The Department of Education has undertaken an ambitious effort to develop statewide skill standards for all content areas in career and technical education. The standards in this document are for photography programs and are designed to clearly state what the student should know and be able to do upon completion of an advanced high-school program. Photography is a program that consists of initial fundamentals and sequential courses that prepare students for most occupations in the field of commercial photography. The content and performance standards in this document focus on digital photography, which today is recognized as the industry standard. However, film-based photography is also recognized under content standard 8. In addition to specific skills, the overall program focuses on broad transferable skills and stresses understanding and demonstration of the major elements of the commercial photography industry, including planning, management, finance, technical and product skills, and underlying principles of technology, labor issues, community issues and health, safety, and environmental issues. The standards are organized as follows: (1) Content Standards; (2) Performance Standards; and (3) Performance Indicators.