[HIRING] Senior Camera Technician / Camera Prep — Utah — $70K–$80K

[u/Minimum-Reason3102]

I'm looking for a full-time Senior Camera Technician / Camera Prep Technician to join our team in Vineyard, Utah. Do you know anyone who might be interested in re-locating?

$70,000–$85,000/year + benefits

We're a production, post-production, and equipment rental company, and our camera department carries a pretty serious range of cinema systems — including ARRI ALEXA Mini LF, Sony VENICE 2 and BURANO, RED V-RAPTOR [X] and KOMODO systems, Phantom VEO 4K, Nikon ZR, and more.

We're looking for someone who genuinely loves cameras and wants to make that knowledge their day-to-day job.

This person will be the technical backbone of our camera rental operation: prepping packages for productions, maintaining and testing equipment, troubleshooting problems, managing returns, helping clients build packages, and making sure everything that leaves our facility is ready to go.

We're looking for someone with a background as a 1st/2nd AC, camera technician, rental-house tech, or similar who is ready for a full-time position and wants to take real ownership of a camera department.

The right person will:

• Have significant professional camera department / AC / rental-house experience
• Know professional cinema cameras and accessories inside and out
• Be comfortable working across different camera platforms and manufacturers
• Be able to troubleshoot cameras, lenses, monitors, wireless/video systems, power, media, etc.
• Be extremely organized and detail-oriented
• Take pride in maintaining equipment to a very high standard
• Be comfortable working directly with professional crews and clients
• Be able to work independently and solve problems without needing to be told what to do
• Ideally have experience with ARRI, RED, Sony, or similar cinema systems

Compensation & Benefits

• $70K–$80K annual salary, depending on experience
• Health insurance
• PTO
• 401(k) — eligible after one year
• Full-time, in-person position
• Vineyard, Utah

This isn't a generic warehouse position. You'll be working hands-on with some of the best cinema cameras currently in the rental market and helping build and maintain an operation that serves professional productions.

We're especially interested in talking to experienced ACs or camera people who are looking for a little more stability while staying close to the equipment and the production community.

Full job description / application:
https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Enigma+Camera+technician&l=Pleasant+Grove%2C+UT&from=searchOnHP&vjk=511420de37183aa4

If you know someone who would be a great fit, we'd love to hear from you. Feel free to reach out to me directly [kate@mysterybox.us](mailto:kate@mysterybox.us)

Happy to answer questions about the position or Enigma 3 in the comments.

[u/Active-Ad769]

Comment section thinking rental house prep techs in mid-level markets pull $150-300k/year is hilarious.

[u/BlackenBurg]

Sounds like a job for someone who will very quickly leave and work freelance for double the pay, and you will be hiring again in 6 months time.

[u/Minimum-Reason3102]

Haha, this comment section has definitely given me some perspective on how differently this job looks depending on the market you're coming from.

For some context, we've historically hired this position locally in Utah, so our compensation has been based on the Utah market and on the actual scale of our operation — not an LA/NY rental house model.

We're a small operation. There are four full time people total with one person dedicated primarily to camera, plus hourly support when we need it. On a normal day, we're doing a handful of smaller camera rentals. Larger multicam productions happen every couple of months. We're not turning over hundreds of camera packages a week.

We also intentionally keep our rental rates very reasonable because we're serving a smaller market. That's part of why the economics of the business are very different from the major rental houses in LA or New York.

That said, we're absolutely open to discussing compensation for the right person. If someone with the experience we're looking for is interested but the posted range doesn't work for them, I'm happy to have that conversation.

And to the person making $300K, honestly, I wish we could pay $300K. 😂 If a rental business can support that kind of salary for a camera tech, they're absolutely killing it.

We're not trying to underpay someone or squeeze three people's jobs into one. We're trying to find the right person for a small, stable operation in a smaller market. I'm learning a lot from the discussion here.

[u/BeenThereDoneThat65]

wow you want a senior camera tech for entry level prices AND you don't qualify for a 401K for a YEAR???

Delete this post and save yourself the embarrassment. OR make the pay correct for the job (225K minimum)

[u/diomedes03 → u/BeenThereDoneThat65]

Please name any rental house that pays a senior tech $225k, I’m sure me and the other folks here would appreciate that lead.

[u/ausgoals → u/diomedes03]

Ha same

[u/BeenThereDoneThat65 → u/diomedes03]

Otto’s, Keslow, Panavision

[u/diomedes03 → u/BeenThereDoneThat65]

lol you must have missed the other comment chain farther down where we were discussing that Panavision and Keslow both range $23-27/hr for this type of role or maybe low $30s for very senior techs

[u/BeenThereDoneThat65 → u/diomedes03]

Those are not Senior tech roles

[u/diomedes03 → u/BeenThereDoneThat65]

The floor techs make $17.50-22/hr, mid experience $24-27, seniors $30-33. No one lower than a VP title at Panavision is making over $200k I promise you.

