Photographers Career, Salary and Skills
Photographers have a BLS-reported national median annual wage of $44,660 based on the 2025 OEWS dataset, with reported national employment of 51,760. Wage data is published for 225 locations.
Occupation description
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.
O*NET code
27-4021.00
Job zone
3
Typical education
Some College Courses
Experience
Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years
National salary and employment
Median annual
$44,660
Hourly median
$21.47
Employment
51,760
Data year
2025
National salary distribution
Top skills
| Skill | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Speaking | 3.75 | 3.25 |
| Active Listening | 3.75 | 3.62 |
| Service Orientation | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Monitoring | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Active Learning | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.12 | 3.00 |
Typical tasks
- Write photograph captions.
- Set up photographic exhibitions for the purpose of displaying and selling 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.
- Create artificial light, using flashes and reflectors.
- Determine desired images and picture composition, selecting and adjusting subjects, equipment, and lighting to achieve desired effects.
- Transfer photographs to computers for editing, archiving, and electronic transmission.
- Use traditional or digital cameras, along with a variety of equipment, such as tripods, filters, and flash attachments.
- Load and unload film.
Technology
- Adobe Acrobat
- Adobe After Effects
- Adobe Creative Cloud software
- Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe InDesign
- Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Photoshop Lightroom
- Apple Final Cut Pro
- Apple macOS
- Blinkbid
- Cradoc fotoBiz
- Email software
- Genbook
Photographers salary by location
Areas with the highest reported employment for this occupation.
- Photographers Salary in CAMedian $47,840 · Employment 7,980
- Photographers Salary in FLMedian $42,640 · Employment 4,390
- Photographers Salary in TXMedian $41,280 · Employment 4,330
- Photographers Salary in Los Angeles, CAMedian $47,840 · Employment 4,290
- Photographers Salary in NYMedian $60,050 · Employment 3,650
- Photographers Salary in New York, NYMedian $60,050 · Employment 3,590
- Photographers Salary in ILMedian $36,570 · Employment 2,150
- Photographers Salary in NCMedian $37,120 · Employment 2,130
- Photographers Salary in PAMedian $40,520 · Employment 1,870
- Photographers Salary in Chicago, ILMedian $36,810 · Employment 1,590
- Photographers Salary in VAMedian $46,550 · Employment 1,580
- Photographers Salary in OHMedian $38,470 · Employment 1,540
Related careers
- Etchers and EngraversNational median $43,310
- Floral DesignersNational median $37,360
- Desktop PublishersNational median $55,290
- Motion Picture ProjectionistsNational median $38,270
- Technical WritersNational median $90,390
- Merchandise Displayers and Window TrimmersNational median $39,390
- Sound Engineering TechniciansNational median $73,130
- Makeup Artists, Theatrical and PerformanceNational median $97,150
Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0 (onetcenter.org). Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, 2025 (bls.gov/oes). Figures are published survey estimates, not real-time market data.