NOC 94151: Camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations
What camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations do
Camera and platemaking workers operate graphic arts cameras and scanners, assemble film and negatives and prepare, engrave and etch printing plates or cylinders for various types of printing presses. They are employed in firms that specialize in colour graphics or platemaking and cylinder preparation, commercial publishing and printing companies, newspapers, magazines, and in various establishments in the public and private sectors that have in-house printing departments.
Main duties
This group performs some or all of the following duties:
- Graphic arts camera operators, scanner operators, film strippers and assemblers
- Set up and adjust black and white or colour separation process cameras to convert graphic art and photographs into film for assembly and exposure onto printing plates or cylinders
- Operate computerized scanning machines or digital cameras to make colour separations and corrections from colour copy or transparencies for use in preparing film, digital files, printing plates or cylinders
- Assemble and position, either using automated equipment or by hand, pieces of film containing all parts of a printing job to produce flats or composite negatives for preparing printing plates or cylinders.
- Etchers and engravers
- Examine the text, design, or pattern to determine how it will be etched or engraved onto the workpiece
- Prepare surface of workpiece for etching or engraving by cleaning, polishing, treating, and applying additional methods
- Etch or engrave the text, design or pattern onto the workpiece using hand tools, etching machines, photogravure or laser processes.
- Prepress technicians, platemakers, proofmakers, and pre-flight/file-preparation operators
- Operate various computer-controlled studio systems to perform colour separation, retouching and editing that allow changes to be made to a colour negative for printing purposes, plan page layouts and electronically alter shape, size and positions of illustrations and text
- Prepare and initiate the development of printing plates for the offset process and are responsible for the maintenance of plate flasher type devices (CTP, Computer to plate)
- Operate vacuum frames, plate processors and step and repeat machines to produce printing plates for various types of presses
- Operate computerized equipment to prepare film, laser or dylux proofs for quality control purposes and for customers' review.
Job titles under NOC 94151
124 job titles are classified here, including camera operator - graphic arts, cylinder preparer - printing, dot etcher - printing.
- alignment examiner - printing
- assistant newspaper make-up man/woman
- automated letterer-engraver
- bright type processor
- camera operator - graphic arts
- camera operator - printing
- carbon tissue cylinder preparer - printing
- clamper - camera and platemaking
- colour correction scanning machine operator
- colour edition preparer - printing
- colour printer-technician - photographic processing
- colour scanner operator - printing
- colour separation assistant - scanning
- colour separation camera operator
- colour separation camera operator - printing
- colour separation electronic scanning machine operator
- colour separation operator
- colour-editing terminal operator - printing
- computer-assisted letterer-engraver
- contact printer
- copper engraver - camera and platemaking
- copper photoengraver
- copperplate photoengraver
- cylinder painter - printing
Employment requirements
- Completion of secondary school is required.
- Completion of a college program in graphic arts technology or a combination of on-the-job training and specialized college, industry or other courses may be required.
- Trade certification for some occupations in this group is available, but voluntary, in Ontario, Alberta, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations wages in Canada
Low, median and high hourly wages from Job Bank’s 2025 wage data. Annual figures assume full-time work (1,950 hours a year).
| Where | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Canada | $20.03/hr | $25.85/hr | $38.09/hr |
Toronto ON | $22.22/hr | $29.43/hr | $38.27/hr |
Montréal QC | $19.53/hr | $24.18/hr | $34.99/hr |
Vancouver Lower Mainland region, BC | $22.57/hr | $28.81/hr | $36.32/hr |
Calgary AB | $22.66/hr | $28.14/hr | $39.62/hr |
Edmonton AB | $22.69/hr | $25.87/hr | $35.17/hr |
Ottawa ON | $21.81/hr | $26.67/hr | $32.13/hr |
Winnipeg MB | $23.15/hr | $29.18/hr | $34.28/hr |
Québec City Quebec region, QC | $19.53/hr | $23.60/hr | $31.94/hr |
Hamilton Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula region, ON | $21.82/hr | $28.21/hr | $34.56/hr |
Kitchener-Waterloo Kitchener–Waterloo–Barrie region, ON | $21.19/hr | $27.84/hr | $33.74/hr |
London ON | $22.59/hr | $26.64/hr | $31.55/hr |
Halifax NS | $23.91/hr | $26.78/hr | $30.95/hr |
| Where | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Nova Scotia | $21.00/hr | $25.55/hr | $31.69/hr |
Quebec | $19.53/hr | $23.60/hr | $31.94/hr |
Ontario | $20.93/hr | $28.98/hr | $37.95/hr |
Manitoba | $21.78/hr | $28.14/hr | $33.81/hr |
Saskatchewan | $20.00/hr | $23.24/hr | $27.31/hr |
Alberta | $20.53/hr | $27.44/hr | $38.44/hr |
British Columbia | $22.89/hr | $28.04/hr | $37.12/hr |
Using NOC 94151 for your resume or Express Entry profile
- IRCC asks you to make sure the main duties listed for your NOC match what you actually did at your job. If they don’t, look for another unit group whose duties do.
- Describe your own work in your own words. Recruiters and ATS software look for concrete tools, results and scope, not text copied from the NOC.
- Applying from outside Canada? Run your resume through the Canadian resume format checker to catch things Canadian employers don’t expect, like a photo or date of birth.
- Use the job title the employer’s posting uses. The 124 titles above are how the same work is named across employers.
Not in this group
Similar jobs classified under a different NOC code:
- Desktop publishing (DTP) operator (NOC 14112)
- Graphic arts technicians (NOC 52111)
- Graphic designers and illustrators (NOC 52120)
- Photographic and film processors (NOC 94153)
- Supervisors, printing and related occupations (NOC 72022)
Frequently asked questions
What is the NOC code for camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations?
Camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations are NOC 2021 unit group 94151. Example job titles in this group include camera operator - graphic arts, cylinder preparer - printing, dot etcher - printing, file preparation operator.
What TEER is NOC 94151?
NOC 94151 is TEER 4 (High school and on-the-job training). Usually requires completion of secondary school, or several weeks of on-the-job training. TEER 4 and 5 work does not count as skilled work experience for Express Entry’s Federal Skilled Worker or Canadian Experience Class programs.
How much do camera, platemaking and other prepress occupations earn in Canada?
Job Bank's 2025 wage data puts the median at $25.85/hr, about $50,000 a year full-time, with a range of $20.03/hr to $38.09/hr.
Related occupations
Sources: Statistics Canada, National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 Version 1.0; Employment and Social Development Canada, Job Bank wages (2025). Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. OfferJetAI is not affiliated with the Government of Canada. Check IRCC’s NOC guidance before you apply.