights requests for usage of WWF photo and video content according to WWF rights standards in a timely fashion.
• Assist the Manager, Global Images Network in handling other general requests and correspondence with contributing photographers and videographers.
• Maintain and update resources on the WWF Global Photo and Video Network online Collaboration spaces.• Assist the team in sharing resources and best practice for photo and video around the WWF Network of offices. And assist the team in frontline support for photo and video.
• File management and gate-keeping of the photographer contracts.

IV. Profile:
Required Qualifications

• Certified professional training or equivalent working experience of at least 2-3 years in one or more of the following fields: digital photo processing or desktop publishing; digital colour printing; photo/video library or photo agency (with online experience); photo/video editing or picture research;
• Hands on experience in digital content processing and management;
• In-depth experience in digital imagery and on-screen photo evaluation;
• Experience in quality control processes;
• In depth experience in copyright clearances.
• Minimum 3 years working in a commercial picture/video licensing agency – in particular with rights clearance and metadata/image classification experience.
• Experience with online search tools and/or structured keyword systems desirable;
• Experience in nature conservation and/or environment protection desirable;

Required Skills and Competencies

• Excellent visual/photographic eye;
• Excellent computer skills and in-depth knowledge of relevant computer software and hardware, especially Adobe Photoshop and MS Office;
• Analytic and structured mindset, thorough yet pragmatic, organized with the ability to work in an independent manner; fast and ‘stress-proof’;
• Ability to manage data and information via web-based services;
• Ability to prepare and analyse statistical data and to present results concise and comprehensively;
• Superior communication and service-oriented interpersonal skills, especially with regard to providing support and training to multi-cultural Network staff;
• Excellent team player;
• Adept at using online resources for ongoing-education and technical support;
• Excellent written and oral communication in English, other languages an asset;
• Adheres to WWF’s values, which are: Knowledgeable, Optimistic, Determined, and Engaging.

V. Working Relationships:
Internal – GPN/GVN Manager, Managing Photo and Video Editors, WWF International’s Editorial team, local GPN/GVN Administrators at Network offices, WWF Network staff.

External – If needed, photographers and other external content providers.

This job description covers the main tasks and conveys the spirit of the sort of tasks that are anticipated pro-actively from staff.

Other tasks may be assigned as necessary according to organizational needs.

PLEASE NOTE: Candidates must be eligible to live and work in Singapore

Interested applicants should submit a CV, cover letter and their expected salary to hr@wwf.sg

Some great expansion work going on here from the busy team at Pond5! … Pond5 Inc have acquired Pixmac a stock imagery network based in the Czech Republic.
Over 6,000 Pixmac photographers and illustrators are expected to join Pond5, bringing with them millions of images which will be available via the Pond5 website. Pixmac artists will get a substantial raise to match their Pond5 counterparts, and will earn 50% royalties on all sales.

2013 Oscar nominee | Documentary Feature | ’5 BROKEN CAMERAS’ Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi

‘As Israeli settlers begin building homes and erecting a barrier wall in the West Bank village of Bil’in, a Palestinian farm worker documents the town’s resistance to the new settlement. Over the course of several years, the townspeople clash with the Israeli Defense Force, and tensions mount as the wall remains and the building continues.’
2013 Oscar Nominees

Straight out of the box – Rick Gershon, Director of Photography at MediaStorm, was given the Canon C300 the day before he left for a shoot, a basic set up – without any heavy instruction manual reading – resulted in a smooth day’s shooting.

They say: MediaStorm’s Director of Photography, Rick Gershon, brought the C300 to Angola to shoot their documentary “Surviving the Peace,” which follows the progress of the Mines Advisory Group as they clear unexploded ordnance.
‘This is a practical review taken from my experience using the Canon C300 in the field on an actual project. This is not a technical review. I will not be discussing the in-depth minutia of the technical aspects of this camera. Rather I will be giving real world examples of both the positive and negative aspects of the camera that I experienced while using it in a documentary setting, in very difficult conditions on a very important film.’ ….
Read Rick’s full report here: MediaStorm blog

FOCAL reports: Stanley Forman, Honorary Member of FOCAL International, internationally known documentary film distributor and producer and founder of the ETV Library, died last night (February 7th) at Harrogate Hospital, Yorkshire.
For many years Stanley’s company, ETV Films Ltd., was one of the best sources for archive film about the British labour movement and the ‘socialist’ countries of eastern Europe. Those who knew him, despite any political differences, admired him and were grateful for his help and knowledge.
Full details and tributes here

Frankfurt, Germany based photo agency Picture Alliance are now exclusively licensing Associated Press photos in Germany and Austria through a brand new dedicated portal available to their registered picture buyers. The new portal called ‘AP Images’ and enables picture buyers access to 4 million AP breaking news, entertainment, sports and historical photos. The deal is part of the agreement between AP’s commercial photo unit, AP Images, and the German Press Agency dpa – owner of Picture Alliance.
They say:
“We are very pleased to distribute this outstanding partner exclusively in Germany and Austria,” said Edith Stier-Thompson, managing director of picture alliance. “AP Images’ high-quality and exceptional photos perfectly complement our contemporary and historical images. Along with the dpa-archive we are able to offer a unique selection of historical content.”
“We’re delighted to be working with dpa’s picture alliance to expand our reach in an important region of the world,” said Fernando Ferre, vice president of AP Images. “We are also very proud to represent dpa’s outstanding collection outside of Germany and Austria. This partnership furthers our mission of being a one-stop shop for all imagery needs to our clients and is among many recent efforts to expand our offerings, one of the largest collections held by a news organization in the world.”

