Lighting Technicians
Also called: Controls Technician (Controls Tech), Dimmer Board Operator, Electrical Lighting Technician (ELT), Entertainment Lighting Technician, Entertainment Professional, Gaffer, Lamp Operator, Light Technician (Light Tech)
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.
What lighting technicians do
Typical tasks
- Assess safety of wiring or equipment set-up to determine the risk of fire or electrical shock.
- Consult with lighting director or production staff to determine lighting requirements.
- Disassemble and store equipment after performances.
- Install color effects or image patterns, such as color filters, onto lighting fixtures.
- Install electrical cables or wire fixtures.
- Load, unload, or position lighting equipment.
- Match light fixture settings, such as brightness and color, to lighting design plans.
- Notify supervisors when major lighting equipment repairs are needed.
- Operate manual or automated systems to control lighting throughout productions.
- Patch or wire lights to dimmers or other electronic consoles.
- Perform minor repairs or routine maintenance on lighting equipment, such as replacing lamps or damaged color filters.
- Program lighting consoles or load automated lighting control systems onto consoles.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Lighting Technicians salary
The median annual wage for lighting technicians is $68,060 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $42,310 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $130,760. The mean annual wage is $78,380.
The mean hourly wage of $37.00 is 5.1× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Lighting Technicians (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $68,060 → in 3 years $73,500 → in 5 years $77,400 → in 10 years $88,000 (10-year range $75,600–$102,100). The model assumes pay growth of +2.6% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Lighting Technicians
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Lighting Technicians? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Lighting Technicians
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
Skills, education and requirements for Lighting Technicians
Job Zone 3 — medium preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★☆☆ Moderate (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become lighting technicians
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as lighting technicians
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.