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Photographers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Photograph people, landscapes, merchandise, or other subjects. May use lighting equipment to enhance a subject's appearance. May use editing software to produce finished images and prints. Includes commercial and industrial photographers, scientific photographers, and photojournalists.

Related: Art Directors Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, & Illustrators Graphic Designers Photographic Process Workers & Processing Machine Operators Special Effects Artists & Animators

Industries: Professional, Science, & Technical

Summary
Details

Employ a variety of specialized photographic materials and techniques, including infrared and ultraviolet films, macro photography, photogrammetry and sensitometry.
Select and assemble equipment and required background properties, according to subjects, materials, and conditions.
Write photograph captions.
Transfer photographs to computers for editing, archiving, and electronic transmission.
Send film to photofinishing laboratories for processing.
Load and unload film.
Engage in research to develop new photographic procedures and materials.
Test equipment prior to use to ensure that it is in good working order.
License the use of photographs through stock photo agencies.
Send film to photofinishing laboratories for processing.
Estimate or measure light levels, distances, and numbers of exposures needed, using measuring devices and formulas.
Create artificial light, using flashes and reflectors.
Develop and print exposed film, using chemicals, touch-up tools, and developing and printing equipment.
Perform maintenance tasks necessary to keep equipment working properly.
Set up photographic exhibitions for the purpose of displaying and selling work.
Use traditional or digital cameras, along with a variety of equipment, such as tripods, filters, and flash attachments.
Perform general office duties, such as scheduling appointments, keeping books, and ordering supplies.
Enhance, retouch, and resize photographs and negatives, using airbrushing and other techniques.
Produce computer-readable, digital images from film, using flatbed scanners and photofinishing laboratories.
Develop and print exposed film, using chemicals, touch-up tools, and developing and printing equipment.
Develop visual aids and charts for use in lectures or to present evidence in court.
Determine desired images and picture composition, selecting and adjusting subjects, equipment, and lighting to achieve desired effects.
Take pictures of individuals, families, and small groups, either in studio or on location.
Set up, mount, or install photographic equipment and cameras.
Perform general office duties, such as scheduling appointments, keeping books, and ordering supplies.
Select and assemble equipment and required background properties, according to subjects, materials, and conditions.
Mount, frame, laminate, or lacquer finished photographs.
Manipulate and enhance scanned or digital images to create desired effects, using computers and specialized software.
Review sets of photographs to select the best work.
Adjust apertures, shutter speeds, and camera focus according to a combination of factors, such as lighting, field depth, subject motion, film type, and film speed.
Determine project goals, locations, and equipment needs by studying assignments and consulting with clients or advertising staff.
Direct activities of workers setting up photographic equipment.

Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.

Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

44580/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

21.44/hr

Currently Employed

3,770

Yearly Projected Openings

340

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Innovation
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Adaptability
Initiative
Perseverance

Atmospheric effect apparatus
Bubble machine
Camera controllers
Camera enclosures or covers
Camera flashes or lighting
Camera lens
Camera lens cleaners
Camera lens filter
Camera tripods
Compact disc CD or labeling printers
Contact printer
Digital cameras
Digital image printers
Digital pen
Dimmers and accessories
Dye sublimination printers
Electronic viewfinder
Film driers
Film washers
Flash memory storage card
Global positioning system GPS receiver
Graphics tablets
Handheld thermometer
Inkjet printers
Label making machines
Laser printers
Loupes
Lux or light meter
Multimedia projectors
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Photo print dryer
Photo print washer
Photographic enlargers
Photographic timer
Photography light reflector
Scanners
Still cameras
Tablet computers
Wireless network interface cards

Accounting software
Calendar and scheduling software
Cloud-based data access and sharing software
Data base user interface and query software
Desktop publishing software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Graphics or photo imaging software
Instant messaging software
Internet browser software
Operating system software
Spreadsheet software
Video creation and editing software
Web page creation and editing software
Word processing software

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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