Photographer Resume: The Complete 2023 Guide with 20+ Samples

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To find success as a photographer, capturing aesthetic photos is not enough.

You need a highly efficient and radical resume for photographers first!

Taking photos is an art. You enjoy it. You love it. You live for it.

But inspiration dies when a career doesn't follow. And for all we know, a shabby photography resume is at fault!

To land your dream job as a photographer for top agencies, you need to compose a stellar photographer resume. Your resume is the first thing that will help you stand out and distinguish yourself.

By the end of this blog, you will be able to write a job-winning photographers resume, and you will learn:

• How to write professional experience for photography resume?
• How would you describe photography skills?
• Importance of a photogrpahy job description
• What should I put on my photography resume?
• How to write a summary for photographers resume?
• How to highlight certifications in a resume for photographers?

Photographer Job Description

Here is a typical job description for a photographer:

• Understand clients’ requirements and work closely with photography team to design photography sets
• Captured photographs until clients’ are satisfied
• Direct models for poses to maximize the impact
• Arrange set pieces, lighting, backgrounds to meet certain standards
• Manage photography inventory and store camera lenses carefully
• Edit photographs to achieve desired effects and maintain client database

Qualification of a Photographer:

• 2+ years of experience as a photographer
• Working portfolio of product photography
• Bachelor’s degree in photography
• Hands-on experience in photoshop, Capture One, etc.
• Excellent Communication Skills

A photographer is an artist who uses the camera to capture pictures of people, places, products, landscapes, anything, and everything under the sun.

There are roughly eight types of photography that you can specialize in. We have listed them below:

• Fashion photography
• Product photography
• Nature photography
• Wildlife photography
• Bridal photography
• Food photography
• Sports photography
• News photography

The life of a photographer is riddled with visual imagery of new places, people, and things. The point is, it never gets too dull.

If photography is more than just a passing passion and you want to make a full-time career out of it, you should throw caution to the wind and go for it!

The only challenge here is to land the photographer's job first!

Photographer Salary

According to the information on various websites, a photographer makes an average salary of:

• Glassdoor: $24.2k - 53.3k per year
• Salary.com: $39.2k - 80.6k per year
• Ziprecrutier: $21k - 77.5k per year

Photographer Resume Sections

When it comes to writing a killer resume that reeks of professionalism, you should not leave the critical sections out.

Here's a list of the resume sections that you are expected to compose while drafting your photography resume:

• Header
• Personal Information
• Profile Title
• Summary/Objective
• Key Skills
• Professional Experience
• Education
• Certifications (if any)
• Additional Information (if any)

Also read: How to divide the resume into sections?

How to Write Your Photographer Resume: Professional Experience

It is only after thoughtful evaluation of this section that a recruiter makes a judgment call on if you are a good fit for their organization.

Moreover, the professional experience section of your resume for photographers need to meet the twin goals that we have mentioned below:

• It should be readable
• It should make an impact

You can accomplish these goals using the following tricks:

• Frame points
• Use Grouping & highlighting
• Use the STAR format

Also read: Crafting a job-winning professional experience section.

Photographer Resume: Framing Points

As a general rule, you should always use bullet points to compose this section as opposed to using paragraphs.

If you use paragraphs instead of bullet points to communicate your roles & responsibilities, it is high time to stop.

Given below are two examples. We want you to observe them closely:

Example 1:

"I was a senior photographer with People's Institute: a leading institute for photographers in New York. As part of my roles & responsibilities, I covered over 50 events in one year for major clients - a task that only highly experienced and competent photographers are assigned. I was also part of brand building & promotion building - which I accomplished by creating over 100 images and videos and over ten corporate movies. Othe responsibilities include leading and managing a team to ensure timely deliverables of high-quality content for our websites, blogs, and social media".

Example 2:

• Edited 100+ images & videos for social media engagement
• Conducted 50+ photoshoots on white background for 10+ brands in 6 months
• Created ~10 corporate movies & videos monthly, leading to 98% promotions success
• Covered 50+ events for priority clients leading to 100% customer satisfaction
• Led a team of 10 photographers to produce high-quality content for websites, blogs, and social media

Framing Points: Analysis

The key takeaways of the above examples are listed below:

• Most of you have probably not read example 1 in its entirety.
• Example 1 uses paragraphs, and example 2 uses one-liner points to communicate the same things.
• Example 1 is bulky and long. It is hard to read and harder to comprehend.
• Example 2 is composed using crisp one-liner points. This makes your resume easy to read and easier to comprehend. It is a better way of composing resumes vis-a-vis paragraphs.
• As a result, you should use one-liner points to compose this section of your photography resume.

