Terrible school photos

[emlu67]

In previous years the photos were not brilliant but OK, some parents complained so someone else took over who is a mum at the school and as far as I know not a 'professional' photographer.

This year I am really disappointed, DS has school jumper arranged so that he looks like he has a bust and a hunchback, DD not smiling, bright red also with hunchback and the one of the two together has DD without school jumper and DS with which looks quite daft plus huge expanse of white background above their heads.

Am I just being picky? It would have taken someone half a second to sort out the clothing issue and a choice of more than one photo as in previous years would have been nice too. Will not be buying. Such a shame as school photos are usually such a lovely keepsake but I know I can do better myself!

Seems a bit strange to me for the school not to have chosen a professional photographer, especially if there had been previous complaints about the quality. Too late for this year but I would definately have a word with the school wrt getting a decent photographer sorted for next year.

My DD's were pretty bad too, but not the school's fault to be fair ..... more to do with that funny toothy phase they are going through, most of the class look the same ...... a mouth full of adult teeth in a child's jaw, bless. I won't be buying them

We had terrible photos last term -- taken by a parent who is a professional photographer but does mostly commercial interiors rather than portraits (and AFAICS his interior work is good). The children were positioned with the sun in their eyes so that most of them are all squinty and the posing was unflattering. DS's were better than 80% of them (I still didn't buy as I knew I could easily do better) but some of them were shockingly bad.

Anyway, nothing has been said about those by the school but tomorrow one of the big national school photo chains is in taking individual photographs, so I imagine there were complaints.

The DCs' primary school has a professional company doing it but I still don't bother buying any of the individual pictures. In past years they have offered a composite sheet with thumbnails of the whole class on it for a rockbottom price and that is as much as I have ever bought. You have to pre-order and they allow a resit if you're not happy with your child's individual photo, but I still feel that a photo sitting needs my personal supervision [hgrin] for best results.

DD2 just came home with last ever school photo. I've been sorting through the family photos recently and last night went through 16 years of formal school photos. Some are good, most are awful but it's still lovely to look at them all together and see the progression - particularly the full class pictures.

Not sure if I would have acquired the full set if they had been as expensive back in the mid 90s as they appear to be now though.

I only ever buy if they look nice. If I can take a better shot myself then I definitely don't bother.

The one I do buy every year if the class photo as I think that is nice for DD to have in the future.

Generally when school photographers are in it is such a quick process to get through all the children. They basically sit down, smile and click a couple of times. Sometimes you get more than one poses, but they are all done so quickly with preset up lights, etc that aren't changed between children regardless of if the light changes coming into the hall or whatever.

With three LO it gets quite pricey so though have bought some of them this year we took them to a shop part of timpsons where they took fab individual photos and one of them all together, with their lovely party things on. They took 80 photos, got to keep them on cdrom, together with one 8x10, two 7x5, and some 6x4 for just #20. Were much better than the school ones. Also I just had school professional photos when I was little and I don't like looking back on me always with same uniform, think a mixture is nice.

My DC's school photos are always dreadful. I always take mine out in the garden on the first day of the year and take my own, they always come out lovely because I have time to get them to smile nicely, all look at the camera together. I do a few individual ones too. It's much cheaper too I usually print them out at the local photo shop and often pick up a nice frame too for much less than the price of the school ones. Give it a try

barnowl.................................me too.

I always take a couple a year of my son in front of the same bush in the garden.

Cheap as chips to process in high street shop [boots truprint asda]

I do buy the class one as I cannot do that one lol.

I also ask about 10 of DS good friends and one day after school we do a fun photo around one of the benches in the playground, all parents are up for it as I give them a free copy and its costs less than a fiver for all the copies.

Me too
Have taken photo on first day of school since DD1 started nursery. Always by our kitchen door.
DD2's last year this year so am putting all the photos into a pocket sized photo book as a stocking filler for each of them at Christmas.

I always take a home photo too. I would never hang them on the wall or anything, so too expensive to use the school ones. Anyway, this year ds had his jumper on backwards and was falling off his chair on one photo.

Nice to have a record of how they grow though.

Thanks for your comments. I just feel a little guilty not having the 'proper' photos for the DCs to look back on as my parents did for me.

I am surprised how many of you don't buy the school ones and it makes me feel a lot better about doing them myself now!