Motion Picture Camera Operators

Median Salary: $42,900

Many motion picture camera operators across the United States share a few important professional attributes. For example, stress tolerance, adaptability/flexibility, and independence can be crucial for success in the industry, especially when blended with career training. Around 17,540 individuals were employed as motion picture camera operators nationwide in 2009. With that much workplace competition, it's vital to utilize these traits and receive formal training, particularly if you're preparing to advance in the field.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual income for motion picture camera operators in the U.S. was $42,900 in 2009, which works out to a median hourly wage of $20.60. Of course, income can vary with training and by locale. Below, you'll find more data about motion picture camera operators, including wages and job density for metro areas all over the United States.

Motion picture camera operators should be skilled in:

Oral Comprehension
Speech Recognition
Far Vision
Originality
Written Expression

Different individuals go into different careers; motion picture camera operators are typically:

Realistic
Artistic
Conventional

Working as a motion picture camera operator requires knowledge in subjects like:

Computers and Electronics
Communications and Media
English Language
Customer and Personal Service

Related Occupations

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Below, you'll see links to more information on the top cities for this occupation (based on the number of individuals employed as motion picture camera operators). Note: "Job density" refers to the proportion of motion picture camera operators in each city as compared to the national average.

Alabama
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Birmingham	NA	$34,200	$16.40	$39,900	$19.20	NA

Arizona
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Phoenix	180	$65,600	$31.50	$79,300	$38.10	-22.4%

California
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Fresno	NA	$49,100	$23.60	$63,500	$30.60	NA
Los Angeles (Area)	2,200	$49,800	$24.00	$93,900	$45.20	116.4%
Oakland	NA	$57,600	$27.70	$76,400	$36.70	NA
Riverside	30	$48,100	$23.10	$54,600	$26.20	-79.9%
Sacramento	120	$45,200	$21.70	$56,600	$27.20	5.2%
Salinas	NA	$65,900	$31.70	$113,700	$54.60	NA
San Diego	320	$30,600	$14.70	$42,900	$20.60	88.8%
San Francisco (Area)	NA	$62,300	$29.90	$82,200	$39.50	NA
San Francisco (City)	260	$66,900	$32.20	$88,000	$42.30	97.8%
San Jose	50	$37,300	$17.90	$68,400	$32.90	-56.7%
Santa Barbara	30	$53,500	$25.70	$60,400	$29.10	52.2%

Colorado
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Colorado Springs	30	$30,400	$14.60	$39,300	$18.90	4.5%
Denver	280	$56,600	$27.20	$67,700	$32.50	73.9%

Connecticut
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Hartford	360	NA	NA	NA	NA	377.6%

District of Columbia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Washington (Area)	670	$53,600	$25.80	$75,400	$36.20	120.1%

Florida
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Cape Coral	NA	$36,500	$17.50	$46,300	$22.30	NA
Jacksonville	120	$22,600	$10.90	$31,000	$14.90	59%
Miami (Area)	360	$35,900	$17.30	$47,300	$22.70	48.5%
Orlando	180	$34,600	$16.60	$42,600	$20.50	39.6%
Tampa	200	$41,300	$19.90	$49,100	$23.60	30.6%

Georgia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Atlanta	500	$50,000	$24.00	$61,600	$29.60	61.9%

Hawaii
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Honolulu	80	$35,900	$17.30	$57,900	$27.80	43.3%

Idaho
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Boise City	NA	$19,400	$9.30	$43,100	$20.70	NA

Illinois
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Chicago (Area)	400	$37,300	$17.90	$59,000	$28.40	-19.4%
Peoria	40	$23,200	$11.10	$32,800	$15.80	87.3%

Indiana
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Indianapolis	NA	$75,500	$36.30	$84,700	$40.70	NA

Iowa
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Des Moines	60	$38,900	$18.70	$45,100	$21.70	27.6%

Kansas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Wichita	30	$30,800	$14.80	$58,000	$27.90	-16.4%

Kentucky
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Elizabethtown	30	$46,000	$22.10	$56,100	$27.00	478.4%
Louisville	70	$33,300	$16.00	$55,100	$26.50	-6%

Louisiana
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Baton Rouge	60	$30,600	$14.70	$38,200	$18.40	23.9%
New Orleans	120	$31,500	$15.20	$38,900	$18.70	74.6%

Maryland
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Baltimore	190	$47,000	$22.60	$64,800	$31.20	10.4%

Massachusetts
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Boston (Area)	240	$66,000	$31.70	$88,900	$42.70	8.2%