Photographer Resume: Grouping & HIghlighting

Example 1:

• Edited 100+ images & videos for social media engagement
• Conducted 50+ photoshoots on white background for 10+ brands in 6 months
• Created ~10 corporate movies & videos monthly, leading to 98% promotions success
• Covered 50+ events for priority clients leading to 100% customer satisfaction
• Led a team of 10 photographers to produce high-quality content for websites, blogs, and social media

Example 2:

Photography & Videography

• Edited 100+ images & videos for social media engagement
• Conducted 50+ photo shoots on white background for 10+ brands in 6 months
• Created ~10 corporate movies & videos monthly leading to 98% promotions success

Event Photography & Team Management

• Covered 50+ events for priority clients leading to 100% customer satisfaction
• Led a team of 10 photographers to produce high quality content for websites, blogs and social media

Grouping & Highlighting: Analysis

The key takeaways of the above examples are listed below:

• Example 1 uses one-liner points to communicate the same things as for example 2.
• Example 2 also uses one-liner points. The only difference is that example 2 has grouped similar points under unique subheadings.
• This makes example 2 better organized than example 1.
• It also makes it easy for the recruiter to easily identify the candidate's roles & responsibilities and key achievements under each point. Thus, it makes your resume more effective as it achieves the objective of directing the recruiter's attention to the candidate's key achievements in one glance.

Photographer Resume: STAR Format

The STAR format is an ideal format for structuring the points in your professional experience section. It creates a maximum impact by employing the cause-effect relationship to give more meaning to your roles & responsibilities.

Before we get into the details, here's what the STAR stands for:

• S for Situation: The situation/backdrop/context of your contributions
• T for Task: The actual task that was assigned to you
• A for Action: The strategy you used to execute the assigned task
• R for Result: The result/outcome of your action in the form of an achievement figure

In some sense, using the STAR format optimizes this section as you can communicate your roles & responsibilities and the result of these roles & responsibilities.

Here's an example:

• Took bridal photography for a client leading to 100% customer satisfaction & acquisition of 10+ new clients

In the above example, the photographer’s efforts or actions (taking bridal photography for a client) led to the acquisition of over ten clients due to the excellency of his/her work.

Winning over 10 new clients is the result of the photographer's actions which is communicated using achievement figures. Here, 10 new clients is the achievement figure.

Photographer Resume Sample for Professional Experience

Given below is a perfectly composed photography resume sample for your reference. This is designed using our Online Resume Builder.

It uses grouping & highlighting and the STAR format to structure every one-liner point to accentuate the effectiveness of your photography resume.

The ideal professional section of your resume for photographer should resemble the photography resume sample that we have mentioned below:

Photographer Resume: Header

Something as simple as your resume header can make or break the recruiter's image of you. For example, titling your resume header as "CV" or "resume" puts off a recruiter as it passes off as an example of incompetence.

Hiration Pro Tip: As a rule of thumb, DO NOT USE "cv" or "resume" as your resume header. It increases the chances of your resume getting lost in a pool full of resumes with the same header.

Here's what you can do to compose your resume header with perfection:

• Position your header at the topmost part of your photography resume.
• The header of your resume for photographers should be written in the largest font size of 16-20.
• Give a single space between your first name and last name.
• If you have a middle name, write your first name, followed by the first initial of your middle name in capital letters, followed by your last name.
• Example John Mary Winchester should be written in your resume header as "John M. Winchester.”

Also read: How to write the perfect resume header**.

Given below is our photographer resume sample showcasing the perfect resume header. This is what an ideal resume header should look like in your resume.

Photographer Resume: Personal Information

The personal information section is where important information regarding your contact details go. It consists of the following:

• Updated mobile number
• Professional email ID
• Current location

Compose them using the format that we have mentioned below:

{Personal Mobile number} | {Professional E-mail Address} | {Current Location}

Hiration Pro Tip: Personal details such as your marital status, religious & political beliefs, etc., should not be mentioned in your resume unless you are explicitly asked to do so. Most countries have forbidden it by law to say these things as it may lead to biased hiring.

