Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) are designed to be delivered within a course of education. Some Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours may be more safely and reliably delivered in workplace settings, so may not be fully covered by the HTQ. Some qualifications will deliver additional content or added depth and breadth through, for example, use of specialist learning environments, work placements or innovative teaching methods. Check with the qualification provider if you require further information on coverage.
This occupation is found in multiple sectors including government, scientific, crime, social, commercial, cultural heritage, media, journalism and advertising.
Photographic companies and studios vary in size and the number of employees they have, and are described as small, medium, or large companies. A large proportion of photographers are freelance or self-employed, operating their own studio or supplying multiple clients. They are to be found across England and the UK.
The output and remit of a Photographic studio is varied, and they will produce work for a range of clients across subject areas. Some studios may specialise in one subject area, e.g. wedding or portrait photography.
The broad purpose of the occupation is to work autonomously and with customers or clients collaborating with other departments as required to produce, manage and deliver photographic assets to meet agreed requirements.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with clients, subjects, retouchers and other stakeholders involved in the production of images. They will set up and operate photographic equipment in a manner to obtain the best image in accordance with the customer/client brief.
They will need to be aware of the activities of their occupation which contribute to their “professional carbon footprint” and steps to reduce this.
This is a junior level role, and the line management and reporting structure of the team will vary according to the size of the employer, this could involve working to a supervisory photographer. Learners must be able to take direction and feedback, to create the photographic images required, according to the brief.
They can work in indoor studios as well as outside locations using digital or film cameras; producing stills or video imagery of a variety of subjects and objects for a wide range of uses. Photographers tend to work in digital formats with DSLR or mirrorless cameras. A very small number of specialist photographers may use analogue equipment with silver-based imaging but this is not mainstream. Photographers offering video imaging services to customers/clients is increasing. Use of associated technology such as drones is also becoming more common.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for, carrying out skilled work in the photographic industry to generate, print or publish a photographic image. Some staff working in specialist areas will be responsible for processing and printing imagery from photographic films using non-digital equipment.
Upon successful completion of the apprenticeship, the individual may move into further and higher education, or secure employment or self-employment in the respective sector of the photographic industry they have worked in.
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Duty 1 Ensure work and professional practice complies with legal, regulatory and ethical codes, guidelines and principles. |
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Duty 2 Review your own professional practice and keep up-to-date with trends and technology. |
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Duty 3 Interpret a photographic brief, scope, evaluate and develop ideas for the images. |
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Duty 4 Work autonomously and with customers or clients collaborating with other departments as required to ensure that the photographic images are delivered to meet agreed requirements. |
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Duty 5 Set-up, operate and maintain current industry standard photographic equipment and software. |
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Duty 6 Produce photographic assets to meet the requirements of the brief. |
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Duty 7 Manage photographic assets through the workflow in line with organisational requirements for organising, storing and retrieving assets. |
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Duty 8 Edit and post produce photographic content to meet the requirements of the brief |
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Duty 9 Set up and/or follow photographic file management protocols, file and store data securely. |
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K1: Range of functions, roles and skills within photo imaging and employers and professional bodies representing the industry.
Back to Duty
K2: Approaches to and resources for maintaining up-to-date knowledge of existing and evolving technology, trends and platforms.
Back to Duty
K3: Own responsibilities towards health and safety and how to recognise and address environmental hazards in their workplace.
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K4: Legislation, regulations and guidance for the photo imaging industry including copyright and intellectual property, GDPR, model release and photography of children.
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K5: Insurance requirements including professional indemnity and public liability.
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K6: Camera settings and the relationship between; aperture, shutter speed and ISO.
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K7: How to interpret a photographic brief prior to a shoot including client/colleague engagement.
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K8: Potential factors that can affect what can be achieved upon receiving the brief including aesthetics, own personal style, legal and ethical matters.
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K9: Resource requirements including budget, time, suppliers, technical specifications and sustainability considerations.
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K10: Own business or organisation’s strategy and objectives, the business environment and business issues related to photographic projects and customer needs.
Back to Duty
K11: How and when to work independently or interact within a team, understanding own role within the organisation.
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K12: Importance of communications and customer/client service to the organisation, including how to handle enquiries, comments and complaints.
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K13: How to safely set up, operate and store photographic equipment in different environments and situations.