Michigan
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Detroit (Area)	NA	$50,400	$24.20	$62,900	$30.30	NA
Grand Rapids	50	$24,500	$11.80	$27,800	$13.30	8.2%

Minnesota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Minneapolis	100	$46,500	$22.40	$54,700	$26.30	-55.2%

Missouri
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Kansas City	110	$35,500	$17.10	$42,500	$20.40	-15.7%
Springfield	NA	$24,800	$11.90	$33,200	$15.90	NA
St. Louis	180	$50,000	$24.00	$72,100	$34.70	6%

Nebraska
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Omaha	40	$40,200	$19.30	$46,900	$22.60	-27.6%

Nevada
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Las Vegas	90	$44,400	$21.30	$59,800	$28.80	-20.1%
Reno	50	$36,300	$17.40	$57,300	$27.60	88.1%

New Mexico
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Albuquerque	NA	$65,600	$31.50	$117,200	$56.30	NA

New York
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Albany	70	$59,100	$28.40	$75,300	$36.20	12.7%
Buffalo	80	$27,100	$13.00	$48,000	$23.10	6%
New York (Area)	NA	$45,300	$21.80	$56,300	$27.10	NA
Rochester	NA	$34,000	$16.40	$45,200	$21.70	NA
Syracuse	30	$39,200	$18.90	$63,300	$30.50	-20.1%

North Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Charlotte	100	$34,200	$16.50	$48,800	$23.50	-12.7%
Durham	40	$47,100	$22.60	$51,900	$24.90	4.5%
Raleigh	40	$41,000	$19.70	$48,100	$23.10	-44%

North Dakota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Fargo	40	$20,900	$10.00	$25,000	$12.00	126.1%

Ohio
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Cincinnati	80	$45,600	$21.90	$58,100	$27.90	-41%
Cleveland	110	$65,500	$31.50	$73,600	$35.40	-16.4%
Columbus	100	$60,100	$28.90	$69,800	$33.60	-17.9%
Dayton	70	$32,300	$15.50	$50,700	$24.40	45.5%
Youngstown	30	$29,200	$14.10	$41,000	$19.70	5.2%

Oklahoma
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Oklahoma City	NA	$22,600	$10.90	$25,700	$12.30	NA
Tulsa	90	$30,500	$14.60	$40,200	$19.30	53.7%

Oregon
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Eugene	NA	$35,500	$17.10	$41,600	$20.00	NA
Medford	NA	$19,400	$9.30	$20,400	$9.80	NA
Portland	190	$58,400	$28.10	$152,800	$73.50	41%

Pennsylvania
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Philadelphia (Area)	NA	$41,300	$19.90	$58,200	$28.00	NA
Pittsburgh	180	$36,800	$17.70	$46,500	$22.40	20.9%
Scranton	40	$27,600	$13.30	$30,800	$14.80	19.4%

Rhode Island
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Providence	50	$42,400	$20.40	$49,800	$24.00	-37.3%

South Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Charleston	60	$28,000	$13.50	$33,100	$15.90	59%
Columbia	40	$30,400	$14.60	$44,500	$21.40	-17.9%
Greenville	40	$52,400	$25.20	$84,300	$40.50	-1.5%

South Dakota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Sioux Falls	30	$20,800	$10.00	$24,900	$12.00	84.3%

Tennessee
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Knoxville	40	$35,200	$16.90	$55,400	$26.60	-9.7%
Memphis	NA	$47,500	$22.80	$60,900	$29.30	NA
Nashville	140	$35,800	$17.20	$48,300	$23.20	41.8%

Texas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Austin	50	$28,600	$13.70	$39,700	$19.10	-50%
Corpus Christi	NA	$24,900	$12.00	$37,500	$18.00	NA
Dallas (Area)	150	$42,100	$20.20	$52,600	$25.30	-43.3%
Houston	60	$21,100	$10.10	$44,700	$21.50	-82.1%
San Antonio	50	$48,200	$23.20	$54,400	$26.20	-54.5%

Utah
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Provo	NA	$56,900	$27.40	$61,400	$29.50	NA
Salt Lake City	60	$48,300	$23.20	$60,600	$29.10	-29.1%

Virginia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Richmond	50	$50,300	$24.20	$61,400	$29.50	-33.6%
Virginia Beach	210	$48,600	$23.30	$63,000	$30.30	112.7%

Washington
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Seattle (Area)	300	$63,800	$30.70	$74,800	$36.00	61.9%

Wisconsin
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Madison	50	$29,500	$14.20	$59,900	$28.80	5.2%
Milwaukee	90	$25,700	$12.30	$50,100	$24.10	-14.2%