Photo editor with 8 years of experience selecting, commissioning and producing photography for national news and magazine outlets. Assigns 300+ shoots a year on a $400k photography budget. Combines a strong visual eye with ethics, rights management and fast turnaround on breaking news and long-form packages.
Experience
Photo Editor, The National Weekly (Washington, DC)
Jan 2021 – Present
Assign and edit 300+ shoots a year from a network of 80 contract photographers
Manage a $400k photography budget, rates and usage contracts
Select and sequence images for 50 long-form features, 2 of which won Pictures of the Year International awards
Enforce NPPA ethics and caption accuracy standards across the desk
Assistant Photo Editor, Capital Wire Service (Washington, DC)
Sep 2017 – Dec 2020
Edited and transmitted 200 images a day on breaking news shifts
Toned photos and wrote captions to wire standards
Researched archive images for anniversary packages
Education
BS, Visual Communication (Photojournalism), Ohio University (Aug 2013 – May 2017)
Rights: licensing, usage contracts, model releases, archive research
Tools: Photo Mechanic, Lightroom, Photoshop, Getty and AP image platforms
Ethics: NPPA Code of Ethics, digital manipulation standards
How to write a Photo Editor resume
A strong Photo Editor resume shows the work you made, the audiences it reached, and the briefs you delivered on. Put your most relevant recent role first and make every bullet show a result, not a duty.
Sections, in order
Summary
Experience
Projects
Skills
Education
Length: One page for most candidates; move to two only if every line is relevant.
Summary: Write two or three lines: your role, your strongest skills, and one result that proves them.
Skills to feature
Storytelling
Content strategy
Adobe Creative Cloud
Video production
Copywriting and editing
Brand guidelines
Social media
Art direction
Project management
Audience analytics
Example bullet points
Produced a 12-episode video series that reached 4.8M views and grew the channel by 120k subscribers
Art-directed the rebrand across 60 assets, delivered two weeks ahead of the product launch
Edited 300 articles a year as managing editor, raising average time on page by 35%
Tips from recruiters
Link your portfolio or reel in the header; it matters more than any layout choice.
Name clients, publications or brands when you are allowed to.
A more expressive template is fine for creative roles, but keep the text easy to scan.
Recommended templates
Vanguard (ATS-friendly): Bold display name, accent-led headings with line rules
Timeline (ATS-friendly): Clean accent layout with a dated career timeline
Photo Editor resume FAQ
What should a Photo Editor resume include?
A Photo Editor resume should show the work you made, the audiences it reached, and the briefs you delivered on. Use these sections in this order: Summary, Experience, Projects, Skills and Education. Put your most relevant recent role first and make every bullet show a result, not a duty.
What is the best resume template for a Photo Editor?
Vanguard, Elegant and Timeline work well for Photo Editor roles. They are single-column with standard headings, so applicant tracking systems (ATS) parse them reliably.
How long should a Photo Editor resume be?
One page for most candidates; move to two only if every line is relevant.
Which skills should a Photo Editor put on a resume?
Prioritize the skills named in the job posting. Common ones for Photo Editor roles are Storytelling, Content strategy, Adobe Creative Cloud, Video production, Copywriting and editing and Brand guidelines.
How do I write strong Photo Editor resume bullet points?
Start with an action verb, say what you did, and end with a measurable result such as views, engagement rate and audience growth. For example: "Produced a 12-episode video series that reached 4.8M views and grew the channel by 120k subscribers."