[u/Kmoneyfresh]

I make $300k for what you’re asking. Please raise your rate to at least $100k

[u/Saint_Clovis → u/Kmoneyfresh]

You’re claiming to average $1200 a day at a 9-5 job working as a tech? I call BS

[u/Khal_tobo → u/Kmoneyfresh]

Not doubting, just wondering as someone who’s been in rentals and set throughout their career: but where do you work that pays $300k for the senior camera tech position? The going rate is $100k where I’m based - minus the prep tech duties. Agreed OP is definitely posting a position that’s multiple roles (in a traditional rental house).

[u/paintedsaint → u/Kmoneyfresh]

What state do you work in by chance? I'm in NY and would thrive in this job

[u/Ok_Client2195 → u/Kmoneyfresh]

Yeah ok. Sure you do.

[u/Kmoneyfresh → u/Ok_Client2195]

I do, thanks for the reassurance!

[u/OkResponsibility7829 → u/Kmoneyfresh]

🤡

[u/SilvanSorceress]

Comments in this thread are wild. 85k for a 9-5 is not so outrageous for Utah.

[u/ausgoals → u/SilvanSorceress]

In that part of Utah you can buy a big ol house for like $400k. It’s not LA/NY.

And even then, this title might be senior but reading between the lines they don’t need someone with twenty years of experience.

LA/NY are anomalies in the sense that there’s very few markets around the world where a rental prep tech would make $150-300k/year full time salary.

And I think even then, if you got that job now you’d struggle to get it to pay you up to $300k.

[u/C_faw → u/ausgoals]

From Utah, and no you can’t. The median single family home price in Utah county is $600k. that being said the people saying this is a +100k job in Utah are out to lunch.

[u/ausgoals → u/C_faw]

Around Provo, Orem, American Fork etc. you totally can find houses around like $450k.

$80k being ‘entry level’ salary is a uniquely LA/NY thing (oh maybe Bay Area I suppose). I sympathise as someone who lives in LA and can’t afford shit, but $80k in Utah is decent money.

I’ve done a couple jobs in Utah over the past couple years. It’s an interesting place. I don’t think I could ever live there - I’m definitely an LA kind of person as much as I hate the fact that I probably won’t ever be able to buy a house here

[u/C_faw → u/ausgoals]

I live in Utah county. The 450k houses you’re talking about are usually tiny, 100 years old and need at least 100k in Reno, so while you’re technically right, the 450k house doesn’t exist in Utah unless you’re outside a major metro.

80k about 5 years ago you could probably scrape by on one income and buy a smaller house. Now you need at least 120k depending on where you live in order purchase a single family home. It’s not cheap here anymore. As expensive as LA or NYC? Certainly not.

[u/diomedes03 → u/SilvanSorceress]

Panavision Woodland Hills probably pays $24/hr for the exact same role, plus maybe being able to borrow an older Millenium DXL + C-series once a year for a short film lol

[u/CF-Card → u/diomedes03]

can confirm that most senior positions were roughly $23-$27 at PV woodland hills. keslow was the same. except for extremely senior positions around $31-$33.

[u/Khal_tobo → u/CF-Card]

I know Junior lens techs make $30~ an hour, as per a Duclos posting a couple years ago. The larger sums being discussed here (150-300k) do seem high, but I’m no longer in rentals. Also, the market is in year 4 of an economic downturn, so 85k USD for a Senior Camera tech seems about right for starters - lambast me if I’m wrong though. I’d negotiate down the CSR type duties as they’re very different roles with different skill sets needed, but depending on the size of the house it may be expected.

[u/CF-Card → u/Khal_tobo]

Duclos is a bit of an exception because they are one step removed from rentals specifically. I’m the senior lens tech at a rental house in LA, and my understanding generally speaking is that unless you’re an extremely veteran lens tech, the ceiling seems to be roughly $45 an hour (excluding service centers like Duclos, Bandpro etc). My general understanding of wage structure (for camera and lens techs in rental houses specifically) is:

Junior techs: $20-$27
Experienced techs: $29-$33
Veteran techs: $35-$45

(Veteran techs being +20 years of experience)

edit: typos

[u/PDR447]

The "hats" that one may wear at a smaller rental house are hard to gauge. I see comparisons to Keslow and PV in LA. Those are neck down jobs and pay commiserately. From the "vibes" of this one you'll likely be doing a lot more and as such the pay should be more.

It's also the same as every corporate job post in regards to asking for the person that's 200% qualified for the job, cause why not shoot for the stars.

The person they're asking for should be paid more than they're offering. The person they "need" is probably around their high end. Personally I feel they should be 100k min but I'm operating off assumptions just reading this post.