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K14: Causes of common faults/issues in photographic equipment, fault- finding, the maintenance and fixing of faults and knowing when to escalate an issue.
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K15: Principles of light including using available light combinations (e.g., daylight, free- standing lights and camera mounted flash), lenses and exposure.
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K16: Principles of composition such as rule of thirds, leading lines and symmetry.
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K17: End-to-end photographic workflow and planning process, the key stages including postproduction and own role and responsibilities within this.
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K18: Importance of metadata and keywording in allowing for the search and proper identifications of stored images and how to enter key metadata to store specific information in photo editing software in the workplace.
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K19: Range of available industry-standard software relevant to image retouching and how to use it.
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K20: Colour management – the reasons for, and use of, colour profiles and the calibration of monitors for printing purposes.
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K21: How to manage different formats, including the digitisation of historic images and how to convert file formats, selecting the most appropriate file format and the significance of lossy or lossless compression.
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K22: Concepts and techniques of video editing required to construct video sequences and edit points to tell a story using industry-standard editing systems.
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K23: How to make sure the imaging system is secure, free from viruses and password protected.
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K24: Own organisation’s procedures relating to sending and receiving material in the format to meet the customer/client brief.
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S1: Comply with legislation, regulations and guidance including copyright and health & safety.
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S2: Provide necessary permissions for use of images and issue licenses for own work as required.
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S3: Use reliable information to keep up-to-date with the new tools, equipment, and other related technology, and how they affect own work.
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S4: Discuss with the customer/client the purpose of the work, objectives, the deadline, budget and amount of flexibility in meeting the brief.
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S5: Use the information gathered from the customer/client to review, evaluate and select the preferred approach to the work.
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S6: Prepare and present the possible approaches to the brief to the client/customer.
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S7: Identify and mitigate health and safety issues likely to arise from the brief.
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S8: Manage own workload and operate both individually and as part of a wider photographic team, keeping internal and external stakeholders updated on progress and reporting any issues arising.
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S9: Manage developing situations with customers/clients such as customer relations, complaints, dissatisfaction and business environment and know when to escalate these as required.
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S10: Select equipment and resources suitable for the task considering, the end purpose of the imagery, the location and existing light conditions.
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S11: Assemble and position equipment safely, checking for any issues and carrying out repairs as required.
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S12: Determine the camera settings and lighting arrangements to meet the task and adjust if required.
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S13: Take images that achieve the viewpoint, composition and point of focus.
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S14: Record, clearly and accurately, information required throughout workflow.
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S15: Embed copyright and other key metadata information in images in standard image file formats.
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S16: Assign keywords to classify images including by content, topic and concept.
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S17: Manage key metadata so it is preserved throughout the workflow to storage.
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S18: Export finished content or work-in-progress with metadata, from post-production systems to the customer/client.
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S19: Determine an agreed approach with the client/customer to be adopted for retouching the image(s) in line with their requirements.
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S20: Produce retouched images, check the quality of the retouched images against client requirements and workplace standards.
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S21: Follow protocol to save the retouched image files in the correct format ready for outputting or storage.
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S22: Implement workplace security procedures to check the system security, virus protection and file security.
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S23: Diagnose any problems in the imaging system using problem solving techniques.
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S24: Review and implement procedures in place to maintain a history of all image files.
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S25: Undertake continuing professional development within the role, reflecting systematically on progress and identifying opportunities for meaningful improvement.
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B1: Works collaboratively to build and maintain positive relationships with colleagues, customers/clients and suppliers.
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B2: Takes ownership of work, with a strong work ethic and commitment to achieving high standards.
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B3: Committed to keeping up to date with new technologies, including viable sustainability solutions, and industry best practice. Resourceful in finding creative solutions to solve problems.
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B4: Works in a professional and ethical manner, embracing equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
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B5: Reflective. Considers the results of the images or videography created and identifies areas for improvement or re-use.
Back to Duty
Qualification type: HTQ
Qualification level: 5
Applicant: New College Durham
Awarding body: New College Durham
Approval date: 28/10/2024
Occupational pathway: N/A
Placement: No
ST1388 Photographer
Qualification type: HTQ
Qualification level: 4
Applicant: Pearson Education Ltd
Awarding body: Pearson Education Ltd
Approval date: 28/10/2024
Occupational pathway: N/A
Placement: No
ST1388 Photographer
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