RAISING THE BAR ON SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHY | SEATTLE FINE ART SCHOOL PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER
What comes to mind when you think of school photos?
That packet of photos you ordered blindly (because you had no idea how they would turn out) and you received 6 weeks later. Your kiddo's face has a big huge grin and/or awkward pose. The background is cheesy, but it's your child, and you can't pass up on them right? At least that has been my experience. After all, they are a little piece of their history.
I'll be honest, my oldest daughter's school photos are stowed away somewhere. I don't really care for them, yet for some reason I still buy them every year. As a photographer, I really do cringe when I see them and have even considered NOT buying them, and making her portraits myself.
Now, please understand I'm not bashing the big photo studios. They have a huge workload, and let me tell you, posing is an art in itself, and lighting (there's a whole lot of science behind it). Photographers have maybe 1-2 minutes per child and they're done. It is a huge task, and this is all understandable. Still, I believe more could be done to RAISE THE BAR ON SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHY in the Seattle area.
Recently I had the opportunity to assist for Elena S Blair at Click Away who runs a successful Family and Newborn Photography business here in Seattle. There I became acquainted with her boutique school photography service. She openly shared some details about her service and how other photographers are venturing in to this genre. What I found were beautiful, timeless portraits also known as Fine Art School Portraits. I was fascinated at the thought of gorgeous school photos.
In a whim, I approached my middle child's pre-school director and asked if they had a photographer lined up for school photos. Lucky for me, they would be doing it themselves, so I offered to photograph the kids pro bono if they distributed model releases to parents. This was a perfect opportunity for me to test this approach and see if it is in fact a service I could offer in the future. I was excited about this opportunity to see how just a little effort could make for better school portraits. I honestly had no clue what I was getting into, but, I figured, it was worth the shot. I provided my skills, time, and photo equipment, and they were kind enough to purchase the backdrop I needed in order to get the desired effect.
YES!!
School photos can be BEAUTIFUL +UNIQUE.
I captured more than 100 kids between my daughter's school and their sister school. It was a big project, both capturing and post-processing, but every bit worth it!!
The photos DID NOT DISAPPOINT.
The school was more than happy with the results, and as far as I'm concerned so were the parents. The school handled the printing, so I cannot attest to the quality of the prints. Some claimed they could see their child's personality through the photos. Now, if that's not a compliment, I don't know what is. I didn't tell the kids to say cheese, because I absolutely detest using that as a means of getting smiles. With a little effort, kids will open up. Some will smile, some won't. I don't believe a child's portrait requires a smile to be a keeper. For ME, it's all about capturing just who that little person is here and now. I provided the school with one image of each child as parents had already purchased their photo packages through the school. Parents received the smiley photos if I captured one, but what's best for me was witnessing all the other beautiful, pensive expressions that we often see in our littles.
PORTRAITS THAT WERE DONATED TO THE SCHOOL.
These amazing kiddos' parents kindly signed a model release for me. Thanks to this special project and these awesome parents, I was able to develop a portfolio of FINE ART SCHOOL PHOTOS!
What's best, I learned that this approach is most definitely doable. Still, after delivering these I felt I needed to line things up before offering this service to schools in order to ensure a smooth and successful operation. Luckily for me, this past month, Elena S Blair offered an online workshop on FINE ART SCHOOL PORTRAITS, where she provided ample training on the ins and outs of this service. I didn't hesitate to join! I have been busy lining up all my ducks for this, and I am happy to announce I am NOW BOOKING for 2017/2018 ACADEMIC YEAR! I service the Greater Seattle Area. I will be taking on a select number of schools in order to ensure the best possible service, so please inquire soon if you feel your school is a good fit.
By the way,
prices are HIGHLY competitive.
WHY SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS?
Families deserve a better product, and what's best is THERE ARE OPTIONS. Choose small business over big chain. What do you have to lose? I mean, besides the cheesy smiles, not much, right?? I am not the only photographer in town offering this service so if you haven't booked a photographer for your preschool, daycare or elementary school, do your research, and find the right fit for your school. If you're out of the Seattle metro area, don't hesitate to ask, it may just work out. I am willing to travel outside the Seattle metro area. If I'm not available, I would be happy to assist in helping you find a Fine Art School Portrait Photographer in your city. There are many talented photographers out there who like me, desperately want to help raise the bar on school photography.
TOGETHER WE CAN RAISE THE BAR ON SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHY!