Photography Lead

UPLIFT Desk•Austin, TX

5d•Onsite

About The Position

UPLIFT Desk is seeking a Photography Lead to maintain photography quality standards, participate in photography and editing, and provide technical support during photo shoots. This senior role calls for creative vision and technical expertise to uphold the brand’s visual standards and develop consistent workflows. The Photography Lead works closely with the creative team, can step into other photography roles as needed, and reports directly to the Brand Marketing Manager. Applicants must submit a portfolio to be considered. The role owns photography standards and the end-to-end editing pipeline, coordinates feedback and workflow across stakeholders, supports studio shoots, and serves as the backup photographer when needed. It also partners with ecommerce merchandising to ensure product listings have complete, accurate, on-spec images and delivers assets in the formats and specifications required for each platform.

Requirements

At least 6 years of professional photography experience, with a strong emphasis on post-production, including retouching, color grading, and editing workflow management.
A strong portfolio demonstrating high-end retouching, color grading, and post-production work on product and lifestyle photography.
Expert proficiency in Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom.
Demonstrated ability to set and uphold a premium visual standard across a high-volume content team.
Solid understanding of studio lighting and sufficient on-camera experience to provide technical support to the photographer and independently run a studio shoot when needed.

Nice To Haves

Experience at a DTC or ecommerce brand with high-volume content production.
Background in furniture, home goods, or premium consumer product photography.
Experience building a photography style guide or retouching SOPs.
Familiarity with ecommerce PDP image specifications, web assets, and print delivery requirements.
Experience working alongside a dedicated production coordinator or ecommerce merchandising team.

Responsibilities

Maintain and document UPLIFT Desk’s photography style guide, including lighting approach, color palette, composition standards, and aesthetic direction for all shoot types.
Review and approve final photography assets for quality, consistency, and adherence to brand standards before delivery to downstream teams.
Own the end-to-end photo editing pipeline, from raw file ingestion through final approved delivery, and regularly co-edit with the creative team.
Write photography briefs for each shoot, including shot lists, products, sets, and talent, using AI tools to speed up drafting and reference gathering.
Serve as the main point of contact for photo feedback from merchandising, content, paid media, and other stakeholders; consolidate requests, set priorities, and route work to the appropriate team members.
Organize the photo workflow, including asset-library file naming and folder structure, editing-queue priorities, and keeping shot lists and pre-production briefs accessible and current.
Provide hands-on lighting support during studio shoots and monitor tethered images in real time to identify exposure, color, or consistency issues before post-production.
Act as the primary backup photographer when the photographer is unavailable, independently directing and executing studio shoots to maintain production continuity.
Partner with ecommerce merchandising to ensure product listings have accurate, complete, on-spec photography ahead of launches and catalog updates, and verify images are live in the correct PDP slots and channels.
Optimize and deliver final assets for web, mobile, and print in the required file formats, dimensions, and naming conventions for BigCommerce and the CMS.

Benefits

Merit-based environment that rewards growth and accomplishment regardless of seniority.
Generous paid time off.
4% 401(k) company match with instant vesting after one year.
Group health insurance available to employees and dependents, including domestic partners, with medical, dental, and vision plans.
Flexible spending account for health care and child care costs.
Company-paid and supplementary life insurance.
Long-term and short-term disability insurance.
Free UPLIFT Desk after one year.
50% discount on UPLIFT products.
Free snacks and drinks.
On-the-job training and skills development.
Supportive and engaging work culture that promotes healthy living.