What You'll Do

  • Create prints according to customer specifications and laboratory protocols.
  • Examine developed prints for defects, such as broken lines, spots, or blurs.
  • Fill tanks of processing machines with solutions such as developer, dyes, stop-baths, fixers, bleaches, or washes.
  • Immerse film, negatives, paper, or prints in developing solutions, fixing solutions, and water to complete photographic development processes.
  • Insert processed negatives and prints into envelopes for delivery to customers.
  • Load circuit boards, racks or rolls of film, negatives, or printing paper into processing or printing machines.
  • Load digital images onto computers directly from cameras or from storage devices, such as flash memory cards or universal serial bus (USB) devices.
  • Maintain records, such as quantities or types of processing completed, materials used, or customer charges.
  • Measure and mix chemicals to prepare solutions for processing, according to formulas.
  • Monitor equipment operation to detect malfunctions.

Essential Skills

Operations Monitoring 3.5/5
Active Listening 3.38/5
Quality Control Analysis 3.38/5
Reading Comprehension 3.25/5
Speaking 3.25/5
Service Orientation 3.25/5
Critical Thinking 3.12/5
Monitoring 3.12/5
Complex Problem Solving 3.12/5
Operation and Control 3.12/5
Judgment and Decision Making 3.0/5
Time Management 3.0/5

Career Fit Overview

Use this summary to understand the kind of profile this role rewards. It helps you judge whether this career looks like a stronger match than your current role, a nearby move worth exploring, or a broader path to compare more seriously.

Top passions

  • Maker: Building and fixing energizes you. You like tangible results and practical tools.
  • Organizer: Bringing order to data and processes satisfies you.
  • Artist: Creating original work and expressing ideas feels natural.

Common styles

Attention to Detail, Dependability, Cautiousness, Adaptability, Perseverance

Want a personal read on fit? Take the free assessment and compare this career to your current role, nearby alternatives, and broader stronger-fit options.

Key Abilities

This career demands strong capabilities in the following areas:

Near Vision 3.75/5
Oral Comprehension 3.62/5
Visual Color Discrimination 3.62/5
Oral Expression 3.5/5
Written Comprehension 3.38/5
Deductive Reasoning 3.25/5
Information Ordering 3.25/5
Flexibility of Closure 3.25/5

Technologies & Tools

Adobe Creative Cloud software Adobe Illustrator Adobe InDesign Adobe Photoshop Amazon Web Services AWS software Camera Bits Photo Mechanic Cascading style sheets CSS Docker ExpressDigital Labtricity Git HeliconSoft Helicon Focus Microsoft Access Microsoft Excel Microsoft Office software Microsoft Outlook Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Publisher Microsoft Word MongoDB MySQL

Work Environment & Strengths

Common Strengths for This Career

  • Attention to Detail (High importance: 4.71/5)
  • Dependability (High importance: 4.39/5)
  • Cautiousness (High importance: 3.98/5)
  • Adaptability (High importance: 3.54/5)
  • Perseverance (High importance: 3.5/5)

Want to see how YOUR strengths align with this career?

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How to Become One

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience may be helpful but is usually not required. Training is often provided on the job.

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Also Known As

This career is known by many different job titles across industries. Here are all the variations:

Air Brush Artist Airbrush Artist Art Tracer Automatic Developer Automatic Mounter Automatic Print Developer Black and White Printer Operator Color Laboratory Technician Color Printer Operator Computer-Controlled Color Photograph Printer Operator Copy and Print Associate Copy Camera Operator Darkroom Technician Developer Developing Machine Operator Digital Imager Digital Imaging Technician Digital Photo Printer Digital Photo Technician Digital Printer Operator Digital Retoucher Digital Technician Doper Drum Operator Drum Worker Enlarger Film Cleaner Film Color Tester Film Cutter Film Developer Film Developing Machine Operator Film Drying Machine Operator Film Examiner Film Inspector Film Laboratory Technician Film Mounter Film Numberer Film Printer Film Process Operator Film Processing Utility Worker Film Processor Film Reproducer Film Splicer Film Technician Film Washer Film Waxer Full Stack Developer Generator Technician Hypo Splasher Imaging Operator Ink Technician Joiner Lab Technician Laboratory Associate Laboratory Technician Lithography Contact Worker Magnifier Microfilm Processor Microfilm Technician Mini-Lab Operator Motion Picture Film Examiner Motion Picture Printer Negative Cleaner Negative Cutter Negative Restorer Negative Retoucher Negative Spotter Photo Colorer Photo Finisher Photo Lab Specialist Photo Lab Technician (Photographic Laboratory Technician) Photo Machine Operator Photo Mask Pattern Generator Photo Mask Processor Photo Print Specialist Photo Printer Photo Specialist Photo Technician Photograph Developer Photograph Enlarger Photograph Finisher Photograph Inspector Photograph Mounter Photograph Printer Photograph Retoucher (Photo Retoucher) Photograph Tinter Photographic Colorist Photographic Hand Developer Photographic Plate Maker Photographic Press Screwmaker Photographic Printer Photographic Process Worker Photographic Processing Machine Operator Photographic Reproduction Technician Photographic Restorer Photographic Spotter Photographic Technician Photography Colorist Photography Spotter Photostat Operator Picture Enlarger Print Developer Print Finisher Print Machine Operator Print Retoucher Printed Circuit Board Panels Developer Printed Circuit Boards Contact Printer Printer Processor Projection Printer Proof Passer Rectification Printer Reproducer Reproduction Machine Loader Reproduction Specialist Reproduction Technician Retoucher School Photographs Detailer Screen Examiner Screen Maker Semiconductor Wafers Photographic Aligner Semiconductor Wafers Photographic Processor Slide Maker Spotter Step and Repeat Reduction Camera Operator Take-Down Sorter Template Reproduction Technician Timer X-Ray Developer

Career Fit FAQs

Is this career a good fit for me

This page shows the role itself. To see personal fit, use the assessment to compare your interests, motivations, and strengths against this career and against the role you are in now.

Can this help if I want to stay in my field

Yes. Many people use career pages like this to compare nearby roles in the same field and see whether they need a full switch or a better-fit version of the work they already know.

What should I compare first

Start with the daily tasks, the preparation level, and the work-style signals on this page. Then use the assessment to see whether this role looks like a stronger fit than your current role or just a different title.