Also called: Culinary Photographer
Photographs food for menus, cookbooks, ads, and websites.
You set up lights and props, shoot a dish from 20 angles, and edit the best shots. You work with stylists and chefs on cookbook shoots that last weeks. Restaurant clients need fresh photos every season.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Photography training; bachelor's or self-taught portfolio.
Ways in: 4-year college, Self-taught, 2-year college. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Photography, Visual Arts.
Growing about average (about 2% over 10 years). Grouped with photographers.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. AI image tools now create menu and ad food photos cheaply, so fewer paid shoots; high-end editorial work remains.
Classes: Photography, Digital media, Art.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-4021.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.