Media makers marketplace Pond5 have released version “v2” of their website.
They say - ‘The site offers a dramatically improved experience for both customers and contributors, giving filmmakers, photographers, musicians, 3D artists, and all kinds of media makers a place to connect with fellow artists, sell their stock media, and purchase high-quality content for their productions.’
New features implemented on the site include:
• Larger, higher quality thumbnails and previews. The media is front and center, loading quickly and in high resolution. Video and audio plays back directly from search results, and watermarked previews are freely downloadable for use in mockups, rough cuts, and testing.
• Advanced Search. Media makers can quickly find what they’re looking for with granular filters for media type, resolution, duration, price, aspect ratio, etc.
• Infinite Scroll. Instead of flipping page-by-page through search results and waiting for pageloads, users are now presented with a continuously loading page of content, making the search process fast and seamless – an industry first.
• Collections. Media makers can now collect, organize and share their favorite media easily and quickly using the new Collections feature.
• Drag and Drop. In another first, users can now add content to their carts or collections using an intuitive drag and drop interface.
• Customized Artist Profiles. Contributors on Pond5 can promote their portfolios and build their brand more effectively with the ability to visually customize their artist pages.
“We’re focused on creating the fastest, most artist-friendly platform for media makers around the world to exchange creative elements, connect with other creators, and get inspired,” says Tom Bennett, co-founder and CEO. “These latest features are a big step in that direction.”
Search and license at Pond5 here

Twitter have acquired mobile phone video specialist software company Vine. Vine enables users to share short looping videos across Twitter and Facebook accounts, the iPhone App is free and available now.
They say ‘Vine: a mobile service that lets you capture and share short looping videos. Like Tweets, the brevity of videos on Vine (6 seconds or less) inspires creativity. Now that you can easily capture motion and sound, we look forward to seeing what you create. Posts on Vine are about abbreviation — the shortened form of something larger. They’re little windows into the people, settings, ideas and objects that make up your life. They’re quirky, and we think that’s part of what makes them so special.
Here’s the free Vine App

Notes:
• You don’t need a Twitter account to use Vine (but signing up is a little quicker if you do!)
• After installing Vine on your device, you can sign up using an email address or sign in with your Twitter account.

The Huffington Post UK photo team tweeted a Vine loop reaction to Andy Murry’s tennis win here

Job Summary: Zodiak Clips is a new business within Zodiak Rights which will supply short form content into different markets. This new position will be primarily responsible for maximising business by researching through the Zodiak Clips archive.
The role will involve both researching through material currently held on the Zodiak Clips website as well as material offline.
Term: Contract Initially 6 months

Reporting to: Sales Manager Zodiak Clips

Skills & Experience
• Strong Research Experience
• Good Understanding of the archive business

Key responsibilities and duties
• Search content using internal database and external websites zodaikclips.com & Zodiakrights.com in order to fulfil client’s specific requests.
• Collaborate with Sales to ensure that the entire scope of the clients project is understood so that maximise sales revenue is achieved.
• Follow up with both Client & Sales to ensure that the content selection meets or exceeds expectations.
• Communicate & co-ordinate with clients on how to search for content on both Zodiak Clips & Zodiak Rights websites
• A good understanding of the various video collections that Zodiak Clips represents in order to recommend relevant clips to both Clients & Sales
• Provide overall outstanding customer service through constant client interaction
• Create reports on content trends & needs which results in acquisitions of new content or uploading new material to the website
• Give internal feedback to improve our online search experience
In addition to the above you may be required to perform other duties that fall outside your job title or key duties.

Key Competencies
• An ability to think and interpret Clients visual requirements
• An ability to think conceptually & creatively delivering results against clients briefs
• An attention to detail
• Excellent time management skills
• The ability to manage your own workload
• Strong verbal & written communication skills
• A team player
Please send Covering letters & CV’s to recruitment@zodiakmedia.com

The Associated Press has signed the Daily Mail in the UK as its latest customer for AP Video Hub, the ‘state-of-the-art’ video delivery platform for digital publishers.
The platform launched in April, offers global news, entertainment, SNTV (sports) and lifestyle video to customers. Site curators select and promote breaking news content alongside key footage from AP’s extensive video archive. And now offers customers a 24/7 live news stream so that breaking news events such as the U.S. elections and Hurricane Sandy are available for AP Video Hub customers to broadcast live on their websites.
Other customers signed to the site include the UK’s Daily Telegraph and The Wall Street Journal.