Director of photography
Directors of photography (DoPs) manage lighting and camera crews on TV and film productions to create the right look and feel for images.
Typical Salary
£21,000 – £35,000
per year
Working Hours
39–41
hours per week
Day-to-day tasks
As part of your role, you will:
- visit a location before filming, known as a 'recce', to check its suitability
- hire filming and lighting equipment
- test equipment before filming
- manage all aspects of filming, sometimes operating a camera
- supervise the camera crew to decide on any special camera moves
- work closely with the lighting team to decide on lighting techniques
- review film footage with the director
Skills needed
- knowledge of computer operating systems, hardware and software
- knowledge of media production and communication
- to be flexible and open to change
- to be thorough and pay attention to detail
- the ability to work well with others
- the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
- the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
- excellent verbal communication skills
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages confidently
How to get into this role
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- a college course
- working towards this role
- specialist courses run by private training providers
Career progression
With experience, you could work on TV and film productions with bigger budgets, or become a director or producer.
Many DoPs work freelance. You could earn a salary significantly higher than average if you work on big budget films.