Earning potential will be largely determined by where the instructor teaches. A community center does not have a large enough budget to pay the same amount as a university. For this reason, instructors can earn as little as $10 an hour to more than $175,000 a year.
The U.S. Department of Labor reports that art teachers working at postsecondary educational institutions earned a median salary of $80,360 a year in 2023. The lowest paid 10 percent earned $47,570 a year or less; the highest paid 10 percent earned $178,670 a year or more.
Teachers, including photography instructors, working in high schools in 2023 had earnings that ranged from less than $48,040 to $106,380 or more, with median earnings of $65,220. Self-enrichment teachers (including photography instructors who teach at community centers) earned a median salary of $45,330, with salaries that ranged from less than $28,600 to $85,980 or more.
Depending on where the instructor is employed, he or she may be eligible for health benefits and free or partially discounted tuition for family members.
- Art Directors
- Camera Operators
- Cinematographers and Directors of Photography
- Fashion Photographers
- Fashion Stylists
- Food Photographers
- Medical Illustrators and Photographers
- Non-Fungible Token Artists
- Photo Editors
- Photographers
- Photographic Equipment Technicians
- Photographic Laboratory Workers
- Photojournalists
- Publicity Photographers
- Sports Photographers