Having a professional photographer come to your school is a brilliant way to elevate your school website. If your school has the budget for it, we’d highly recommend investing in professional photos for your school website. In this blog, we talk about how to get the most out of your day with the photographer when they do come to visit your school.

Plan

The famous saying goes ‘If you fail to plan you plan to fail.’ Planning is really is a key stage to having a successful photography day. So take some time to think and plan before the photographer comes to your school. For example:-

What will you be using your photos for?

What would you like your photos to convey about your school?

Consider coming up with a short brief that you can give the photographer so that they can keep it in mind as they are working throughout your school. Make sure you communicate your photography brief with the photographer either the day before or at the start of the shoot. In doing this, it allows the photographer to look for opportunities to capture images that support your school’s message.

Permissions

It seems obvious but make sure you get consent from the child’s parent or guardian if they can have their photo taken. Once you know which can or can’t have their photo taken make the teacher aware so that they can point out to the photographer which ones that can’t. The reason we have mentioned this is because the photographer could come in and take lots of nice photos of your school and students. However, you can’t use many of them because the children captured in the photos don’t have consent. Therefore the photos are wasted as you can’t use them. A little tip we like to say is to maybe have a little sticker on the children that can’t have the photo taken. Therefore it highlights this to the photographer so they are aware not to capture the child in the image.

Communication

Make sure you have communicated to all the parents, students and staff that there is going to be a photography day. This then prepares everyone for the day and they can be well dressed ready for the day. It can be helpful to have a morning meeting with the teachers and go through the plan of the day with the photographer so the teachers know what time to set up their classrooms.

Uniforms

If you have had good communication with everyone about the photography day then all appropriate uniforms will be worn by students and staff. Inconsistent, dirty or ripped uniforms won’t show your school in the best light and can ruin the nicest of photos. Adress the policy on uniforms in advance so parents can get the children ready for the day. Teachers will also be aware of what the standard is and be able to help the students that the uniform is worn correctly.

Environment

Another thing to look at before the photography day is what does the state of your classroom and playground look like. This is another thing that could ruin a photo with a cluttered background. This is a good thing to think about if there are any big tidy ups that need to happen before the photographer comes. In the morning you can have a quick spruce to make sure everywhere is looking its best.

Have a think of these questions before the day:-

• Are the rooms clean and tidy?

• Are the wall displays up-to-date?

• Is there natural light in the classrooms? ( This helps to get better quality photos)

• Are the playgrounds free of litter and looking their best?

Create a Timetable

In order to make sure you get all of the photos that you want, we advise that you create a timetable for the day. It usually takes a photographer a max of 20mins in each area to take candid shots on that area. However, headshots of the staff may take longer as the photography may need different equipment. Keep this in mind while creating your timetable. Also, remember to include a dinner break for the photographer. It’s a long day for them and they need to have a rest and eat themselves! We also advise having a chaperone for the photographer, especially if you have a big school. This ensures that the photographer can find their way around the school easily and get to the location of the school on time.

Activities

When the photographer comes to the school you want to showcase all that your school has to offer and what is unique to you. You want the photographer to capture a range of activities that reflect the school curriculum. Encourage the staff to plan the activities on the day that is exciting and interactive. For example, in the science class, you could get the bunsen burners out and have the children in their protective science clothing. This makes more dynamic photos than the children just writing in their books at their desks. Do you have some things that are unique to your school? Forest school or a therapy dog? Make sure this is included in the photographers’ timetable as these are unique elements to your school and is what prospective parents are looking for.

Hopefully, these tips will help you with your next photography day and you will get all the photos needed out of the shoot. If you want to have a photography day at your school just click below to find out more about our photography packages.