Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers
Repair and adjust cameras and photographic equipment, including commercial video and motion picture camera equipment.
What it pays
Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers earn a median of $25.35/hr — about $52,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $16.50/hr; the top 10% earn $40.35/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers earn a median of $25.35/hr — about $52,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $16.50/hr; the top 10% earn $40.35/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
What you'd actually do
- Adjust cameras, photographic mechanisms, or equipment such as range and view finders, shutters, light meters, or lens systems, using hand tools.
- Disassemble equipment to gain access to defect, using hand tools.
- Test equipment performance, focus of lens system, diaphragm alignment, lens mounts, or film transport, using precision gauges.
- Clean and lubricate cameras and polish camera lenses, using cleaning materials and work aids.
- Requisition parts or materials.
- Calibrate and verify accuracy of light meters, shutter diaphragm operation, or lens carriers, using timing instruments.
How you get there
Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).
The feel of the work
The work is mostly indoors; much of the day is spent working solo; precision matters — small details carry weight. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)
Working for yourself
About 8.7% of camera and photographic equipment repairers are self-employed.
Who it tends to fit
This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.
Work a simulated shift in this job — freeMake the real decisions this job involves, then see what your choices say about you.Related careers
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Quick questions
- How much does a camera and photographic equipment repairer make?
- The median pay is $25.35 per hour — roughly $52,500 a year, with the real range running from about $16.50/hr (10th percentile) to $40.35/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Do you need a degree to be a camera and photographic equipment repairer?
- The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).
- What does a camera and photographic equipment repairer actually do all day?
- Adjust cameras, photographic mechanisms, or equipment such as range and view finders, shutters, light meters, or lens systems, using hand tools. Disassemble equipment to gain access to defect, using hand tools. Test equipment performance, focus of lens system, diaphragm alignment, lens mounts, or film transport, using precision gauges.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.