Also read: Importance of the Personal Information section.

Updated Mobile Number

Mentioned below is the correct format for composing your mobile number:

• Use your country’s ISD code as a prefix before your phone number
• Put a plus sign (+) before the ISD code
• Eg: +1 376 482 1511

Hiration Pro Tip: If you have multiple mobile numbers, mention only that mobile number on which you are available 24x7. Make sure that you accurately present your mobile number in your photography resume to avoid a communication blunder.

Professional E-mail Address

Your professional email ID is the official mode of communication between you and the outside world. This is the most important communication channel through which a recruiter gets in touch with you.

Your responsibility here is to write a professional-looking email ID.

Emails like fancynancy101@xyz.com will not go a long way in making a positive impact on the recruiter. The recruiter might end up hitting the spam button on your email if you use childish email IDs like that.

Thus, you should ideally use your name or full name followed by @gmail.com / @yahoo.com / @hotmail.com to correctly and professionally compose your email ID.

Current Location of Residence

Given below are the rules & guidelines that you should know and follow while composing the location in your photographer resume:

• Write your location on the right-most corner of the personal information section.
• Do not mention trivial details regarding your location, such as your house number, street number, and your locality. They are unnecessary and should strictly be avoided.
• If you are looking for job opportunities in your own country, simply mention the city and state of your residence. On the contrary, if you are looking for career avenues in other countries, a brief reference to your city and country of residence is enough.

Photographer Resume Sample for personal information

Mentioned below is an impeccably composed photographer resume sample. This is what the personal information section of your resume should ideally look like.

No photographer resume examples come a close second to the photography resume sample that we have mentioned below:

Photographer Resume: Profile Title

Your profile title communicates your latest job title. It conveys the following information to the recruiter:

• Your current designation in your current or last company
• Your functional industry. E.g., finance, consulting, publishing, etc.
• Your level of seniority in your functional industry

Hiration Pro Tip: Compose your profile title in the font range of 14-16 points.

Exaggerating your profile title is seen as a sign of dishonesty. If you do this, it may pass off as an intent to intentionally cheat the recruiter.

Mentioned below is an example of our photographer resume sample showcasing the ideal profile title for your resume:

Photographer Resume: Education

The education section of your photography resume consists of the following details:

• Name of the school/university you have attended.
• Name of the courses you have pursued.
• The location of your school/university.
• Date of enrollment and graduation from each course (in month and year format).

Use the given format to write this section with perfection:

{Name of the school/university} | {Location} | {Dates} (in month and year format)
{Name of the degree} | {CGPA}

Given below is a photography resume sample showcasing the ideal education section. It is better articulated than most photographer resume examples that you will find online.

Photographer Resume: Certifications

How do you show that you are enthusiastic about what you do? That you wear your passion on your sleeve? That you'll do whatever it takes to get the job of your dreams?

This is where the certifications section comes in.

For instance, some people are naturally born with the ability to take impeccable soul-stirring photos. Then there are those of you who may not be born with it but train yourselves in this art to pursue your dreams.

Whether you fall in the first category or the second, being certified in your chosen field will always act as a sign of showmanship.

Now that you know the importance of this section, here's a brief outline of the content of the certifications section:

• Certification name
• Name of the certifying body
• Location of the certifying body
• Enrollment and completion date of the course

Use the format that we have mentioned below to correctly structure these points:

{Name of certification} | {Affiliating Institution} | {Location} | {Date} (in month & year format)

Given below is our photographer resume sample illustrating the ideal certifications section.

Do read: How to leverage certification courses?

Photographer Resume: Awards & Recognition

A job well done is always acknowledged. And if you were recognized for doing an outstanding job at work or outperforming the others, this section is your power kit, and it is wise that you use it to your advantage!

Hiration Pro Tip: List down the details of past accomplishments or recognition received under the "Awards & Recognition" section of your photographer resume. You can also put them under the key achievements bucket within each profile of your professional experience section.

