Photography Digital Technician Certificate of Achievement
City College of San Francisco · San Francisco, CA
- Cost
- $906
- Length
- 34 weeks
- Working 6 months later
- Not reported
Program names, program descriptions and occupation titles appear here in English, because that is the only language the federal and state records publish them in. Everything else on this page is translated.
What happened to people who took this
No outcomes reported for this program
About a third of California programs report nothing. That is a fact about the program's reporting, not evidence that it works or does not.
The jobs this trains for
This describes the jobs people do, not the classes this program teaches. It comes from the U.S. Department of Labor, which asks people already doing the work. The Department publishes it in English only, so the job names and the sentences below stay in English on this page.
Trains for more than one job. The outlook shown is the weakest of them.
Where California publishes a separate figure for San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD (San Francisco and San Mateo Counties), it appears beneath the statewide one. Statewide stays the headline: people who train here do not necessarily work here.
Lighting Technicians
The Department publishes no list of daily tasks for this job. This is how it describes the work instead.
Set up, maintain, and dismantle light fixtures, lighting control devices, and the associated lighting electrical and rigging equipment used for photography, television, film, video, and live productions. May focus or operate light fixtures, or attach color filters or other lighting accessories.
- Typical pay in California
- $96,703per yearSan Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: $66,049
- Projected openings
- 2,490San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 110
- Projected change
- 0%
- Usually needs
- Postsecondary non-degree award
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- Under a month
No earlier job experience is expected, and new hires are not put through a long training period. For work like this, a program is usually the way in.
These are the federal government's answers for the occupation, not rules this provider sets. California publishes the same two answers for every one of these jobs.
What people in this job actually studied
Most common: Four-year degree — 36% of the people doing this work.
California says this job usually needs: Postsecondary non-degree award. That is not one of the steps below, so there is no way to count how many people meet it.
- No high school diploma
- 3%
- High school diploma
- 15%
- Started college, no degree
- 28%
- Two-year degree
- 12%
- Four-year degree
- 36%
- Master's degree
- 6%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 1%
This counts people already doing this job, across the whole United States. Every other figure on this page is California's, and the federal government publishes no state version of this one. It is what people happen to have, not a rule about who gets hired. A small row does not mean you would be turned away, and a large one is not a promise of a job. It is also measured on a different scale from “Usually needs” above, so the two cannot be subtracted from one another.
Photographers
Pay, hiring, and what people studied
Job ads may call this: Photo Editor · Photographer · Photojournalist · Sports Photographer
- Adjust apertures, shutter speeds, and camera focus according to a combination of factors, such as lighting, field depth, subject motion, film type, and film speed.
- Create artificial light, using flashes and reflectors.
- Determine desired images and picture composition, selecting and adjusting subjects, equipment, and lighting to achieve desired effects.
- Transfer photographs to computers for editing, archiving, and electronic transmission.
Show 4 more things this job involves
- Use traditional or digital cameras, along with a variety of equipment, such as tripods, filters, and flash attachments.
- Take pictures of individuals, families, and small groups, either in studio or on location.
- Manipulate and enhance scanned or digital images to create desired effects, using computers and specialized software.
- Test equipment prior to use to ensure that it is in good working order.
- Typical pay in California
- $49,179per yearSan Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: $99,921
- Projected openings
- 21,270San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 1,660
- Projected change
- +6.4%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- 1 to 12 months
What people in this job actually studied
Most common: Four-year degree — 43% of the people doing this work.
California says this job usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent. 3% of the people doing it went less far than that.
- No high school diploma
- 3%
- High school diploma
- 11%
- Started college, no degree
- 22%
- Two-year degree
- 12%
- Four-year degree
- 43%
- Master's degree
- 9%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 1%
Camera Operators, Television, Video, and Film
Pay, hiring, and what people studied
Job ads may call this: Cameraman · Videographer · Camera Operator · News Videographer
- Compose and frame each shot, applying the technical aspects of light, lenses, film, filters, and camera settings to achieve the effects sought by directors.
