How to maximise your investment in professional photography
(An article that appeared in The School Marketing Journal in 2020 reproduced here courtesy of ImageSeven www.imageseven.com.au)
When it comes to communication and marketing of your school, professional photography is sometimes seen as unnecessary while enrolments are strong, and a lavish expense when your enrolments are lacking. But don’t confuse the price you will pay with the value you will receive. Here are just a few reasons why professional photography should be high on your list.
Is it pretty or is it great? It is possible for anyone to take an aesthetically pleasing image. It doesn’t matter if it is captured with professional equipment or with the camera in your phone, most people are capable of the occasional pleasing image. The difference that a professional photographer brings to the table is the ability to do it consistently and deliver the images that tell your school’s brand story to its maximum potential. Great images are judged not only by how they look, but by their usefulness and flexibility. One great image is worth a thousand pretty pictures.
A picture is worth a thousand words. You’ve probably heard this before, but at imageseven we don’t believe this is true. A good image is worth at least 10,000 words. Think of a great image that tells your brand story with just a glance, then multiply that by the number of people who will see it, and then multiply that once again by the number of times you can use the image. Each time your image is seen, you get to show prospective and current parents what your school offers rather than telling them. The internet has made your school’s imagery more important than ever before. Prospective parents will make a judgement about your school in just a fraction of a second. Can you afford not to put your best foot forward?
Stock photography is not you. Using stock photography is an abuse of your brand. Stock photography is intentionally generic and doesn’t depict reality. Most of all it doesn’t tell your brand story ... it tells a generic story. Poor quality imagery on your website and in your printed material signals that your school is likely to be a poor choice for prospective parents and undermine the confidence of current parents.
Great images are versatile assets. Online, photos can be used to make your website infinitely more engaging. They can be used to build your school brand in your school e-newsletter, on social media, featured in blog posts and articles – the possibilities are endless. Offline, photos can be used in your printed material such as your prospectus, brochures, annuals and magazines. Great imagery is vital for your out-of-home advertising (think billboards and shopping centres), online display ads, print and recruitment advertising as well.
So, how do you maximise your investment in professional photography? The School Marketing Journal asked Gavin Blue, a professional photographer with more than 30 years’ experience, for his top tips in how to make a professional photoshoot a truly productive investment for your school.
“Taking photographs in schools is one of my great professional passions. Being able to set staff and students at ease during the shoot is the first step to being able to confidently produce a high volume of quality images.
All schools have an “essence” – a blend of history, energy and pride. It’s what makes them stand out from the crowd. That essence can be hard to put into words and it’s even harder to capture in an image.
School budgets are always tight — and so they should be — so it is important work to ensure schools get maximum value from each shot and each location, capturing images that can be used across many formats and for extended periods. This careful planning also helps to minimise any disruption to a school’s important and busy schedule.
Here are my tips to ensure schools have a successful and productive photo shoot:
Planning is key
Knowing where the images will be used allows for planning for different formats. Is the shot needed on the website in a thin panoramic format as well as on vertical banners? Spending an additional five minutes adjusting a shot to work for different formats saves frustration at the production end searching for images that “fit”.
Maximising Options
Always maximise the use of locations for multiple uses. When capturing images in a class setup, taking combinations of a single student, two students, two students with a teacher and changing students for the sequence can allow for a range of different shots in one location, which creates great value and variety in options.
Planning Movement
Spending more time shooting images and less time moving around will save time. Schools often have sprawling campuses and moving photography equipment and setting up each shot takes time. If the shoots can be organised near each other, the equipment doesn’t need to be packed down as much, and more time can be spent capturing images than moving around the campus.
Having Extra Eyes
Photo shoots can move very quickly, with tight schedules, and many subjects and rooms only being available for certain times. Small details which can be easily missed at the shoot can make the difference between whether the shot is usable or not. Having an extra pair of eyes looking at the finer details can identify school-specific details like school uniform, the appropriateness of props, jewellery, haircuts and makeup.
Candid Shots are Best Not Candid
It can be tempting and may seem easier to try and take images of a class during an actual session, but the best shots are always set up to look like a real class but where you have control over the space. The set-up shots always provide better results and are quicker than trying to work in a live class setting.
Sports Action
Again, the best results are when these are set up, and outside of practice or games. These set ups provide much greater control of lighting, uniforms and the students really enjoy setting up heroic actions they can repeat until they get it right.
Create Traditions
Having images that are photographed in a similar way each year can create traditions in the visual memory bank of the school. This is especially useful with senior students in leadership roles and can help create an aspirational and relatable way students can become part of the school’s history.
Photography Needs Props
Each school has something distinctive that is important to highlight, such as the grounds, facilities, location or other landmarks. When organising shoots, having props for students to work with or around makes the image visually interesting.
We hope you find this infomtation useful and please feel free to get in contact with any questions. GB