# Photographers

US SOC code 27-4021. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/27-4021

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **51,760** US photographers, with median pay of **$44,660** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **62,370**, in May 2007. The earliest figure here is [a Census count](https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-occupation/00312147ch2.pdf) of **7,558** from 1870, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for photographers: Full-frame mirrorless cameras, 2013 to 2022.

Figures: Official statistic (latest count and pay, highest count); Researched context (earliest figure).

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to change -0.7% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-4021&ioType=o) (Official statistic).

### AI exposure studies

- **21.9%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv) (Official statistic)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Photographers employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1840
- Latest US employment: 51,760 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $44,660 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [7]
- Outlook: -0.7% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [23]

### All 29 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1870 | 7,558 | n/a | Decennial Census 1870 [1] |
| 1880 | 9,990 | n/a | Decennial Census 1880 [2] |
| 1890 | 20,040 | n/a | Decennial Census 1890 [2] |
| 1978 | n/a | $13,000 (average) | BLS historical bulletin 1955 [6] |
| 1980 | 93,000 | n/a | BLS CPS 2075 [3] |
| 2000 | 131,000 | n/a | BLS CPS 2000 [4] |
| 2003 | 57,740 | $25,050 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 54,400 | $26,080 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 58,260 | $26,100 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 60,300 | $26,170 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 62,370 | $27,720 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 61,670 | $29,440 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 57,760 | $29,770 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 54,550 | $29,130 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 54,410 | $28,860 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 56,140 | $28,490 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 54,830 | $29,280 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 52,250 | $30,490 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 50,070 | $31,710 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 48,660 | $34,070 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 49,320 | $32,490 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 49,560 | $34,000 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 50,620 | $36,280 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 41,600 | $41,280 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 38,420 | $38,950 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 47,380 | $40,170 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 53,630 | $40,760 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 51,230 | $42,520 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 51,760 | $44,660 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (79)

### Employment series

1. [US Bureau of the Census -- Comparative Occupation Statistics 1870-1930, Table on Photography (1940 Census of Population, Chapter II)](https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-occupation/00312147ch2.pdf), US Bureau of the Census
2. [US Census 1900 Special Reports -- Comparison of Occupations at the Twelfth and Preceding Censuses (Table covering 1870-1900), "Photographers and retouchers"](https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1900/occupations/occupations-part-3.pdf), US Bureau of the Census
3. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 1980-81 Edition (Bulletin No. 2075) -- Photography section, employment estimate ca. 1978-1979](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-1980-81-edition-498765), Bureau of Labor Statistics / FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
4. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2002-03 Edition -- Photographers held about 131,000 jobs in 2000](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-2002-03-edition-583138), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

6. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 1978-79 Edition (Bulletin No. 1955) -- Photographers section, earnings ca. 1976-1977](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-1978-79-edition-498549), Bureau of Labor Statistics / FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
7. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Tool eras