- Operate television or motion picture cameras to record scenes for television broadcasts, advertising, or motion pictures.
- Edit video for broadcast productions, including non-linear editing.
- Instruct camera operators regarding camera setups, angles, distances, movement, and variables and cues for starting and stopping filming.
Show 4 more things this job involves
- Adjust positions and controls of cameras, printers, and related equipment to change focus, exposure, and lighting.
- Confer with directors, sound and lighting technicians, electricians, and other crew members to discuss assignments and determine filming sequences, desired effects, camera movements, and lighting requirements.
- Operate zoom lenses, changing images according to specifications and rehearsal instructions.
- Observe sets or locations for potential problems and to determine filming and lighting requirements.
- Typical pay in California
- $109,892per yearSan Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: $91,169
- Projected openings
- 5,700San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 1,010
- Projected change
- +7.7%
- Usually needs
- Bachelor's degree
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- None
No earlier job experience is expected, and new hires are not put through a long training period. For work like this, a program is usually the way in.
What people in this job actually studied
Most common: Four-year degree — 56% of the people doing this work.
California says this job usually needs: Bachelor's degree. 35% of the people doing it went less far than that.
- No high school diploma
- 1%
- High school diploma
- 8%
- Started college, no degree
- 18%
- Two-year degree
- 8%
- Four-year degree
- 56%
- Master's degree
- 8%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 1%
Program details
This program provides in-person instruction only.
Completion of this program helps student prepare for a permanentor freelance position as a Digital Technician. A Digital Tech is animportant part of a commercial photography team who is responsiblefor camera handling, file transfer, management and backup, post production preview and on set assisting.https://www.ccsf.edu/degrees-certificates/photography.
Someone else may be able to pay for this
This program was on California's Eligible Training Provider List when the state last reported it to the U.S. Department of Labor (2026-08-04). Programs on that list can be paid for through an Individual Training Account. Listings are renewed periodically and can lapse, so a program listed when the state last reported may not be listed today. Ask before you rely on it.
The place to ask is an America's Job Center of California
A comprehensive center is where all the required partner programs can be reached; an affiliate site offers some of them. California's Employment Development Department directs people to CareerOneStop's finder to locate one. Contacting a center before traveling is worth it — the state notes that its own staff are not physically present at every location.
The rule: 20 CFR 678.305 — What is a comprehensive one-stop center? · 20 CFR 678.310 — What is an affiliated site? · California EDD — Office Locator
Human Services Agency of San FranciscoAffiliate site
Phone: 415-401-4800
3120 Mission StreetHSA-Mission OfficeSan Francisco, CA 94110about 2.2 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
EDD Workforce Service - San Francisco Civic CenterAffiliate site
Phone: 415-749-7503
801 Turk StreetEDD BuildingSan Francisco, CA 94102-3117about 4.4 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Has a veterans' representative
Goodwill Centralized Job CenterComprehensive center
Phone: 415-575-4570
750 Post StreetGoodwill of the San Francisco BaySan Francisco, CA 94109about 4.9 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 10:00am-4:00pm
Has a veterans' representative
Distances are straight-line, so the drive is longer. Call before you travel: opening hours here are as the federal directory published them, and the state notes its own staff are not present at every location.
Find a center anywhere in California, and check what is on the list today:
CareerOneStop — American Job Center Finder (U.S. DOL) · California EDD — Office Locator · California EDD — Eligible Training Provider List
How this gets paid for, and what to ask →
Whether a person can have a program paid for is decided by their local workforce development board and the America's Job Center staff who interview them — not by this site, and not by the training provider. California has 45 local workforce development areas and each sets its own policies, so the answer can differ between two people in neighboring counties. Nothing here is a promise of funding or a determination of eligibility.
The rules cited here, and the state and federal sites linked to, are published in English.
How this site gets its figures, and what they do not tell you →