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School Photography
jnorthcraft
Registered Users Posts: 7 Beginner grinner
I was wondering if anyone here could share some business insight to school photography? I am thinking of trying to reach out to some local preschools as a way to stir up a little more business and get my name out there a little more.
Could someone share some insight? Do's & Dont's what works or doesn't? It would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Could someone share some insight? Do's & Dont's what works or doesn't? It would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
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Hope this helps. Don't take on too many schools at once, until you know what it's like. I do school portraits at two schools in the fall, and shoot events for the schools as well. That's enough for me.
Caroline
Not a very helpful reply. Perhaps you'd care to explain your reasoning?
Bottom line, affordable digital cameras at homes killed that market. Unless you have a brand new school district and no established pro photograhhers in 200 mile radius, the chances of taking this off the ground are pretty slim... I'm not even talking about the "joy" of conveyor like shooting... For every wannabee I would suggest a simple test: at someone's BD or even Halloween party talk to the parents to help you to run 15 or so kids through your own makeshift photo booth, spending no more than 30 second per kid, ready or not (have somebody time you). Make sure to start the process while the kids are in the middle of something really interestnig, like watching "Where the wild things are". Then check the results and see if you like them and the process itself. Keep in mind the real thing would be much worse.
It's not easy. You need to set up and produce a perfect image for every child and you wll need to do it several hundred times. Perfectly. Re-shoots are expensive because they eat into your profit.
Your packages will need not only the traditional photographs but things like key chains and other goodies to compete with some of the larger competitors like Lifetouch. You will also need to find out what your competitors charge and what they include in a package.
Assembly line photography requires a set of skills that include extreme coordination and organization. Working with small kids isn't always easy--your team needs to have a set of parental skills too.
If you want to try it out, I'd suggest working some kind of event shoot--like a holiday party. Once you feel comfortable with the process, then tackle the kids.
I have done conveyor shooting and no it is not fun nor is it fulfilling......however it can put coin in your coffers and in todays economy I say if you can get a contract do it......
As to preschools....since most are privately owned you probably will not have to play the political game that would ensue with school boards and such.......
Start with a church run preschool....these are usually smaller, to get your feet wet......then move up to bigger ones.......
This is about the same as shooting sports team pics.....which is a conveyer type shooting and your usually trying to shoot the whole team, group and individuals, in less than 5 minutes ........ I did this for 4 yrs contracting thru a local sports photography company......usually it was 6 weeks in spring and then in summer/fall ..... 12 hour days on the weekends and 2 days per week ...........I started getting calls for weddings, family & senior portraits and family gathering and other events......It has even brought me some commerical work.........so go for but start small so you do not get over whelmed and do not be disappointed that you do not make a ton of money.........this kind of shooting just won't make you rich but it will make you learn how to shoot fast and dirty and get it right in camera so you do not waste time in post..............
My 3 year old son goes to daycare. Just like 'schools' they have a photographer come in there twice a year to do photos. As a parent and a photographer I can tell you I was underwhelmed until they switched to a different photographer this last time. Here's what this guy did -
1) had a GREAT backdrop and props - beach scene. To me this is the biggest thing that separates good school portraits from poor - Actually having an interesting backdrop vs the same old boring muslin we've seen for 30 years. This guy was still shooting with a Canon 10D and a rather old consumer lens. But the backdrop was good and his lighting was good so I was much happier with his photos than anything the school has come away with before
2) He printed out 4x6 'proofs' for parents to review when they came in that afternoon. You reviewed the proofs and ordered a package - packages included the proofs and could include a CD and release form
3) he and his assistant were there at pick--up time to take orders so it incents parents to order then - you don't have to, but it's more of an incentive then just taking home a package order sheet that gets lost or you forget about.
So, not only did the backdrop and props make for a more iteresting photo he had proofs same-day. In 3 years it was the first 'school' package I bought. The backdrop/props, the CD and same-day proofs were all a great motivator for me to buy.
I really think this type of thing would be a good bang-for-the-buck because it's private, it's comparatively small vs. a school but still larger than a pre-school only.
The one other question that I have has to do with incentives (kick backs) offered to the schools. I know i would obviously have to tailor an incentive program to something appropriate for my region but I'm wondering if anyone would be winning to share insights to the incentive programs they have recently used to have seen others use.
I make my living with school photography. All the other work I do with portraiture, sports weddings etc is just what I do when the school 'season' is over.
I do it exclusively on green screen. Offer the parents 10 different backgrounds on a proof envelope with the proofs printed right on it, my sales sheet for packages is inside the envelope. I scan each kid so it matches the camera file and the proofs are barcoded, I scan the barcode and package to quickly create orders.
Everything is sent to a lab, they do the green screen processing and proofs are printed and returned in less than a week, picture orders are the same. With the scanner system I can shoot over 100 kids an hour without being rushed, some kids will sit, smile perfectly and be gone in 15 seconds. One thing I do is have them sit with knees 45 to you for first image then the opposite 45 for the second image, this gives two distinct separate poses of each side of the face.
I disagree with Niks comments, there are huge profits if yu have the system down pat, why do you think Lifetouch and the other big companies work so hard to dominate. Consider this; Shoot a 1000 head school in two days, one day if you have a partner. At $35 average per head you just grossed $35K, net on this after processing, shipping is about $25K. Not bad for a couple days work. Now times that by 20 schools.
Monte
I don't disagree it can be a cash cow if you're ALREADY in the system. But imagine the OP trying to move into *your* turf, what he would be up against...