Photography Courses And Careers

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Photographers

Photographers are professionals who capture images to create a visual record of an event, person or object. They must possess a combination of technical and artistic skills to be successful. There are several different types of photographers: portrait photographers who record images of people, news photographers (a.k.a. photojournalists) who work for newspapers and magazines, commercial photographers who take pictures of buildings, products, and models for advertisements and other commercial purposes, and fine art photographers who more focused on making artistic creations.

About 50% of all photographers work for themselves. Many do freelance work for ad agencies or magazines, in addition to portrait photography. Photographers who are on salary tend to work for newspapers and other media companies or commercial studios.

Photography Schools

Many photographers seeking salaried employment have some sort of formal, post-secondary photography training. Photography programs are available from career schools, community colleges, and technical colleges and universities. Students can find photography programs ranging from individual classes through four-year bachelor's degree programs.

Schools for Photographers are listed in the column to the left.

The Top Cities tab shows employment statistics for Photographers by major US metro area.

Metro Area	Jobs	Salary (2006)	Relative Popularity
ALABAMA
Auburn	40	$18,470	2.5
Anniston	40	$26,500	2.3
Tuscaloosa	40	$20,790	1.3
Huntsville	100	$28,970	1.2
Mobile	80	$26,500	1.1
Montgomery	70	$31,030	1
ALASKA
Anchorage	120	$40,560	1.8
ARIZONA
Flagstaff	40	$26,520	2.1
Phoenix	1,090	$33,010	1.3
Tucson	160	$29,690	1
ARKANSAS
Fayetteville	120	$30,550	1.6
Little Rock	200	$26,210	1.4
Fort Smith	40	$20,710	0.8
CALIFORNIA
San Francisco	570	$56,670	1.3
Santa Ana	790	$40,260	1.2
Visalia	60	$19,260	1.1
Sacramento	430	$33,800	1.1
Los Angeles	1,740	$33,140	1
Fresno	130	$38,190	0.9
Vallejo	50	$33,830	0.9
Modesto	60	$24,270	0.8
Santa Barbara	60	$41,510	0.8
San Diego	460	$36,090	0.8
Oxnard	100	$24,890	0.8
Bakersfield	80	$35,120	0.7
Oakland	310	$30,000	0.7
Salinas	40	$42,960	0.6
San Jose	240	$33,100	0.6
COLORADO
Colorado Springs	160	$26,510	1.5
Fort Collins	70	$32,450	1.4
Boulder	80		1.4
Denver	460	$37,180	0.9
CONNECTICUT
Norwich	80	$37,640	1.6
New Haven	120	$36,340	1
Hartford	240	$56,220	1
DELAWARE
Dover	30		1.4
Wilmington	80	$32,710	0.6
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Washington	1,070	$43,360	1
FLORIDA
Fort Lauderdale	560	$25,450	1.7
Sarasota	180	$27,660	1.5
Miami	570	$40,020	1.3
Palm Bay	110	$38,800	1.3
Gainesville	60	$29,810	1.3
Fort Walton Beach	40	$36,270	1.3
Pensacola	80	$31,410	1.2
Cape Coral	110	$22,850	1.2
Orlando	530	$28,220	1.2
Deltona	60	$35,280	0.9
Jacksonville	230	$25,200	0.9
Port St. Lucie	40	$27,020	0.8
Tampa	410	$34,950	0.8
Lakeland	60	$26,120	0.7
West Palm Beach	130	$34,490	0.5
GEORGIA
Athens	40	$25,690	1.5
Augusta	100	$34,810	1.1
Atlanta	1,170	$19,160	1.1
Macon	40	$26,110	1.1
Savannah	60	$29,870	1
Columbus	30	$25,900	0.7
HAWAII
Honolulu	250	$30,900	1.4
IDAHO
Boise	150	$30,560	1.4
ILLINOIS
Champaign	50	$33,710	1.5
Peoria	100	$21,490	1.4
Rockford	80	$42,860	1.3
Waukegan	170	$26,290	1.1
Chicago	1,650	$33,470	1
INDIANA
South Bend	90	$41,470	1.6
Bloomington	40	$24,460	1.6
Evansville	110	$30,170	1.5
Gary	150	$29,420	1.3
Indianapolis	480	$30,590	1.2
Terre Haute	30	$32,780	1.2
Fort Wayne	100	$30,310	1.1
Elkhart	40	$23,260	0.7
IOWA
Waterloo	70	$17,680	2.2
Davenport	160	$21,000	2.1
Cedar Rapids	90	$27,140	1.7
Iowa City	40	$22,250	1.6
Des Moines	170	$25,470	1.3
Sioux City	30	$20,290	1.1
KANSAS
Wichita	150	$22,500	1.3
