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School contracts
- Thread starter ridgeb803
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- Jim
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It's not easy getting a foot in the door!
Experience, You are very unlikely to receive a contract without proof of ability so perhaps ask your local school’s photographer if you can work with them. Don’t be surprised if they refuse.
Have a read here, You will also need to have some form of Disclosure or DBS check.
Insurance
I think your kit would need to be upgraded too.
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Decent kit - ie camera, lights, background, computer (laptop) etc
Secure means of delivery to each individual subject - ie password protected
Skill - you need to be able to take higher than average quality photos, rapidly and consistently for several hours
Secure means of delivery to each individual subject - ie password protected
Skill - you need to be able to take higher than average quality photos, rapidly and consistently for several hours
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- James
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Enhanced DBS check, a portfolio, schools are most likely to use local professional studio photographers - if they don't have internal ones, public liability insurance, decent gear.
Likely also need some type of consent form.
Might be better off grinding your way though offering photographic services to local businesses and build a portfolio and get your name out in the local area.
Likely also need some type of consent form.
Might be better off grinding your way though offering photographic services to local businesses and build a portfolio and get your name out in the local area.
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- Phil
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School photography is more admin than photography.
Having worked on and off for 30 years as a wedding and portrait photographer I can think of nothing I’d rather not do.
All photography businesses are more admin than we’d like, but schools?
It’s not the shooting (which is v boring, hundreds of identical images in a day) but the secure access to the pics for the parents, then dealing individually with hundreds of ‘customers’ as individuals. The initial deal with the school is the easy bit.
The idea makes my blood run cold.
Having worked on and off for 30 years as a wedding and portrait photographer I can think of nothing I’d rather not do.
All photography businesses are more admin than we’d like, but schools?
It’s not the shooting (which is v boring, hundreds of identical images in a day) but the secure access to the pics for the parents, then dealing individually with hundreds of ‘customers’ as individuals. The initial deal with the school is the easy bit.
The idea makes my blood run cold.
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- Steve, Coventry, England
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Couldn't agree more.
It is the admin and systems that have pushed the prices up to close to being unaffordable, many parents can't be bothered with them (or do their own on the same day).
Except those kids that may not have their photos taken, you would have to photograph them all and send proofs out to all, then see what take-up you would get.
The school does not want the hassle of sorting them out and taking orders, it's a big enough job to usher the kids in groups to the hall for the photos.
An average 2 intake primary school has around 400 kids, plus the shots with siblings or even parents, so you would need 2-4 people taking photos (you would have 4 1/2 to 5 hours)
I can see the idea fading away in the future, too expensive for many parents, and not enough profit, so the price goes up some more, a vicious circle!
You need to have and be 100% foolproof, and totally organised for starters. After about the umpteenth to the power of 10 sessions you need to be able to chronologically name and list all the children photographed which corresponds with the lists of what you have taken. They will need to be handed to the school in the class order because the teachers will not have the time to sort them out.
I made a brief foray (but very lucrative) foray into schools and identity card photographs when I was serving in the Army in Germany between 1978/9. owing to the fact no one else was willing to take it on and I already had security clearance. They couldn't 'out-shop' it to civilian German photographers.
It wasn't so much the soldiers, they were photographed with their service number displayed so they were easily identifiable, but it was the families, dependants and civilian employees that caused the biggest hangover. They were just anonymous people and if you got them listed in the incorrect order you were up the proverbial creek. In those days I was obviously still using film, so batches of 36 per cassette helped. But with memory cards holding possibly hundreds of images it could be said it would be a bit of a challenge.
Then the disposal afterwards of the original images almost certainly have to be certified to or by someone at the school or education authority that it was done correctly and none had fallen into the hands of those not entitled. There really are some unpleasant people out there
I made a brief foray (but very lucrative) foray into schools and identity card photographs when I was serving in the Army in Germany between 1978/9. owing to the fact no one else was willing to take it on and I already had security clearance. They couldn't 'out-shop' it to civilian German photographers.
It wasn't so much the soldiers, they were photographed with their service number displayed so they were easily identifiable, but it was the families, dependants and civilian employees that caused the biggest hangover. They were just anonymous people and if you got them listed in the incorrect order you were up the proverbial creek. In those days I was obviously still using film, so batches of 36 per cassette helped. But with memory cards holding possibly hundreds of images it could be said it would be a bit of a challenge.
