Photographer: Career Information

A photographer uses images to tell a story or record an event. He or she photographs people, places, events and objects. Many photographers specialize in portrait, commercial or scientific photography or photojournalism.

There were 152,000 photographers employed in 2008 with over half of them self-employed.

While entry-level photojournalists and commercial and scientific photographers usually need a college degree in photography or a field related to the industry in which they want to work, entry-level freelance and portrait photographers need only technical proficiency.

To be a successful photographer one must be artistic and have good hand-eye coordination and good eyesight. Photographers who use digital cameras, as most do, need to know how to edit photographs using computer software applications. Freelance photographers need to know how to operate their own businesses.

With experience, photojournalists who work for magazines and newspapers may become photography editors.

As a career, photography will grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through 2018.

Photographers earned a median annual salary of $29,770 in 2009 (U.S.). Generally, salaried photographers earn more money than those who are self employed.

Use the Salary Wizard at Salary.com to find out how much a photographer currently earns in your city.

On a typical day a photographer's tasks might include:

• choosing a subject
• selecting the right cameras in order to achieve the type of image he or she wants
• choosing photographic enhancing equipment such as lenses, fiters and lighting
• editing images using computer software

On a typical day:

a commercial photographer will take pictures that are used in books, advertisements and catalogs.

a scientific photographer will use his or her knowledge of scientific procedures to take pictures of scientific or medical data.

a photojournalist will capture images of newsworthy people and events. These images are usually used to illustrate stories on television or in newspapers or magazines, but sometimes they tell the entire story on their own.

a portrait photographer will take pictures of people, either individually or in groups, in studios or at events such as weddings or religious ceremonies. Some take school portraits.

Sources:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Photographer, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos264.htm (visited May 17, 2011).
Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, O*NET Online, Photographer, on the Internet at http://www.onetonline.org/link/details/27-4021.00 (visited May 17, 2011).