Topeka	50	$23,900	1.2
KENTUCKY
Bowling Green	50	$21,900	2.6
Louisville	300	$34,430	1.2
LOUISIANA
Alexandria	130	$27,670	5.7
Monroe	50	$21,440	1.7
New Orleans	290	$23,890	1.5
Lafayette	60	$29,580	1.1
Shreveport	70	$28,430	1
Baton Rouge	110	$20,580	0.7
MAINE
Portland	50	$36,200	0.6
MARYLAND
Salisbury	50	$22,740	2.5
Hagerstown	70	$26,450	1.8
Baltimore	860	$28,810	1.5
Bethesda	200	$34,060	0.8
MASSACHUSETTS
Framingham	160	$29,280	2.5
Lowell	70	$32,180	1.4
Springfield	160	$38,210	1.3
Worcester	120	$31,630	1.1
Boston	580	$38,360	0.8
MICHIGAN
Grand Rapids	230	$29,850	1.4
Warren	590	$31,400	1.1
Lansing	80	$30,790	1
Flint	50	$28,020	0.9
Ann Arbor	60	$33,650	0.8
Detroit	240	$41,370	0.8
MINNESOTA
Rochester	50	$39,170	1.7
Minneapolis	1,200	$53,760	1.5
St. Cloud	50	$36,890	1.3
Duluth	60	$25,430	1.1
MISSISSIPPI
Gulfport	50	$28,940	1.3
Jackson	80	$25,890	0.7
MISSOURI
Springfield	140	$23,230	1.9
Columbia	50	$20,730	1.8
Joplin	40	$18,440	1.4
St. Louis	680	$29,510	1.2
Kansas City	510	$31,620	1.2
MONTANA
Billings	50	$23,350	1.5
NEBRASKA
Omaha	400	$23,350	2
Lincoln	100		1.6
NEVADA
Las Vegas	870	$30,570	2.1
Reno	100	$34,850	1.1
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Nashua	70	$16,630	1.3
NEW JERSEY
Atlantic City	60	$40,730	1.1
Edison	370	$32,380	0.8
Newark	360	$25,890	0.8
Camden	170	$40,000	0.7
Trenton	40	$33,030	0.4
NEW MEXICO
Santa Fe	60	$25,880	2.6
Albuquerque	170	$29,650	1.1
NEW YORK
Glens Falls	50	$26,830	2.5
Nassau	770	$31,970	1.4
Rochester	280	$27,170	1.3
New York	2,800	$44,400	1.3
Binghamton	50	$29,430	1.2
Buffalo	270	$25,090	1.2
Syracuse	150	$29,680	1.1
Poughkeepsie	110	$26,480	1.1
Albany	180	$34,720	0.9
NORTH CAROLINA
Burlington	110	$22,300	5.4
Greensboro	220	$31,030	1.4
Raleigh	290		1.4
Asheville	70	$40,350	1
Wilmington	50	$32,650	0.9
NORTH DAKOTA
Fargo	70	$37,790	1.5
OHIO
Lima	60	$21,600	2.9
Canton	190	$21,800	2.6
Mansfield	30	$21,450	1.4
Youngstown	140	$25,200	1.4
Toledo	180	$20,460	1.3
Cincinnati	550	$24,600	1.2
Cleveland	550	$27,300	1.2
Dayton	170	$33,060	1
Akron	130	$38,810	0.9
Columbus	320	$32,460	0.8
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma City	410	$22,330	1.7
Tulsa	170	$24,880	1
OREGON
Portland	460	$31,050	1.1
PENNSYLVANIA
Allentown	190	$35,450	1.3
Pittsburgh	530	$26,420	1.1
Scranton	110	$27,480	1
Erie	50	$30,380	1
Harrisburg	120	$34,660	1
Philadelphia	750	$31,980	0.9
York	60	$27,710	0.8
Reading	40	$24,560	0.6
Lancaster	50	$30,840	0.5
RHODE ISLAND
Providence	270	$41,170	1.1
SOUTH CAROLINA
Myrtle Beach	180	$22,880	3.8
Greenville	130	$32,900	1
Columbia	110	$28,850	0.8
Charleston	60	$30,190	0.5
SOUTH DAKOTA
Rapid City	60	$24,540	2.7
Sioux Falls	60	$26,510	1.1
TENNESSEE
Nashville	640	$25,070	2
Chattanooga	160	$25,500	1.6
Knoxville	150	$27,310	1.1
Memphis	140	$32,300	0.5
TEXAS
Sherman	50	$18,760	3.4
Amarillo	90	$24,740	2.3
Tyler	80	$23,760	2.2
Lubbock	100	$21,700	2.2
Corpus Christi	120	$23,700	1.7
Odessa	30	$23,700	1.5
Fort Worth	480	$23,100	1.4
Austin	410	$33,150	1.3
Waco	40	$24,650	1
Dallas	890	$28,380	1
El Paso	100	$24,610	1
Houston	970	$25,580	0.9
San Antonio	310	$25,380	0.9
McAllen	70	$19,950	0.8
Beaumont	40	$26,620	0.6
UTAH
Provo	110	$31,760	1.7
Salt Lake City	360	$30,990	1.4
Ogden	90	$28,290	1.2
VERMONT
Burlington	50	$33,170	1.2
VIRGINIA
Charlottesville	60	$27,320	1.8
Roanoke	90	$24,840	1.4
Virginia Beach	400	$23,310	1.2
Richmond	200	$39,480	0.8
WASHINGTON
Bremerton	80	$24,020	2.5
Seattle	710	$41,230	1.2
Kennewick	40	$25,990	1.2
Spokane	40	$43,480	0.5
Tacoma	40	$38,860	0.4
WEST VIRGINIA
Weirton	60	$23,930	3.7
Charleston	80	$25,120	1.3
WISCONSIN
Wausau	70	$34,190	2.6
La Crosse	40	$45,690	1.5
Green Bay	100	$29,950	1.4
Eau Claire	40	$23,960	1.3
Madison	170	$35,720	1.2
Appleton	30	$30,370	0.7
Milwaukee	200	$36,780	0.5
WYOMING
Cheyenne	50	$31,720	3.3

