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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

School photos are crazy expensive

52 replies

ZipityFlippity · 03/11/2017 15:03

For our school you can’t just buy a 5” by 7” photo. You have to buy a pack with a variety of photos ranging from £11.50 for 1 10” x 7” to £32.95 for 15 of the same picture in different sizes.

I just want 3 5” x 7” pictures for me and grandparents but you can’t buy this, why??

What do your schools do?

OP posts:
raspberrysuicide · 03/11/2017 15:04

We don't buy them, I can take a better picture of my dc with their school uniform on with my phone !

Alanna1 · 03/11/2017 15:04

I think of it as a donation to the school, plus photographs. Schools need money...

DunkMeInTomatoSoup · 03/11/2017 15:06

Schools get a percentage of the money, however I never buy them.

eyebrowsonfleek · 03/11/2017 15:10

I got a professional of Facebook to do uniform pics. I have 3 kids at different schools and she took 15 different pics for £20. I was allowed to pick the 15 photos and give the kids directions like not to
slouch etc. I am happy that I got group shots too.

Ecadia · 03/11/2017 15:24

I've had to buy 2 separate ones this year. One for school and one for nursery. I got the big bundle which I clearly don't need. But works out cheaper so for £26 each, i will get 1 big photo, 2 medium in both colour and b&w, 4 small in both colour and b&w then about 30 passport size photos which will sit in the drawer with last years ones.

BluthsFrozenBananas · 03/11/2017 15:35

The quality is awful for the price. In last year’s photo my very pale DD was photographed against a white background and a flash was used. I honestly couldn’t tell where the background ended and her face started, she was just features hanging in mid air.

toomuchhappyland · 03/11/2017 15:38

I go for the cd or usb option (normally about £17) and then order prints at Boots.

FizzyWaterAndElderflower · 03/11/2017 15:39

I've bought them just once. Every other time the picture has been so awful it's just not worth having.

We all have camera phones now, that make it easy to get a good shot, and getting pictures printed out is cheap and easy. School photographers need to up their game and actually produce good photos to justify it in my opinion, and the vast majority don't (they're certainly not as good as the ones I got when I was a kid)

CaveMum · 03/11/2017 15:41

toomuchjappyland DD's nursery photographs were £50 for a CD of 4 images Shock

BackforGood · 03/11/2017 15:43

Agree, they have got out of hand. With digital photography nowadays you might as well take your own photos.

Kragghooooooullllll · 03/11/2017 15:46

£21 for two photos emailed to me. Thought that way I can print out cheaply for grandparents etc.

ijustwannadance · 03/11/2017 15:48

The people who did DD's had their website you could go on with your child's reference number and choose from many more options/packs. Paid online and sent direct.

Oysterbabe · 03/11/2017 15:49

We've just paid £50 for the Digi photos from nursery, couldn't resist they're seriously cute.

inkAdvantage · 03/11/2017 15:56

Ours are included in the school fees.

One class photo, one individual photo and HQ digital versions emailed.

It makes far more sense.

pinkliquorice · 03/11/2017 15:57

I used to get them but they are such poor quality and overpriced for what they are, School photographer spends about 2 seconds on each child and my children always end up messing their hair up or half blinking.
My partner is a photographer so he takes far better ones of them in their uniform before we go, but tbh even with no photographic skills I could take nicer ones on my phone.

19lottie82 · 03/11/2017 16:00

£11.50 is hardly expensive considering the photographers got to make a living after he’s paid all him expenses inc a chunk to the school. I thought you were going to say the cheapest was £30 or something!

MaureenMLove · 03/11/2017 16:05

Interesting post for me, as I am the one who organises the school photos at the beginning of year 7. That's the only time we do them.

I received a parcel of just 27 orders back a couple of weeks ago. That's out of 310 year 7s. I'm thinking, for the amount of commission we get from that (about £200 at the most) it's just not worth my effort organising 11 tutor groups having their pictures taken (it takes all day!) distributing the proofs, collecting the orders and then delivering the photos back again.

Did think it was a bit mean, because some families really still like them, but so far, it seems not!

IncyWincyGrownUp · 03/11/2017 16:08

Seconding the online option. Check your form, there’s often a username and password for ordering alternative packages.

Thingsthatgo · 03/11/2017 16:10

One of the mums at ds’s school is a photographer and she takes them. They are really good shots, and not with that awful background that school photos often have. We get 2 10x8 and 4 5x7 for £11

JennyOnAPlate · 03/11/2017 16:11

Crazily expensive and dreadful quality too. One of my dds has her eyes closed in ours (obviously blinked at the wrong moment!!) you’d think the photographer could at least check to make sure their eyes are open!!

DeleteOrDecay · 03/11/2017 16:19

They are expensive, we paid £20 for 3 photos most recently.

Katedotness1963 · 03/11/2017 16:24

They're expensive, poor quality and the "packages" are not convenient. We stopped buying them years ago. We just get a family photograph done every few years.

TeeniefaeTroon · 03/11/2017 17:32

I paid £16 and a photo was emailed to me, I’ll print them in Tesco.

TheDowagerCuntess · 03/11/2017 17:34

No, we're able to pick and choose which, and how many of each photo we'd like. Still not cheap, but at least you don't have to buy excess.

baffledcoconut · 03/11/2017 17:35

Nursery photos were £40 for 4 nearly identical digital images... grandparent tax

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