Senior LevelPhotographer Resume Example

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Photographer Resume Template (senior level)

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Professional Summary

Senior Photographer and Director of Photography with a track record of art-directing commercial campaigns, leading shooter and retoucher teams, and owning licensing and editing standards across a studio's output.

Professional Experience

Lead Photographer / Director of PhotographyApr 2021 - Present

Goldenhour Studio, Austin, TX

Art-direct commercial and editorial campaigns as director of photography, developing shot lists, lighting diagrams, and color grading across a 12-shoot brand catalog.
Lead a team of four second shooters and two retouchers across a 50-wedding season, setting editing standards that keep gallery style consistent brand-wide.
Negotiated image licensing and usage rights for 100-plus commercial deliverables, drafting model releases and tiered usage agreements that protected reprint revenue.

PhotographerFeb 2017 - Mar 2021

Bluebonnet Photo Co., San Antonio, TX

Photographed 300-plus portrait and commercial sessions a year in studio and on location, maintaining a 4.9-star rating across 250 reviews.
Built and enforced a Lightroom preset and color-grading standard across a five-photographer studio for 40,000 annual deliverables.
Grew annual booking revenue 30% over two years through referrals, repeat clients, and a streamlined ShootProof gallery workflow.

Photographer / Second ShooterJun 2015 - Jan 2017

Hill Country Images, Austin, TX

Second-shot weddings and editorial shoots alongside lead photographers, delivering 400-plus culled RAW frames per event within 48 hours.
Managed tethered capture in Capture One and on-set lighting for 20-plus commercial shoots a month.
Retouched and color-graded portrait galleries in Lightroom on a consistent 7-day turnaround.

Skills

Creative Direction, Adobe Lightroom, Capture One, Studio Lighting, Image Licensing, Color Grading, Retouching, Team Leadership

Education

B.F.A. PhotographyMay 2015

Texas State University

Certifications

PPA Certified Professional Photographer (CPP)
FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate
Adobe Certified Professional - Photoshop

Gear

Canon EOS R5 and R6 plus Sony A7 IV mirrorless bodies with a full prime and zoom lens kit
Profoto B10, B1X, and Pro strobes, softboxes, and grids for studio and location lighting
Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, and Capture One with Pixieset and ShootProof gallery delivery

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Key Skills for Photographer

Creative DirectionAdobe LightroomCapture OneStudio LightingImage LicensingColor GradingRetouchingTeam Leadership

ATS Keywords for Photographer

Use these naturally in your summary, skills, and experience when they reflect your background.

PhotographerCreative DirectionDirector of PhotographyAdobe LightroomPhotoshopCapture OneStudio LightingImage LicensingRetouchingColor GradingCommercial PhotographyTeam Leadership

How to Write a Senior Level Photographer Resume

At the senior level, a photographer resume must prove creative leadership and business impact, not just shooting skill: campaigns you art-directed, second shooters and retouchers you managed, editing standards you set, and licensing and client relationships you owned. It should read as someone who shapes a studio's output, not only their own frames.

Resume Writing Tips

Lead with creative direction

Describe campaigns you art-directed as director of photography - shot lists, lighting diagrams, color grading - and the brand consistency or catalog scale that resulted, showing you shape the vision, not just execute it.

Quantify the team you lead

State how many second shooters, retouchers, or assistants you manage and pair it with one outcome: consistent gallery style across a 50-wedding season or a turnaround cut after you set editing standards.

Show you own the business side

Cite licensing, usage rights, and client relationships you own. Negotiating tiered usage agreements and drafting model releases for 100-plus deliverables proves you protect revenue and understand commercial photography, not just the craft.

Skills to Highlight

Creative Direction

Detail a campaign you art-directed end to end, including how your shot lists, lighting design, and color grading unified a multi-shoot brand catalog across a team.

Team Leadership

Describe managing second shooters and retouchers, the editing standards you set, and the consistency or turnaround improvement that followed across the studio's output.

Image Licensing

Explain how you structured usage rights, licensing tiers, and model releases for commercial clients, and how it protected reprint revenue and reduced legal risk.

Color Grading

Cite a Lightroom or Capture One grading standard you built and enforced studio-wide, and the visual consistency it gave tens of thousands of annual deliverables.

Common Questions

How do I prove leadership if my title is still 'photographer'?

Titles lag scope. Describe the scope directly: shoots you art-directed, photographers and retouchers you managed, editing standards you set, and licensing you owned. Studios care about demonstrated impact on their output more than the label on your title.

Should I still show hands-on shooting?

Yes. Senior photography roles expect both, so name recent campaigns you personally shot alongside the teams and standards you lead. A full pivot to management reads as losing the craft the studio hired you for.

How do I frame the business and licensing side?

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