business: how much money do professional photographers make?

Okay, so photographers might not cash in like doctors or lawyers, but we wear shorts to the studio, play the music loud and take long lunches at the Sharonville Root Beer Stand (anyone for a Timmy Dog?) on days when it’s nice and there’s nothing scheduled. So how much money does a professional photographer actually make? What are the employment prospects and job outlook for professional photographers? It’s all contained in a report by the US Government Bureau of Labor Statistics. A few excerpts:

Significant Points

• Competition for jobs is expected to be keen because the work is attractive to many people.
• Technical expertise, a “good eye,” imagination, and creativity are essential.
• More than half of all photographers are self-employed, a much higher proportion than for most occupations.
• Employment of photographers is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through 2016.
• Median annual earnings of salaried photographers were $26,170 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $18,680 and $38,730. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $15,540, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $56,640. Median annual earnings in the industry employing the largest numbers of salaried photographers were $22,860 in the photographic services industry.
• Salaried photographers—more of whom work full time—tend to earn more than those who are self-employed. Because most freelance and portrait photographers purchase their own equipment, they incur considerable expense acquiring and maintaining cameras and accessories. Unlike news and commercial photographers, few fine arts photographers are successful enough to support themselves solely through their art.

The report has compiled information from over 122,000 professional photographers earning income in 2006. If you’re interested I suggest you read the whole government report because it describes our industry in very accurate detail, citing both the current state and projected trends. Any thoughts?

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