What the work involves, what it pays, and grounded tasks, skills, tools, and experience you can choose from.
Also called advertising photographer, aerial photographer, automotive photographer and biological photographer.
$44,660
Median pay a year
51,760
People do this work
6
Resume lines ready for you
Real figures for this work, and lines you can use in your own resume. Where they come from is at the foot of this page.
An example
A Photographer resume, filled in
Common skills that can help you remember what you used on the job.
Setting up cameras
Determining technical requirements
Selecting materials or props
Operating still or video cameras
Converting data between formats
Reviewing art materials
Obtaining copyrights and permissions
Researching new technologies
Creating computer graphics or animation
Constructing physical objects
Applying finishes
Preparing film for distribution
Every line comes from the same public record as the rest of this page. The greyed parts are the ones only you can answer.
Photographer
Summary
Photographer capturing individuals, landscapes, and merchandise using traditional and digital cameras, lighting equipment, and editing software to produce high-quality images for various projects
Experience
Photographer
Where you worked
Month Year to Month Year
Adjusted apertures, shutter speeds, and camera focus based on lighting, subject motion, and film type
Took pictures of individuals, families, and small groups in studio or on location
Transferred photographs to computers for editing, archiving, and electronic transmission
Used traditional and digital cameras, along with tripods, filters, and flash attachments
Enhanced, retouched, and resized photographs and negatives using airbrushing techniques
Set up, mounted, or installed photographic equipment and cameras for various projects
Reviewed sets of photographs to select the best work for client presentations
Skills
Hands-On Work
Setting up cameras, Operating still or video cameras
Checking & Planning
Determining technical requirements, Selecting materials or props, Creating computer graphics or animation
Core Skills
Reviewing art materials, Obtaining copyrights and permissions, Researching new technologies, Constructing physical objects, Converting data between formats
Yours will not say this. You choose what matches your experience, and every line remains yours to confirm or change.
Nothing to write from scratch
What to put on a Photographer resume
Real duties for this job, already written the way a resume reads. Inside Rung you choose the ones that were yours.
What did you do each day?
Choose what fits, or say your own.
Adjusted apertures and shutter speedsCreated artificial light using flashesDetermined desired images and compositionTransferred photographs to computers for editingManipulated and enhanced digital imagesTook pictures of individuals and groups
becomes
On your resume
Adjusted apertures and shutter speeds to capture high-quality images under various lighting conditions
Determined desired images and composition, selecting and adjusting subjects and equipment for optimal results
These are written the way a resume line reads. Rung asks which ones are actually yours, keeps your own words, and never claims work you did not do.
Then it asks for one more thing
The line that could show more, and the fact that lands it.
Make it stronger
A few lines could show more. Each one is asked, and answered by choosing.
Show how the images improved with your adjustments
The line
Adjusted apertures and shutter speeds to capture high-quality images that had better clarity and color balance
Show how the images improved with your adjustments
Pick one that fits
Images had better clarity and color balancePhotos were more vibrant and engagingCaptured details that were previously missed
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Mention what improved in the final images because of your choices
The line
Determined desired images and composition, selecting and adjusting subjects and equipment for optimal results
Mention what improved in the final images because of your choices
Pick one that fits
Final images were more visually appealingCompositions led to higher client satisfactionAchieved a more professional look overall
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Every ready answer is in plain words, never a figure. Nothing is invented to fill a gap.
The work itself
What a Photographer does
The public record of what this job is, in one paragraph.
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.
What it pays
How much does a Photographer make?
Annual pay across the United States. The middle figure is the median: half earn less than that, and half earn more.
25th percentile
$36,050
Median
$44,660
75th percentile
$62,740
About 51,760 people do this work in the United States.
Below are the tasks a Photographer job is made of. Choose the ones you have really done. There is no wrong answer here, and you can change any of it later.
Which of these tasks have you actually done?
4 chosen. Rung never adds a task you did not choose.
Photographer
Already yours: Setting up cameras, Determining technical requirements, Operating still or video cameras
4 of the 12 tasks this job is made of
Median pay
$44,660 a year
What you have not done yet. Selecting materials or props, Converting data between formats, Researching new technologies
This page is about the occupation Photographers. What this job involves and what it is made of come from O*NET 30.3, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, refreshed July 2026; Rung writes those records into the plain sentences you see. Pay comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release for 2025. How Rung handles accuracy is on the accuracy page, and the full data credits are on the credits page.