Bildjournalist/Bildjournalistin

Media related to this profession includes digital photography forums, articles addressing challenges for media professionals in their daily work, photography magazines, and publications on press photography and journalism.

Photojournalists primarily work at indoor and outdoor shooting locations and in offices. They may also work from home or remotely as needed.

Core competencies fundamentally required for this profession include visual reporting, visual media, digital photography, photo imaging technology, photography, mobile journalism, online editing, press photography, press law, publishing, and journalism. Additionally, other competencies that may be significant for practicing this profession include accessible media, digital image processing, image and sound technology, data journalism, digital asset management (DAM), digital storytelling, plain language, photo design, lighting technology, media conception, media management, media technology, multimedia systems, public relations, research, editorial work, reportage, storyboard creation, copyright, and managing exploitation rights and licenses. Furthermore, the competency groups 'Photography Specialties', 'Graphic, Image Processing, DTP, Multimedia Software', and 'Editorial Specialties' are also relevant.

Photojournalists use cameras to create images for media agencies, publishers, or internet image database providers, among others. Depending on the assignment, different lenses and equipment such as tripods may be necessary. Photojournalists photograph in various locations, both indoors and outdoors. They may be exposed to weather conditions and dress accordingly. They process the captured images in offices using image editing software on computers. They often work outside regular business hours and on weekends because they must adhere to the schedules of their photo partners and models, as well as current events. Photojournalists work largely independently. When choosing photo motifs, they observe the customer and service-oriented specifications of their clients. They conduct careful research in advance for each assignment.

Photojournalists can become self-employed, for example, by establishing an agency or working as a freelancer.

An exemplary monthly gross basic salary is 4,396 €. This information is sourced from the tariff collection of the Bavarian State Ministry for Family, Labor and Social Affairs. These figures are for orientation purposes only, and no claims can be derived from them.

This profession is found in fields such as journalism, news agencies (including news and press agencies), other distribution of media content (e.g., image archive services), publishing houses (publishing of books and newspapers as well as other publishing, excluding software, e.g., recordings for online and offline media), advertising (activities of advertising agencies, e.g., advertising and media agencies), and IT services (data processing, hosting, and related activities, e.g., providers of internet image databases).

Employers often expect an Ausbildung (vocational training), Weiterbildung (further training), or Studium (university degree) in journalism or photography.

Relevant fields of study for this profession include Photography (undergraduate), Photography (postgraduate), Journalism (undergraduate), and Journalism (postgraduate).

Photojournalists find employment with news and press agencies or image services, with PR and advertising agencies, in book, magazine, and newspaper publishing houses, in companies that produce online media, and in companies that offer internet image databases.

The common German job title is Bildjournalist/in. Other common synonyms include Fotojournalist/in and Fotoreporter/in. Comparable job titles in German-speaking countries abroad are Fotojournalist/in and Pressefotograf/in in Switzerland, and Fotojournalist/in, Fotoreporter/in, and Pressefotograf/in in Austria. In English, the titles are Photojournalist m/f or Press Photographer m/f. In French, they are Photographe de presse m/f or Reporter - photographe/Reportrice - photographe.

Photojournalists create news or documentary photographs, for example, for reports or news messages.

Job and applicant exchanges include: Blickpunkt FilmBVPA-JobbörsedasaugeDWDL.deHORIZONTJobsJournalist.deKress JobsLeanderWattigmedien.jobsmedienjobs.chnewsroom.deW&V - Werben & Verkaufen Stellenmarkt.

Relevant associations and organizations are: Berufsgenossenschaft Energie Textil Elektro Medienerzeugnisse BG ETEM, Deutsche Journalistinnen- und Journalisten-Union (dju) in ver.di, Deutscher Journalisten-Verband e.V. (DJV) Gewerkschaft der Journalistinnen/Journalisten, DFJV Deutscher Fachjournalisten-Verband AG, Institut zur Förderung des publizistischen Nachwuchses e.V. (ifp), Jugendpresse Deutschland e.V. Bundesverband junger Medienmacher, MVFP Medienverband der freien Presse e. V.

Working conditions include working with technical devices, machines, and systems (e.g., various cameras), manual work (e.g., setting up tripods for photoshoots), screen work (e.g., post-processing images with image editing software), outdoor work (e.g., taking photographs in nature), work in studios (e.g., shooting special portrait photos in studios), work on stages (e.g., taking photos of concerts and events), office work (e.g., conducting research for new articles, performing image editorial tasks). Additionally, working in cold, heat, wetness, humidity, and drafts (e.g., photographing events in cold winter temperatures or in mid-summer), irregular working hours (e.g., reacting to unforeseen events and photographing at all times of the day), customer contact (e.g., guiding models during photoshoots), and frequently changing tasks and work situations (e.g., switching between photography, image editing, and image editorial work) are part of this profession.

Work objects and tools include products such as photographs, photo prints, photo files; apparatus and accessories such as cameras, lenses, tripods, smartphones, storage media; documents such as customer correspondence, legal regulations on data protection and copyright; and office equipment and software such as PCs with image editing software, internet access, and telephones.

Photojournalists create photographs of current events, for example, in politics, culture, and sports (news photography) or on specific topics (documentary photography). They produce single shots or photo series, for example, to illustrate online articles or for photo reports. Afterwards, they review and edit the shots and transmit them to clients. They also create sound recordings or moving images. Photojournalists, especially in smaller editorial offices, also take on image editorial tasks. For example, they write texts or articles for their pictures.

Access professions/activities include: Photographer, Master Photographer/Bachelor Professional in Photography, and Journalist (Ausbildung - vocational training).

Continuing education for professional adaptation (Anpassungsweiterbildung) helps to keep professional knowledge up-to-date and adapt it to new developments (e.g., in the fields of photography, journalism, online editing).

Further career opportunities arise – depending on professional background – through continuing education for career advancement (Aufstiegsweiterbildung) (e.g., as a media specialist) or a bachelor's (grundständiges Studium) or master's (weiterführendes Studium) degree (e.g., in photography or journalism). Under certain conditions, it is also possible to study without a general higher education entrance qualification. For more information: Access to higher education in the individual Bundesländer (federal states).

Taking photographs; conducting research on current events or specific topics, e.g., to identify suitable shooting locations; planning shoots, e.g., regarding shooting positions, content, or atmosphere; providing images; reviewing, selecting, and if necessary, editing photographs and preparing them for print or online media, for example; creating brief information about the time and place of the shoot, people, or situations for later assignment; usually transmitting photographs digitally to clients, e.g., as a supplement to online articles; potentially performing image editing tasks; writing texts or articles for images; planning contributions, selecting texts and images, or creating texts oneself.

The following lists professions or activities that show similarities to the original profession. These professions represent a possible alternative for applicants. Furthermore, employers can consider individuals from these professions as alternatives for filling a position in the original profession. Some alternative professions only encompass partial activities of the original profession, while others require an induction period, which can vary in length in individual cases. The following immediate employment and staffing alternatives are available for the profession of Bildjournalist/in (Photojournalist): Job and staffing alternatives for the overall activity (usually short induction): Fotodesigner/Fotodesignerin (Photo Designer), Fotograf/Fotografin (Photographer), Fotografenmeister/Fotografenmeisterin/Bachelor Professional im Fotografen-Handwerk (Master Photographer/Bachelor Professional in Photography Craft), Journalist/Journalistin (Journalist). For professional specializations (usually short induction): Bildredakteur/Bildredakteurin (Picture Editor), Pressefotograf/Pressefotografin (Press Photographer). In related professions: Staatlich geprüfter Fotodesigner/Staatli (State-Certified Photo Designer).