When thinking of your school website photography, it is imperative that they are of good quality and represent your school. Imagery that captures your schools’ personality and values will help promote your school.
Hero images are needed to showcase your school to your prospective parents or even Ofsted. A school website may include well-written and engaging content, but your photography is what will draw your audience in and make them interact with your school.
Finding a photographer
The first thing you need to consider is whether you can capture your own images and do them justice. Realistically, you need a specialist who can master a camera in different lighting and environments, and understands how schools work. They need to be able to think of their feet whilst also engaging children in the right way and making them feel at ease.
Things to check when looking for a school photographer:
Can they provide a portfolio of previous work in schools? This is so important! anyone can purchase a camera and claim they are a photographer but you need to see evidence of their previous work.
Your photographer must have an update date DBS check. This is a non-negotiable in our opinion.
Planning your day
Once you have found your school website photographer, you need to plan your day. You can read more about how to structure your photography day here. But the most important things are to:
- Outline your values and ethos – this will enable your photographer to capture images that represent the essence of your school.
- Plan your day – lots of things happen in school each day, and although some things can’t be planned, it’s important that you have a realistic itinerary in order to capture everything you need. Here is a recommended timetable.
- Organise your permissions – this is the biggest limitation you’ll have for your school website photos. Some children cannot have their photos taken for marketing purposes so it’s important to highlight this to your photographer. They cannot be expected to know or remember this information so ensure this is something you plan ahead for. If you are thinking of gathering permissions for your children again, feel free to use this template.
How do to use photos on your website
Your school photography can make or break the look and feel of your website.
Most websites design now are created for photos leading the way. You’ll notice most website designers structure websites in blocks, often leading with the main navigation in a bar at the top of the screen, and then directly below is a set of header images that showcase your school. This is what grabs your parents’ attention.
But that isn’t the only place you can use your images. Most websites enable schools to have image-based buttons or quick links. You could also load your images into a gallery within your website.
Here are some websites that include our photography:
Your school website will also include newsletters, your images would be perfect for enhancing your communications to parents.
Other ways of using your images include social media, printing, and displaying in school. We’ve even had a school use our shop service to sell images to parents.
Get in touch
We would love to work with your school and provide you with our expert service!
