Lens Studio is an application designed for artists and developers to build augmented reality (AR) experiences to share with other Snapchatters around the world. Lens Studio has grown in its capabilities exponentially over the past few years but in this article we are going to focus on the career opportunities for today and (even more) for tomorrow.
Careers
Technology is ever changing which makes it both a fun and challenging field to dive into. The world of AR/VR/XR is still in early stages which, for me personally, makes it even more exciting to explore. We’ve all heard the phrase that the “the future favors the bold” but my own version of that idea is that “stagnant water is often the stinkiest”. Oxygenated (healthy) water requires movement and the same is true for us in our careers. We need new challenges, new curiosities for opportunities of growth and exploration.
The career opportunities in this field can range from freelance work with smaller companies to roles with large corporations looking to bring more engagement, accessibility, and training opportunities to their offerings.
The roles that exist in this field include artificial intelligence, game development, digital marketing, 3D design, programming, analysts, and other technical artistry (a hybrid of creative and technical developers). In addition, there are non-technical roles such as researchers, project managers, marketing managers, and more.
We’re going to spend some time reviewing five different roles and data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) which states 5% growth in a field is average.
- Project Managers
- Market Researchers
- Graphic Designers
- Special Effects Artists
- Advertising Managers
1. Project Managers Specialists
| Median Pay (2021) | $94,500/year |
| Job Growth Rate (2021 – 2031) | 7% (higher than average) |
Project Managers are a non-tech role that can benefit from experience and skills related to XR development. Project managers are responsible for defining the goals and ensure that the scope is clearly defined with the client. Project managers are also responsible for ensuring that the right person is assigned to the right role on the team. This requires an understanding of some technical skills and the ability to discuss requirements, abilities, and dependencies to appropriately assign and plan from inception, progression, and completion.
2. Market Researchers Analysts
| Median Pay (2021) | $63,920/year |
| Job Growth Rate (2021 – 2031) | 19% (much higher than average) |
Market researchers are another example of a non-tech role that gathers data and studies other informational resources to help companies make decisions based on market needs. This information can be collected from a variety of methods and identifying the different types of technologies used can help researchers understand how to best reach the target market.
3. Graphic Designers
| Median Pay (2021) | $63,920/year |
| Job Growth Rate (2021 – 2031) | 3% (lower than average) |
Graphic designers combine art and technology to create designs to inspire, entice, and excite their target audience. Graphic designers can work with text and images. Traditionally graphic designers have worked with websites and other types of media layouts. While the statistics of job growth rate appear to be slower than others, the growth of XR technologies to design and build a more immersive experience can change that curve or transition to new role – like a Special Effects Artist.
5. Special Effects Artists
| Median Pay (2021) | $78,790/year |
| Job Growth Rate (2021 – 2031) | 5% (as fast as average) |
Special effects artists and animators often work in a specialized industry or medium. This can include animated movies, television, visual effects, video games, and as the XR industry grows and develops into that field as well. These artists can design these assets and import them into the chosen platform (Lens Studio, Unity, etc.).
Artists can find roles as freelance and share designs in a marketplace for purchase or they can find roles in for companies who use animation in their products and services. Artists can work with a variety of platforms and softwares. Fortunately, in my experience, the learning curve for new platforms is not as steep when you have gained experience in one platform. Lens Studio is a great platform to help get started.
6. Advertising Managers
| Median Pay (2021) | $133,380/year |
| Job Growth Rate (2021 – 2031) | 10% (faster than average) |
Advertising managers are responsible to help create interest in a target audience. These individuals can work with advertising agencies, media firms or for the marketing team in a variety of other organizations. Advertising managers work with a variety of other individuals to create ideas and campaign strategies. Understanding the technologies used and how they are implemented and shared can help streamline communication and create a better campaign strategy.
Snapchat has amazing support in its developer/creator community that allows creativity to flow in a new medium with followers around the world. Learn how Snapchat is making storytelling better from Snap Partner Summit 2023
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What Skills Do You Need To Get Started with Lens Studio?
There is a learning curve when you learn anything new so before I list some the hard skills (i.e. the technical skills) I want to place emphasis on the soft skills. Soft skills are the character traits and professional attitudes that all jobs require. In my experience, soft skills are sometimes the “power skills” that help us all get past the hard because learning new skills is hard. Learning new skills on a new platform can be even harder. Luckily, Lens Studio has fantastic templates to help you get started with learning the platform and gain a level of comfort in that before you begin to challenge yourself with editing the template.
The soft skills you are going to need (or learn to have) are the following:
- Problem solving
- Patience
- Adaptability
- Patience
- Self-learning
- Patience
Notice that patience is repeated? That’s because patience needs to be repeated. It’s important to remember that single steps can lead to miles gained. What I find interesting is that those miles actually appear to you as hard skills. Those hard skills gained with using Lens Studio include JavaScript, understanding how to use resources, create and import the assets, using third party platforms like Blender, customizing scripts, reading documentation, and understanding marketing and user engagement by reviewing the analytics.
If you happen to be in the Columbus, Ohio area on May 5th, I invite you to come see me at Stir Trek presenting “Snapchat Lens Developers for the Win!“. If you can’t make it, I host Computer Science workshops that will help you and your classroom get started. Text me at 740-645-0509 to discuss!
Checkout my Stir Trek inspired Snapchat filter at https://www.snapchat.com/unlock/?type=SNAPCODE&uuid=8fc097017c7e44bf8787a64035728edf&metadata=01
Tasha Penwell is a digital marketing specialist and educator. She provides services in web development, social media marketing, customized Snapchat filters, and content writing.
She lives in Ohio with her husband and enjoys photography, exploring new technologies and is an active presenter for conferences and workshops.