Then the disposal afterwards of the original images almost certainly have to be certified to or by someone at the school or education authority that it was done correctly and none had fallen into the hands of those not entitled. There really are some unpleasant people out there
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Unless you can get a local Infants or junior school to give you a try then I doubt that you'll get into this market enough to make it worth your while. There are a few really big national companies that pretty much monopolise the market place and they probably employ more people behind the scenes doing post processing, printing and packaging than photographers. I know Colorfoto did when I worked for them. As has been mentioned above the admin is a major part of the job - schools are totally unforgiving if you get a child's details wrong. Getting a job with one of the big boys might give you an insight into whether it's worth your time, effort and money trying to compete with them.
It's a soul destroying business too; two identical images of each child plus class and group ones as well. You are often shooting in the assembly/dining hall so can't set up until assembly is over then have to break down so the pupils can have lunch and be finished by going home time. How to deal with hyper-active or SN children is another thing to think about as schools are also hyper-protective of them (rightly so). Only weddings are worse
With regards to equipment, you will need a plain white backdrop, at least three studio lights, triggers, spare bulbs, a light meter, a stool and, for infants, some props to attract their attention and get them to look at the camera. Talking of cameras, at Colorfoto we were using middle of the road Nikon D90 bodies but really good lenses - and you'll need two of each as there's no saying you can't finish the job because one of the children has broken something. Lugging all that gear around the school is no fun either.
Typing this has reminded me why I stopped doing it
It's a soul destroying business too; two identical images of each child plus class and group ones as well. You are often shooting in the assembly/dining hall so can't set up until assembly is over then have to break down so the pupils can have lunch and be finished by going home time. How to deal with hyper-active or SN children is another thing to think about as schools are also hyper-protective of them (rightly so). Only weddings are worse
With regards to equipment, you will need a plain white backdrop, at least three studio lights, triggers, spare bulbs, a light meter, a stool and, for infants, some props to attract their attention and get them to look at the camera. Talking of cameras, at Colorfoto we were using middle of the road Nikon D90 bodies but really good lenses - and you'll need two of each as there's no saying you can't finish the job because one of the children has broken something. Lugging all that gear around the school is no fun either.
Typing this has reminded me why I stopped doing it
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That's probably twenty plus years out of date now. It's all done with QR codes and online platforms.
Basically, the admin is a piece of pisch.
And what happens if the computer fails during a session. Pack up and go home or resort to pencil and paper? I trust a politician more than a computer.
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How many times have you had a computer fail on you?
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Grab your back up in the incredibly unlikely event that it happens. This is 2023. The most common reason for a laptop to fail is lack of battery power if unplugged. Ergo - make sure that you have access to power. After all, we don't shoot schools' photos on 5:4 plates any more either.
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Ok you take a shool photo and on reviewing the shot only to find one kid is picking their nose or scratching their bum , result ruined shot. That is after actually obtaining a contract as mentioned above with all the relevent insurances and checks. That is apart from the cost of decent camera gear to do the job.
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If it was a group shot, there's a programme called Photoshop, or Affinity, if it was an individual kid, probably not worth it, but they de review them as they go, and often repeat a shot.
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Easily missed, but there’ll likely be a selection to choose from, and with all group shots nowadays head swaps are a matter of course.
I have actually had 3 fail on me an non were due to battery. (Speak to the ex Post office employees they had it fail over 900 times!
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It all depends what you mean by "fail".
At a rough guess, I've used around 100 computers since 1978, not counting access to remote mainframes and minis. I have experienced just one serious failure, which was also, it has to be admitted, spectacular. That was a Kaypro 2000, which burst into flames and resulted in the attendance of two fire engines.
Even including "the revenge of the red hot Kaypro", I've never lost any important data.
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Keep on topic. That was a software failure, not a computer failure.
The software the school photographers use would not be used if it had not been proven to work properly.
3 failures in how long? I can't remember having 3 computer failures 46 years. I have had one in the last 22 years.
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I don't need to think about it. I've got practical experience. Maybe stick to commenting in the film forum?
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