Deliver your photographer resume in a winning format that cuts out the chaos with style, impact, and your niche.
To make a strong impression, avoid clutter and include only your technical skills, a portfolio, and specialty, plus writing a thoughtful cover letter to showcase your creative voice.
Here’s what we’ll cover in this guide:
- ↪ 11 inspiring photographer resume examples to spark your own ideas
- ↪ How to structure a professional photographer’s resume step-by-step
- ↪ What hiring managers in creative fields look for
- ↪ The best way to highlight your portfolio and gear expertise
- ↪ How to position photography certifications and awards
- ↪ Action verbs and skill phrases that resonate in visual industries
Show technical skills
- Did you use lighting techniques to produce stunning images that amplified engagement? Are you a whiz at Photoshop, knowing every trick in the book? Can you operate and maintain all the essential equipment?
- You want to complement those technical competencies with soft skills (cue eye for detail, patience, customer service, and creativity), some of which deserve a mention in your resume career summary.
Add relevant links
- Ensuring your LinkedIn profile and portfolio website are customized to showcase relevant work in your freelance photographer resume is pretty non-negotiable if you’re serious about attracting the right attention: Kill two birds with one stone by creating your resume from LinkedIn.
See more freelance photographer resumes>
Tick the right boxes
- Ticking off the right boxes in your wedding photographer resume could set things in motion for your candidacy.
- Pair that with your mastery of handy software and equipment (cue Canon EOS R5, Fundy Designer, HoneyBook, Rawsie, and TinyPNG), and you’re the tech-savvy, memory-making pro they want.
Accent your artistic skills
- For a creative photographer seeking a competitive edge, now is the perfect moment to zoom in on your artistic skills.
- Showcase in-demand skills like photo manipulation and lighting mastery in action throughout your masterpiece, complemented by how you’ve blended your creative flair and technical know-how to crush projects.
Go for subtle colors
- Color plays a massive role in making images and videos pop, right? Take it from us—gussying up your photographer-videographer resume with a little bit of it is one way to pique recruiters’ interest and flaunt your creative edge.
See more photographer-videographer resumes>
Using projects
- Job-specific projects on your photographer assistant resume call attention to the skills and experiences that could make you an asset if brought on board. They illustrate your readiness and potential, a slick move that helps chill out concerns about whether you have enough mileage in the field.
Keep work history punchy
- Make the most of the well-liked reverse chronological format and kick off your bullet points with strong action verbs. Then, quantify your accomplishments and sprinkle in some industry-relevant lingo in your real estate photographer resume, and you’re already setting yourself up to score that job interview.
Emphasize career growth
- Having navigated the waters for quite a while, you’re finally in control. Shedding light on your outstanding career journey in your lead photographer resume could be the trick to nudge the odds in your favor.
- However, zero in on roles that are directly relevant to the job, making sure your word of choice mirrors the language of the job description.
Choosing a resume template
- Planning successful professional car shoots takes some exceptional organizational chops, and an automotive photographer resume that calls attention to your knack for keeping things in line can leave a mark on recruiters.
- How about you stick with the classic single-column resume template? It’s clean, professional, and a breeze to read, which means hiring managers can breeze through your narration without any hassle
Capitalizing your interests
- Adding one or two extra sections to your school photographer resume for additional clout could wow the recruiter and sway them in your favor, even over more-experienced folks.
- For example, sliding a section summarizing resume-worthy hobbies and interests right below your certifications is another trick to strengthen your applications.
Fit into the job
- Let your child photographer resume recount moments where you tailored your approach to enhance children’s comfort, taking into account their emotional state, willingness to cooperate, and age. Not to mention these stories can provide powerful content for your photographer cover letter.
Related resume guides
How to Write a Photographer Resume
Your portfolio is the centerpiece of your photographer resume. It does the heavy lifting in convincing potential employers to give you the job.
Summary
Capture hiring managers’ attention instantly with a photographer resume that tells your story, showcases your best shots through measurable achievements, and frames your creative strengths in a format that sells your value.
To stand out, spotlight your work, achievements, skills, and creativity to tell your stories, sell your image, and elevate your brand.
This section discusses:
- What makes a photographer’s resume stand out (hint: it’s not just the photos)
- How to choose the right format that shows off your skills, not just your jobs
- Innovative ways to highlight your portfolio, gear, and editing tools
- How to tailor your resume for any role
If you would rather get to it immediately, explore these job-ready resume examples or jump into our resume builder and learn the ropes while at it.
Choose the right photographer resume format
Your choice of resume format reinforces trust in your style. Go for a clean, well-spaced, and confident design. Like a photo that speaks a thousand words, let your layout easily pass through applicant tracking systems (ATS) and instantly impress recruiters. This matters because credible data shows over 98% of Fortune 500 companies use ATS to filter applications and the same would be the standard procedure for other employers.
The reverse chronology order is the easy choice. No chaos, straight to the point, and puts your strengths at the prime spot for a would-be employer to see.
However, if your portfolio is built on short-term gigs, the hybrid format best suits you. It underscores your photography skills while presenting your strengths from each project.
