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Photographers in California

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Photographers in California

Want to work in California as a Photographer? Read this first!

-4% Jobs Projection
$46,790 Median Salary
1,500 Job Openings

While jobs for Photographers in California are decreasing, those who do work in these jobs get paid higher than average.

  • Employment for Photographers in California is expected to decrease.

  • Photographers in California earn lower salaries than the typical U.S. wage earner.

How Many Photographers Work in California?

In 2018, there were 6,060 Photographers working in the state.

There were 5,810 Photographers employed in this state in 2017.

That’s growth of 250 jobs between 2017 and 2018.

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The typical state has 570 Photographers working in it, which means California has more Photographers than average.

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Job Projections for California

Jobs for Photographers in this state are declining at a rate of 4.3% which is a slower decline than the nationwide estimated projection of %.

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California Annual Job Openings

The BLS estimates 1,500 annual job openings, and a total of 20,100 jobs for California Photographers in 2026.

Nationwide, the prediction is 10,300 annual jobs and 139,000 total jobs in 2026.

What do Photographers Make in California?

In 2018 wages for Photographers ranged from $23,630 to $90,300 with $46,790 being the median annual salary.

Broken down to an hourly rate, workers in this field made anywhere from $11.36 to $43.41. The median hourly rate was $22.5.

Workers in this field were paid a median of $19.25 an hour in 2017.

The hourly rate grew by $3.25.

The median salary in California is higher than the nationwide median salary.

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Top California Metros for Photographers

The table below shows some of the metros in this state with the most Photographers.

Metro Number Employed Annual Median Salary
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 3,300 $53,720
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 790 $65,210
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 380 $34,080
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 300 $39,510
Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA 280 $36,650
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 120 $30,780
Fresno, CA 90 $29,250
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 90 $40,710
Bakersfield, CA 50 $39,500
Stockton-Lodi, CA 50 $26,010
Modesto, CA 50 $38,660
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 50 $45,950
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA 40 $44,440

Top States for Photographers Employment

The table below shows the states where most Photographers work.

State Number Employed Annual Median Salary
California 6,060 $46,790
Florida 4,480 $28,880
New York 4,090 $43,210
Texas 3,070 $28,100
Illinois 2,600 $31,460
Ohio 1,880 $29,920
Georgia 1,850 $36,670
Pennsylvania 1,740 $30,260
North Carolina 1,450 $26,400
New Jersey 1,400 $27,570
Michigan 1,330 $0
Missouri 1,220 $28,830
Massachusetts 1,220 $46,770
Wisconsin 1,070 $29,360
Washington 1,030 $44,180
Arizona 1,020 $27,310
Virginia 860 $32,820
Tennessee 810 $28,530
Indiana 800 $31,990
Nevada 770 $29,820

Below are the states where Photographers get paid the most:

State Annual Median Salary
District of Columbia $84,720
Rhode Island $55,990
Minnesota $47,810
California $46,790
Massachusetts $46,770
Washington $44,180
Mississippi $43,330
Vermont $43,230
New York $43,210
Alaska $42,160

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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