8. [Metropolitan Museum of Art -- "The Daguerreian Era and Early American Photography on Paper, 1839-1860"](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/adag/hd_adag.htm), The Metropolitan Museum of Art
9. [Britannica -- "History of photography: Early evolution, Daguerreotype, Film (c.1840-c.1900)"](https://www.britannica.com/technology/photography/Photographys-early-evolution-c-1840-c-1900), Encyclopaedia Britannica
10. [National Inventors Hall of Fame -- "NIHF Inductee George Eastman Invented Dry Plate Photography"](https://www.invent.org/inductees/george-eastman), National Inventors Hall of Fame
11. [Eastman Museum -- "Dry Plates in the Woods: Using 19th Century Photographic Processes"](https://www.eastman.org/node/5335), George Eastman Museum
12. [Britannica -- "History of Photography: Digital revolution, Artistic Expression, Documentary Evidence (c.1945 to the 21st century)"](https://www.britannica.com/technology/photography/Photography-c-1945-to-the-21st-century), Encyclopaedia Britannica
13. [PBS American Experience -- "History of Photography" (Eastman, Kodachrome, magazine photography)](https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/eastman-history-photography/), PBS American Experience
14. [Wikipedia -- "Nikon F" (1959 introduction, professional adoption, Vietnam War photojournalism, NASA use)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon_F), Wikipedia
15. [Nikon -- "Debut of Nikon F: Camera Chronicle" (official history)](https://imaging.nikon.com/imaging/information/chronicle/history-f/), Nikon
16. [Wikipedia -- "Kodak DCS 100" (first commercial DSLR, 1991, Nikon F3 body, AP trials)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kodak_DCS_100), Wikipedia
17. [PetaPixel -- "Kodak DCS: Why the Revolutionary Digital Camera System Failed to Catch On"](https://petapixel.com/kodak-dcs-history/), PetaPixel
18. [Britannica -- "Stock photography: Definition, History, Agencies, and Criticisms"](https://www.britannica.com/topic/stock-photography), Encyclopaedia Britannica
19. [TechCrunch -- "Fotolia Branches Out from Micro-Stock Photography" (microstock history, Shutterstock 2003)](https://techcrunch.com/2007/12/20/fotolia-branches-out-from-micro-stock-photography-incorporates-traditional-collections/), TechCrunch
20. [Amateur Photographer -- "10 years of Sony A7 -- the camera that killed the DSLR" (October 2023)](https://amateurphotographer.com/round-ups/camera_round_ups/10-years-of-sony-a7-the-camera-that-killed-the-dslr/), Amateur Photographer
21. [Digital Camera World -- "How generative AI impacted photography in 2023"](https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/features/how--generative-ai-impacted-photography-in-2023), Digital Camera World
22. [The Photo Argus -- "The Past and Future of Stock Photography" (microstock and AI disruption timeline)](https://www.thephotoargus.com/the-past-and-future-of-stock-photography/), The Photo Argus

### Forecasts and exposure studies

23. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 27-4021 Photographers (2025: 145.0 thousand; 2035: 144.0 thousand; -0.7%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-4021&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
24. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 27-4021.00, human-rated β 0.219)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

25. [Metropolitan Museum of Art -- "The Daguerreian Era and Early American Photography on Paper, 1839-1860"](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/adag/hd_adag.htm), The Metropolitan Museum of Art
26. [National Science and Media Museum -- "Researching your photographer ancestors" (occupational census history)](https://blog.scienceandmediamuseum.org.uk/researching-photographer-ancestors/), National Science and Media Museum (UK)
27. [Legends of America -- "Historic Photographers of America's History" (Brady and Civil War photography)](https://www.legendsofamerica.com/ah-photographers/), Legends of America
28. [Wikipedia -- "National Photographic Association of the United States" (1868 founding)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Photographic_Association_of_the_United_States), Wikipedia
29. [My Modern Met -- "Learn How the Affordable Kodak Brownie Camera Made Photography Accessible"](https://mymodernmet.com/kodak-brownie-camera/), My Modern Met
30. [Wikipedia -- "Kodak DCS 100" (1991 release, price, AP/wire service market)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kodak_DCS_100), Wikipedia
31. [Britannica -- "Stock photography: Definition, History, Agencies, and Criticisms" (Getty-iStock acquisition 2006)](https://www.britannica.com/topic/stock-photography), Encyclopaedia Britannica
32. [Digital Camera World -- "How generative AI impacted photography in 2023"](https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/features/how--generative-ai-impacted-photography-in-2023), Digital Camera World

### Predecessors & successors

33. [Metropolitan Museum of Art -- "The Daguerreian Era and Early American Photography on Paper, 1839-1860" (daguerreotype displacing portrait painting)](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/adag/hd_adag.htm), The Metropolitan Museum of Art

### Present-day analysis

- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-21
- [O\*NET 30.3 — US Department of Labor](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), accessed 2026-05-21

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.