Once the format question is settled and you begin writing, be consistent with font sizes and types, margins, white spaces, and color. Simplicity will always win.
Share accurate contact information
Like the front office or an advertising banner, the contact section is the welcoming gesture that hiring managers get when they review your resume. Use it to set your brand’s tone with the following details:
- Full names
- Professional email
- Phone number
- City, State
- Portfolio link (non-negotiable!)
- LinkedIn (only if related to your work)
- Instagram (if it showcases your professional work)
Get attention with a professional profile
Your work is more about what people see and less about what you talk about yourself. That’s exactly what your profile needs to be: show, don’t tell.
Whether it’s a resume objective or a career summary statement, let a potential employee envision your end products, see your photos come to life, and tell an authentic story that can’t be captioned in words.
Example of a career objective for a photographer assistant
Example of a career summary for a freelance photographer resume
Let your achievements speak with metrics
Photography isn’t about you; it’s about the impact of what you do. To capture that and decorate it with your style and clients’ preferences, turn to numbers to vividly quantify your accomplishments.
How many events were you the lead photographer for? Are clients left with a smile after you show them your work? Show satisfaction ratings. Did a brand convert more customers after it replaced old ad photos with new, brand-centric photos? Give the number in dollars, traffic, percentages, or time.
To do this, generate bullet points that start with unique, compelling action words, followed by skills, and close with measurable results. You now follow the rhythm, don’t you? Now that’s how you can make your experiences pop and have recruiters scramble to call you before someone else does.
Demonstrate your photography-related skills
Who can’t press a shutter? But that’s not what an employer who knows what they want cares about. You’re cut from a different cloth. Storytelling with every click of the shutter is your strong suit. Your timing is terrific. Your attention to detail is unmatched. You keep up with every photography trend, software, and tool. You can lead a team, refine concepts, collaborate with stakeholders, and deliver your work ahead of the deadline.
All that needs a special section, “Skills”. That’s your bag of competencies; you rely on it to achieve results. Let recruiters know what you’re capable of by teasing them with some of those skills in your bullet points. No one is going to stop you from getting the job.
Include education and certification
A Bachelor of Science in photography? Never heard of one. But that doesn’t mean your education has zero value. Relevant photography training can be the crowning glory of your resume. It tells hiring teams that you have academic discipline, play by the rules, and hold yourself to the highest professional standards.
Certifications aren’t mere decorations for your career; they tell a story of commitment, never giving up, and always striving for the best.
Are you an Adobe Certified Professional, or do you hold an FAA Drone License? Don’t leave these out; keep them visible. You’re simply saying that your work has the stamp of approval from the industry pacesetters.
Stand out with your photography accolades
Bragging about your hard-earned wins is acceptable in the creative space.
Ever won any photography award? Had your work featured in Vogue? Won a college photo exhibition?
These are your medals of honor, and just like you hang the physical ones in your gallery room at home, let them shine on your resume.
H3 Customize your resume
Every photography job is unique and deserves a tailored resume that says you’re the real deal.
For each role you apply for, let your resume:
- Match the job ad tone
- Share the most relevant and impactful experiences
- Use keywords from the job posting
- Speak the language of the industry and the company offering the job
H3 Common photographer resume mistakes
Don’t fall into any of these pitfalls:
- Leave out your portfolio
- Using a graphic-heavy template
- Narrate responsibilities
- Assuming the audience
- Make grammar mistakes
H3 Key takeaways
Things to keep in mind when putting your resume together:
- Go with a clean, professional layout that doesn’t distract from your work
- Focus on the type of photography you’re best at — stay in your lane
- Add your portfolio link right at the top so it’s easy to find
- Mention your gear and editing tools only if they matter for the job
- Describe your past work in clear, confident language — keep it real
- Always include a cover letter — it’s your chance to show a bit of personality
- Stick to one page unless you’ve got a solid reason not to
Median Annual Salaries for Photographers in the US
With a resume that gets you the job, the next thing on your to-do list is knowing how much to expect from gigs, projects, or a permanent job. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics report released on 1/5/24, the median annual salary for a photographer is $42,520 and $20.44 per hour.
Photographer Resume FAQs
A good photographer’s resume in 2026 should highlight your tech savviness, including keeping up with new technologies and incorporating the latest trends in your work. It must show you as a modern photographer keeping pace with the needs of clients in the evolving landscape of the industry.
A professional photographer’s resume must have a header with all the essential contact information, a professional summary, core skills, relevant work experiences with top achievements, and use a clean, simple, functional format that presents your qualifications and strengths for the job.
Example:
Experienced wedding photographer with 7 years of blending editorial style with visual realism, and photographed 200+ weddings across the US, including four nationally featured ceremonies in Brides magazine. Adept in lighting control, compelling storytelling, and leading teams with ease. Committed to documenting fleeting moments and turning them into timeless heirlooms.
A real estate photographer’s resume should highlight your experience in the sector. Pick the most outstanding accomplishments and present them to potential employers. If your work helped increase house views or close deals, let that be part of your selling points. Also, don’t forget skills that make it easy to get the job done, such as editing software.
