Skip to content

← Occupation guides

27-4021.00 · Task explorer

Photographers: reported tasks and exploration worksheet

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.

Use the skill profile to plan your next practice →

Read the task inventory

This source lists 28 tasks, including 19 marked Core and 9 marked Supplemental. Labels and dates are retained below. Employers can combine or divide these responsibilities differently; explore the task itself before assuming it belongs in every version of the role.

Task source dates: 08/2021.

Find a task in this inventory

28 tasks shown

Core · Task 9344 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

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.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9346 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Create artificial light, using flashes and reflectors.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9347 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Determine desired images and picture composition, selecting and adjusting subjects, equipment, and lighting to achieve desired effects.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 20558 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Transfer photographs to computers for editing, archiving, and electronic transmission.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9345 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Use traditional or digital cameras, along with a variety of equipment, such as tripods, filters, and flash attachments.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9352 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Manipulate and enhance scanned or digital images to create desired effects, using computers and specialized software.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9343 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Take pictures of individuals, families, and small groups, either in studio or on location.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9357 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Enhance, retouch, and resize photographs and negatives, using airbrushing and other techniques.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9349 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Test equipment prior to use to ensure that it is in good working order.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9351 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Estimate or measure light levels, distances, and numbers of exposures needed, using measuring devices and formulas.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9354 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Perform general office duties, such as scheduling appointments, keeping books, and ordering supplies.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9350 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Review sets of photographs to select the best work.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9358 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Set up, mount, or install photographic equipment and cameras.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9355 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Determine project goals, locations, and equipment needs by studying assignments and consulting with clients or advertising staff.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9353 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Perform maintenance tasks necessary to keep equipment working properly.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9356 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Select and assemble equipment and required background properties, according to subjects, materials, and conditions.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9361 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Direct activities of workers setting up photographic equipment.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9363 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Engage in research to develop new photographic procedures and materials.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Core · Task 9368 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Mount, frame, laminate, or lacquer finished photographs.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 20561 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Send film to photofinishing laboratories for processing.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9366 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Develop visual aids and charts for use in lectures or to present evidence in court.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9365 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Load and unload film.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 20560 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Write photograph captions.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9364 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Set up photographic exhibitions for the purpose of displaying and selling work.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9360 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Produce computer-readable, digital images from film, using flatbed scanners and photofinishing laboratories.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9362 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Employ a variety of specialized photographic materials and techniques, including infrared and ultraviolet films, macro photography, photogrammetry and sensitometry.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 9367 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

License the use of photographs through stock photo agencies.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Supplemental · Task 20559 · 08/2021 · Occupational Expert

Develop and print exposed film, using chemicals, touch-up tools, and developing and printing equipment.

Add to my exploration shortlist

My example, evidence or question

Make the shortlist useful

Choose one to three activities that tell you something different about the work. Avoid selecting several ways of describing the same interest.
For each, write an example you can discuss or a question that would change your understanding of the role.
Keep source task IDs with your notes so you can return to the same description. Do not include private employer or customer information.

The exported worksheet distinguishes the reported task from your own notes. It supports exploration, not a hiring decision or a validated assessment.

Keep your worksheet

Download before leaving this page. Unsaved writing remains only in the page and is cleared on refresh. Notes and learning actions are not sent to a server. This guide describes an occupation and supports study planning; it does not provide clinical, legal or equipment-operating procedures.

Source and practice material

Occupational context uses the O*NET® 31.0 Database from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, under CC BY 4.0. View the occupation.

Skill Workbench selected and adapted the occupational information and added its own fictional cases, calculations, guidance and worksheets. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these additions. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.