For example, being awarded the coveted title of "the best employee of the month" or "most diligent worker,” or "most punctual employee," or "outstanding performer of the year" can make a positive impact on the recruiter.

This can significantly enhance your job application and thus, boost your chances of getting shortlisted for the job of your dreams.

Attached below is our photographer resume sample, better than most photographer resume examples that you will find online. It demonstrates the ideal Awards & Recognition section of your resume.

Photographer Resume: Volunteering Experience

Have you volunteered before? Have you worked with an NGO or worked for a social cause as a volunteer?

If you have, lay them down under the volunteering experience section of your photography resume.

Meanwhile, do make use of our revolutionary AI-based Resume Review Service at the bottom-left corner of this page. It will give you a detailed analysis of your photography resume within minutes of uploading it on our tool!

Photographer Resume: Key Skills

The key skills section of your photography resume is where you briefly document your photographer resume skills.

The role of this section is to effectively endorse your photographer resume skills to best highlight the skills that you have picked up during your career.

Here's what you can do to accomplish this:

• Compose this section after you have finalized the rest of your resume.
• Identify your core skills and strengths from the professional experience section and single them out in the key skills section of your resume to project your photographer resume skills in a good light.
• You can also tailor this section according to your target profile by replicating the keywords used by the recruiter in your target job listing. Keywords are those skills that the recruiter looks for in an ideal candidate. By incorporating the relevant keywords in this section, you are showing the recruiter that you have the "right skills.”
• However, you must be extra careful when you do this. Do not blatantly list down the keywords. Use only those keywords that you have actual expertise in, as you should be able to justify having these skills to the recruiter!

Don't miss: Correct way to add skills to your resume..

This will give you a better understanding of how to effectively curate this section and teach you the art of using it to your best advantage.

Given below is our photographer resume sample showcasing the ideal key skills section.

Photographer Resume Summary

A photographer resume summary is an overview of the events of your career. It tells the important recruiter details of your career, such as your current professional standing, the industry(s) you have worked in, and the skills that you have picked up over the years.

It is an objective statement of your career highlights and key achievements.

When composed with perfection, this section can give you a career boost as it will positively impact the recruiter. As such, your job here is to write this section with immaculate perfection.

Here’s a list of what you can do to compose your photographer resume summary impeccably:

• Do not exceed 3-5 lines when composing your photographer resume summary.
• Pick the key highlights of your career from the work experience section of your photography resume.
• Write the photographer resume summary after finalizing the rest of your resume. This helps you make an effortless decision on what to put in your resume summary.
• Write a resume summary if you have over three years of professional work experience. If you don't, write a photographer resume objective instead.

The photographer resume sample that we have mentioned below illustrates the perfect photographer resume summary. It articulates your resume summary more effectively than most photographer resume examples.

Photographer Resume Objective

You should write a photographer resume objective if:

• Your work experience is limited to 0 to 3 years.
• You are a fresh graduate with no relevant work experience.

Since you are someone with minimal professional experience, your photographer resume objective should communicate what you can do for the organization that you are applying to for a job.

It should also demonstrate that while you lack experience, you are rich in the relevant skills - and that's all that matters!

Do read: How and when to write a resume objective?

Photographer Resume Sample

Here's our photographer’ resume sample for reference.

Key Takeaways

Here are the key takeaways from this article:

• If you are applying for a job in the same country, write the location in city/state format. But if you are looking for opportunities abroad, write the location in city/country format.
• To write an ATS-targeted, recruiter-friendly photography resume, compose the professional experience section using the reverse chronological order.
• Endorse your photographer resume skills wherever possible in your resume.
• Communicate your roles & responsibilities using one-liner points. Accentuate it using grouping & highlighting and structure it using the STAR format to enhance your resume’s readability and effectiveness.
• Begin each point in your work experience section with a power verb. Use power verbs in the past tense for past profiles/projects and present continuous tense for current profiles and projects.
• Write a photographer resume objective if your work experience is limited to 0-3 years. If you have over three years of relevant professional exposure, write a photographer resume summary instead.

Now, this brings us to the end of this blog.

Follow the guidelines that we have mentioned in this blog to write an impeccable photography resume.

Go to Hiration resume builder and create a professional resume for yourself. Additionally, reach out to us at support@hiration.com and you can get 24/7 professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries.