Photography careers
The occupations listed below are a selection of those which may interest Photography students and graduates.
Photographer
Photographers create visual images of people, places, products and events to meet a client’s brief by dealing with different locations and circumstances, using a range of technical equipment and specialist software, as well as arranging props and backgrounds. Many photographers are self-employed, although some are employed.
Job profile of a photographer from the Prospects website
Job profile of a photographer from the National Careers Service website
How to become a freelance photographer
Commercial and Advertising Photographer
Commercial and advertising photographers produce images to help promote and sell products and services and maintain brand awareness for a variety of industries.
Job profile of commercial photographer from the Creative Skillset website
Information of commercial and advertising photography
Corporate Photographer
Corporate photographers produce visual images for corporate-based clients and companies, including marketing campaigns, headshots, portraits or group pictures for both inside and outside the office space.
Job profile of a corporate photographer from the Creative Skillset website
Editorial and Press Photographer
Editorial and press photographers take photographs for newspaper publications, magazines and the web.
Job profile of a press photographer from the Prospects website
Fashion Photographer
Fashion photographers work in both studios and on location taking photographs for magazines, websites and advertising campaigns.
Job profile of Fashion Photographer from the Creative Skillset website
Fashion and Photographic Stylist
Photographic stylists organise and arrange the props, set and garments used on a photoshoot while working to a brief.
Job profile of a photographic stylist from the National Careers Service website
Fine Art Photographer
Fine art photographers create and sell visual images of artistic merit to achieve a distinct style that galleries or companies would be interested in purchasing.
How to do fine art photography
Wedding Photographer
Wedding photographers work with couples to capture their wedding ceremony, reception and special moments of the day.
Job profile of a wedding photographer on Study.com website
Portraiture Photographer
Portrait photographers take photographs of individuals or groups, either in a studio or outside and are often involved in the editing process after the shoot.
Tips for a portraiture photographer
Medical/Clinical Photographer
Medical photographers use photography to record medical data (such as injuries, diseases and operations) to accompany reports and for educational purposes.
Job profile for medical photographers from the Creative Skillset website
Job profile for clinical photographers from the NHS website
Estate Agency Photographer
Estate agency photographers shoot images of houses and buildings to carefully suit a client’s marketing expectations.
Interview with a real estate photographer
Digital Imaging Specialist
Digital imaging specialists are involved in the colour (and overall) correction, retouching, scanning and manipulation of digital images sourced from film stock, original prints and digital photographs.
Job profile for digital imaging specialists from the Plan It Plus website
Job profile for digital imaging specialists from the Creative Skillset website
Picture Researcher
Picture researchers find suitable photographs for a wide range of employers and/or products through searching archives and conforming to copyright issues.
Job profile for picture researchers from Target Jobs website
Job profile for picture researchers from Creative Skillset website
Art and Photo Editor
Art and photo editors select, purchase, prepare and alter stock photos (or take photographs themselves) to improve the look of magazines and/or other publications.
Job profile for art editors from the National Careers Service website
Further Education Lecturer
Further education lecturers mainly teach subjects to students who are mainly 16 years of age or older, although some colleges now teach vocational courses to 14-19 year olds. Workplaces can include sixth forms, colleges and adult education centres.
Job profile of a further education teacher from the Prospects website
Higher Education Lecturer
Higher education lecturers primarily teach undergraduate and postgraduate university students who are 18-years old and above, but can also lecture in some specialist further education colleges.
Job profile of a higher education lecturer from the Prospects website
Please note that some of these careers may require further study.
For further information on these careers, see also:
- I Want To Work In
- Information on types of jobs from Prospects
- Information on career sectors from TARGETjobs
People in some photography roles may be self-employed.
Other careers
A Photography degree may be useful in the following career areas:
Commercial Art Gallery Manager
Commercial art gallery managers are responsible for running the gallery, assessing and negotiating which artworks should be selected and sold, promotional marketing, presenting exhibitions, and working with artists.
Job profile of commercial art gallery managers from the Prospects website
Brand Ambassador/Sales Promotion Executives
Recruitment consultants help employers to interview and shortlist candidates to fill new permanent and temporary vacancies.
Job profile for a recruitment consultant from the Prospects website
Job profile for a recruitment consultant from the National Careers Service website
Multimedia Specialist
Multimedia specialists use artistic and technical skills to create multimedia applications for clients.
Job profile for a multimedia specialist from the Prospects website
Community Arts Worker
Community arts workers work with a range of community groups and individuals by designing and adapting projects and workshops which can include art, music, acting and craft making.
Job profile of a community arts worker from the Prospects website
Advertising Art Director
Advertising art directors generate ideas and strategies for a variety of advertising campaigns, such as for the cinema, television, online marketing, press media and radio.
Job profile of an advertising art director from the Prospects website
Job profile of an advertising art director from the National Careers Service website
Marketing Assistant
Marketing assistants are responsible for supporting marketing managers in executing strategies aimed at maximising profits for a company, such as by working on marketing campaigns, carrying out market research and enacting administrative roles.
Job description for a marketing assistant from the Job is Job website
Web Editor
Web editors are responsible for planning, researching, writing, editing and checking the overall accuracy of the content, text, images, artwork, information and any other online material of a website.
Job profile of a web editor from the National Careers Service website
Job description for a web editor from the Creative Pool website
Photo Retail Sales Assistant
Photo retail sales assistants advise on and anticipate customer needs regarding imaging equipment and give demonstrations of cameras and photography products.
Job profile of a photo retail sales assistant from the Creative Skill Set website
Job profile of a sales assistant from the National Careers Service website
You may be interested in graduate roles outside of Photography. There are many employers who are looking for graduates with good degrees but that don’t have a preference for the subject studied. To explore different career options see:
Skills gained
As well as subject-specific knowledge and skills, a graduate in photography will typically have gained:
- problem solving skills that allow differing kinds of learning to be applied to shifting contexts or frameworks to develop analytical techniques that can be used in many types of employment
- team-working skills that allow the collaborative generation of ideas, proposals solutions and arguments
- decision-making skills for thinking in a divergent and independent way when observing, investigating or visualising ideas towards a material outcome, as well as handling ambiguous or uncertain situations through anticipation and adaptation to change, able to take personal responsibility in complex or unpredictable circumstances
- organisational skills to monitor and achieve a balance between intention, process and outcome
- commercial awareness skills that allow resourcefulness and entrepreneurial practice and self-promotion as an emerging photographer
- creative thinking skills in ideas development and imaginatively using materials, media technologies, methods and a variety of tools while observing good working practices
- research skills that allow independence during study or goal setting, as well as dealing with workloads and deadlines
- leadership skills in analysing information and experiences effectively, delegating roles and directing individuals and groups of people
- persuasion, influence and negotiating skills when effectively interacting and collaborating collectively with others, visual or oral articulating, or using spoken presentation to communicate ideas, information, writing or work to audiences from across a range of different situations
- research and critical thinking skills when sourcing, navigating, selecting, retrieving, evaluating, manipulating and managing information
- IT skills when selecting and employing information technologies
This is not an exhaustive list of skills - you will develop many skills from your course, extra-curricular activities and work experience. You can find out more about the skills employers look for and how you can develop them.
Find a job
The Careers and Employability Service provides information and advice on job searching to University of Kent students and recent graduates. This includes a vacancy database advertising a range of graduate jobs, sandwich placements and vacation work/internships and online resources. The websites listed below may also be useful when searching for a job and when looking for further information on this sector.
Useful Organisations
Job vacancies
- AOP job shop
- British Journal of Photography
- Photoassist
- Photography vacancies on Jobsite.com
- Photography vacancies on Indeed.com
More websites offering graduate jobs, internships and placement years
You may also find useful reviews and application/interview tips for specific organisations on the following websites:
Glassdoor
The Job Crowd
Further study
A wide variety of further study and postgraduate courses are available for photography and other related courses in the UK and internationally that develop employability skills, including clinical photography and photojournalism. Photography graduates currently in employment now stand at 81.1%, while 4.5% are in further study, and there is also the option for training and employment in fields such as advertising, design, film, editing, journalism and creative enterprise (source), or perhaps more specific fields such as medical photographer, gallery director/assistant and other freelance or employed roles in photography businesses.