CityTownInfo Career and College Resources

Schools for Photographers

Schools for people wanting to be Photographers; these schools offer particularly quick info upon request, and we have written detailed profiles for each (click school names to see the profiles).

Request info from multiple schools, by clicking the Get Info links.

School	States	Degrees	Quick Info
American InterContinental University		Bachelor	Get Info
Antonelli College	OH	Associate	Get Info
Ashworth University	Online	Diploma	Get Info
Briarcliffe College	NY	Associate	Get Info
Brooks Institute	CA	Bachelor	Get Info
Brown College	MN	Bachelor	Get Info
Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University	MA	Certificate	Get Info
Harrington College of Design	IL	Associate	Get Info
ICS Canada	Online	Diploma	Get Info
International Academy of Design and Technology	FL, TN	Associate	Get Info
Ohio Institute of Photography and Technology	OH	Associate	Get Info
Penn Foster Career School	Online	Diploma	Get Info
The Art Institutes	CO, FL, GA, IL, IN, MA, MN, NC, NV, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WA	Associate, Bachelor, Certificate, Coursework, Diploma, Non-Degree - General	Get Info

Photography Courses And Careers

The Top Metro Areas for Photographers

Metro Areas Rated for Popularity (as of 2006) for:Photographers

ALABAMA

ALASKA

ARIZONA

ARKANSAS

CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

CONNECTICUT

DELAWARE

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

FLORIDA

GEORGIA

HAWAII

IDAHO

ILLINOIS

INDIANA

IOWA

KANSAS

KENTUCKY

LOUISIANA

MAINE

MARYLAND

MASSACHUSETTS

MICHIGAN

MINNESOTA

MISSISSIPPI

MISSOURI

MONTANA

NEBRASKA

NEVADA

NEW HAMPSHIRE

NEW JERSEY

NEW MEXICO

NEW YORK

NORTH CAROLINA

NORTH DAKOTA

OHIO

OKLAHOMA

OREGON

PENNSYLVANIA

RHODE ISLAND

SOUTH CAROLINA

SOUTH DAKOTA

TENNESSEE

TEXAS

UTAH

VERMONT

VIRGINIA

WASHINGTON

WEST VIRGINIA

WISCONSIN

WYOMING

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Schools for Photographers

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Metro Areas Rated for Popularity (as of 2006) for:
Photographers