A Director of Photography (or Cinematographer) is responsible for crafting the visual language of a film through lighting, camera angles, camera movement, camera framing, and lens choices.

Working with the Director, they create the look and style of the film. In this role, the Director of Photography leads the Camera and Lighting Departments, (Drone Operators and Drone Pilots sometimes) which operate under their purview. Because of these responsibilities, a DP must understand both the creative and technical sensibilities that go into filming a movie, TV show, or other type of content.

The DP’s job begins prior to principal photography. During pre-production, they’ll discuss the Director’s vision for the film, aid in the creation of storyboards and shot lists for production, and begin making their camera and other equipment selections.

Once principal photography is completed, the DP may still be looked to for instruction and guidance as the film is cut together and color correction is applied to it.

To learn about what it takes to become a Director of Photography, we spoke to the following DPs:

• Paul Hughen (WandaVision, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame)
• Polly Morgan (A Quiet Place Part II, Legion, American Horror Story)
• Chris Seager (Carnival Row, Watchmen, Six Minutes to Midnight)

The salary range for a Director of Photography working on a studio feature can fall anywhere between $5,000 and $30,000 a week.

However, Directors of Photography who work on studio-backed films in a given year comprise a fraction of total working DPs across all mediums. As such, the average annual salary for a DP is around $65,000.

The daily rate of pay for Directors of Photography varies greatly because of several factors, including the type of production, experience of the DP, and whether or not that DP is part of a union such as the International Cinematographers Guild, or IATSE Local 600, which will establish a base rate for its members.

Many emerging DPs may work for a nominal fee at the beginning of their careers. Especially if they start out in student or short films, their daily rate might be as low as a few hundred dollars. If they are trying to build their body of work, they might even work for free.

DPs who are a bit more established, such as those who shoot commercials or music videos, may earn a daily rate of up to $1,500. Once a DP comes on board higher-profile projects like a TV show or a feature film, they can then earn higher daily rates. For such professionals, a daily rate of $3,500 or more is not unusual.

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While most people look to the Director as the most important person on a film or other type of entertainment, the truth is that a great DP can have as much influence on that piece of content.

For this reason, those seeking to become a Director of Photography can reach incredible levels of career success. That being said, to gain that success, they must understand how to master the moving image, which takes both technical and creative expertise.

To gain that comprehensive understanding of both how an image is formed and how it can achieve a desired emotional impact, many aspiring DPs begin their careers with some type of formal training such as film school or photography school.

While it may take several years for them to become proficient, ultimately it can be to an emerging DP’s benefit, as they can more quickly establish a daily rate for themselves on account of their education. Given that a formal education also affords emerging DPs the chance to work on a number of student films, this too can help them hit the ground running after graduation.

From there, it’s often a matter of continuing to both nurture their professional relationships and develop their skills that will help young DPs build on their foundation of success and be asked to shoot bigger and more complex productions.

With these higher-profile projects, DPs will invariably be paid more as well. Depending on the career aspirations of a DP, some will go on to shoot acclaimed films or TV shows or even transition into the Director’s role.

As with virtually every other specialty in the entertainment field, the success of a DP relies on a combination of their work ethic, ability to form and maintain professional connections, and the mastering of multiple skillsets.

Understanding how different types of cameras work and how to construct lighting schemes are skills that can be learned on the job, but in many cases, aspiring DPs will go to school to do so. As a result, a fair number of DPs begin their career paths with a formal education.

While college or a technical program can afford aspiring DPs the chance to shoot small projects, once they graduate, they likely will first work as Camera Operators or 1st ACs as they continue to gain the expertise necessary to become DPs on bigger projects.

If an aspiring DP decides to forego the college experience, they may then begin their career paths as Interns or Production Assistants to gain the rudimentary knowledge necessary to understanding how filmmaking works.

With enough experience, emerging DPs can eventually take on smaller gigs that will help them build their resume of work. Because experience is so vital to the growing and continued success of a DP, it’s important to take on a variety of jobs that can expose them to different types of projects and genres that will help to develop and hone their skills.

Along with being open to gigs that can deepen their expertise, DPs must always be nurturing their professional relationships, as it’s often the Directors, Producers, and Gaffers they work with on a project who are likely to be the people recommending them for the next one.

To varying degrees, many specialties in production involve a combination of technical and creative skillsets, and that of a Director of Photography is no different.

As mentioned, a DP must understand the technical aspects of the equipment they use to capture a moving image. That means how the camera and lighting equipment work separately and together to produce the intended image in every shot. While a DP works in an industry with moving images, often they can gain a strong foundation of knowledge by understanding still photography.

Outside of these technical skills, DPs must also understand how to create an emotional tone to each project they work on. On some productions, a Director might want the imagery to capture very realistically what is being shot. On other projects, the Director might be inclined toward creating visuals with a more stylized look intended to draw the attention of the audience. It’s up to the DP to carry out the instructions of the Director by understanding their creative vision and knowing how their equipment can achieve it through technical means.

A DP must also know how to manage others. Though larger productions will provide support to a Director of Photography so that they can concentrate more thoroughly on the task at hand, a DP must still run the Camera and Lighting Departments, which means understanding how to communicate with the crew and making sure they’re able to carry out their responsibilities to achieve each desired shot.

All these skillsets–technical knowhow, creative vision, crew management–can only really be developed with time and experience. That is why it is so important for DPs to take on all the opportunities that they reasonably can handle to gain that expertise and deepen mastery of their specialty.

Cinematography is universally acknowledged as a fundamental part of the filmmaking process, which is why many film schools have programs with a heavy focus on it. Institutions big and small have film production options that will allow students to explore the world of cinematography, but certainly the globally-known schools like UCLA, USC, NYU, and AFI can provide a top-notch education for aspiring DPs.

But you don’t have to attend a top five film school to gain the experience necessary for becoming a proficient DP. What really matters is making the most of whatever opportunities you do have. That largely translates into saying yes to whatever productions you can that will allow you to flex those DP muscles. Especially for beginner DPs, it’s important to gain experience with student and short films.

If going to college to learn cinematography isn’t an option, aspiring DPs can absolutely still gain the training they’ll need through more compact courses or an abundance of on-set experience. In particular, for someone just starting out who has decided to forego a formal education, their initial training as a DP will likely come in the form of being an Intern or PA on set.

While Production Assistants are typically called upon to perform basic tasks such as grabbing lunch or helping with cleanup, aspiring DPs should pay particular attention to the needs of the Camera and Lighting Departments. By anticipating the needs of those crew members, an emerging DP can form connections with them and potentially be tapped to work on future productions as a PA for those specific departments, which can foster the learning process.

No matter where an aspiring DP begins, they should keep in mind that their education never really ends. Especially with continual advances in camera technology, even the most veteran DPs must keep on top of all the latest trends and evolutions in filmmaking.

Morgan explains that you enter the Local 600 Camera Union under different roles:

“It takes time to be accepted into the union as a DP. I started in the union as a Camera Assistant and eventually moved across the union to a DP classification. You have to pay a fairly hefty sum of money to join the union, but you do get a pension and health insurance thereafter. If you join too early, you have to pay a lot to join as annual dues can be costly at first.”

If you are at the start of your career, Morgan advises, “Don’t be in a hurry to join a union or get an Agent — it eats up your money if you’re not working enough. Build up your non-union days first and, once you’re working regularly, consider joining.”

The criteria for joining the Local 600 change all the time, so check the website for up-to-date information.