When parents are looking at schools, one of the first things they’ll usually see is the website. Before they’ve visited the school, spoken to a teacher or attended an open day, they’re already getting an impression from the images they see online.
The same applies to prospective staff and the wider school community. Good photography gives people a genuine idea of what your school is like, from the classrooms and facilities to the people and activities that make up everyday school life.
Professional school photography is about more than taking staff headshots. It’s about creating a collection of images that your school can actually use across its website, prospectus, social media, newsletters and marketing materials.
Show Your School as It Really Is
Give Parents a Feel for Your Facilities
Your school buildings and facilities are an important part of what you offer, so they should be properly represented.
Bright classrooms, science labs, art spaces, sports facilities, libraries and shared areas can all help give prospective parents a better understanding of the environment their child could be learning in.
Rather than relying on generic or outdated images, professional photography allows you to show your school as it looks now.
It also gives parents something much more useful than a list of facilities. They can actually see the spaces, how they’re used and the kind of environment you’ve created.
Capture Everyday School Life
The facilities are only part of the picture. What really gives a school its character is the people in it.
Photographs of lessons, activities and everyday interactions can show prospective parents what school life actually feels like.
This could include:
- Students taking part in lessons
- Teachers working with their classes
- Practical and hands-on learning
- Sports and extracurricular activities
- School performances and events
- Students working together
- Everyday moments around the school
These images can tell a much bigger story than a collection of posed photographs.
Helping Your School Stand Out
Schools have a lot of competition for attention online. Parents may look at several school websites before deciding which open days to attend, so having strong, up-to-date photography can make a real difference.
Your Website
Your website is often one of the first places prospective parents will go for information.
Good photography can help make the site feel more welcoming and give visitors a much clearer picture of the school. Images of real students, staff, classrooms and activities are also much more useful than generic stock photography.
Social Media
Schools have plenty of stories to share, and photography gives you a way to show them.
Whether you’re posting about a school trip, a new facility, a sports event or a classroom project, having a library of high-quality images means you always have something suitable to use.
Prospectuses and Marketing
Your school photography can also be used in prospectuses, newsletters, brochures and other printed materials.
Having a consistent collection of images means you’re not having to rely on the same few photographs every time you need to produce something new.
Photography Can Help With Staff Recruitment Too
Your website isn’t only being looked at by prospective parents.
Teachers and other members of staff may also be researching your school before applying for a role. The images you use can give them an impression of the working environment and the wider school community.
Photographs showing teachers working with students, staff using the school’s facilities and pupils taking part in activities can help communicate what makes your school a good place to work.
It’s difficult to show school culture through words alone. Photography can give prospective employees a much better sense of the environment they could be joining.
Capturing the Moments That Matter
Not every photograph needs to be for marketing purposes.
Schools are full of moments that are worth documenting, from performances and sports days to school trips, celebrations and end-of-year events.
These photographs can be used by the school at the time, but they also become a record of school life that can be looked back on in years to come.
A sports day might be important to the students taking part now, but those photographs can become memories they value long after they’ve left the school.
The same applies to school plays, awards ceremonies, trips and other events. Having someone there to properly document them means you’re not relying entirely on phone photographs taken from the sidelines.
Getting the Most From Your School Photography
If you’re arranging professional photography for your school, it’s worth thinking about what you actually need from the shoot before the day arrives.
Plan What You Need
Think about the different ways you’ll use the images and the areas of the school you want to show.
It can be useful to create a list covering classrooms, facilities, staff, students, activities and key areas of the school. You can then make sure there’s a good variety of photographs rather than ending up with lots of similar shots.
Choose a Photographer Who Understands Schools
Photographing a school is different from photographing a corporate office or a traditional commercial environment.
The photographer needs to be comfortable working around students and staff while capturing natural photographs without disrupting lessons or activities.
The best images often come from simply observing what is happening rather than asking everyone to stop and pose.
Build a Library of Images
One photography shoot can provide your school with a large library of images that can be used throughout the year.
Having photographs covering different parts of school life means you’ll have something ready whenever you update your website, publish a social media post or produce new marketing material.
It can also be worth updating your photography every few years, particularly if your facilities have changed or you want to keep your website looking current.
Professional School Photography
Good school photography should give people an honest idea of what your school is like.
It should show the facilities, but also the people, atmosphere and everyday experiences that make your school different from the next.
Whether you need new images for your website, a prospectus, social media or a particular school event, professional photography can give you a useful collection of photographs that works across all of your communications.
If you’re looking for a school photographer to capture natural, engaging images of your school, get in touch to discuss what you’re looking for and how we can plan the shoot around your school day.