How To Become An Aerial Photographer: What It Is and Career Path

What is an aerial photographer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an aerial photographer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $38.86 an hour? That's $80,832 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 9% and produce 11,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreAerial PhotographerUS Average

Salary

6.3

Avg. Salary $80,832

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

4.5

Growth Rate 9%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 6.99%

Black or African American 6.29%

Hispanic or Latino 15.05%

Unknown 5.48%

White 65.95%

Gender

female 12.37%

male 87.63%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress Level

4.5

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

6.5

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

1.9

Work Life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an aerial photographer

Explore aerial photographer education requirements

Most common aerial photographer degrees

Bachelor's

56.9 %

Associate

21.6 %

Master's

9.8 %

Start to develop specific aerial photographer skills

Skills	Percentages
GPS	43.05%
Real Estate	25.24%
Photographic Equipment	19.24%
Adobe Photoshop	12.48%

Complete relevant aerial photographer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New aerial photographers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an aerial photographer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real aerial photographer resumes.

Research aerial photographer duties and responsibilities

Coordinate and manage providing and dressing the customers with old western costumes in preparation of taking their photos.
Document GPS data in reference to each exposure taken and assuring quality and correct photographic standards are used.
Compile portfolios for multiple photography competitions/certifications.
Compile portfolios for multiple photography competitions/certifications.

Prepare your aerial photographer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your aerial photographer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an aerial photographer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Aerial Photographer Resume templates

Build a professional Aerial Photographer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Aerial Photographer resume.

Apply for aerial photographer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an aerial photographer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do aerial photographers rate their job?