School pictures?

[AmyM]

Does anybody here buy school pictures? Kassi's came in and they were good...but... somebody forgot to tell her to wipe the ketchup off the side of her mouth and they have the old glasses glare. I guess they must have been in a hurry or maybe a newbie taking pictures? I really don't wanna pay $40 for the ketchup smile photos LOL

[pbumbaca]

We don't have a choice we have to order and pay for them upfront but I do know that if they come out really bad they will do a retake. I'm guessing you could ask if they would touchup the photo or retake them. If the photographer was any kind of good photographer they would have told the kiddo about the ketchup!

[ColleenSwerb]

I wouldn't buy them with glasses glare and ketchup face, lol. Set up a lil photo shoot of your own in your house for free :)

[LenaGardner]

I always pay $10 for one 8x10 and that's it. That way I'll have one from every year and for scrapping purposes. This way when I have 3 in school the most I'll ever be out is about $30. I don't give them to family. They get plenty of photo gifts as it is :)

[~Julie~]

I would definitely not get them and wait for picture retake day.

[junebug]

this is chloes first school pictures (kindergarten). she just had hers last week and i ordered a small $22 package. we pay before they are taken so if they suck you have no choice. i guess they have retakes, atleast they did when i was in school. i will always buy them no matter what; its a milestone marker. my mom always bought ours. she says its fun to look back when you are older and laugh at them lol. i needed more than whats in the package i ordered but i will probably scan them into my printer and print them on photo paper to make more copies. i've done this before and they turn out really good. my family isn't picky thank god.

[my3hens]

Yeah I don't pay for them either. My daughter's came out horrible last year and we spent way to much money on them.

[AmyM]

Looking at those I was starting to think that ummm hmmmm maybe I could go pro with a little more work. Specialize in taking photos of kids with glasses, cause I've done it since she was 2 :)
I kinda like the ketchup smile. It's real LOL but I still just can't pay for it kwim?

[Libby Pritchett]

I'm with Lena. I buy the $10 pack every year just so that I can have one. It's not like I have a shortage of photos, but there's just something about the school pictures... they're good blackmail material. ;)

[Nikki Epperson]

We don't have $10 packs here. You have to buy the smallest package - usually $25 -$35. I only buy photos for the "firsts" and then we do Wal-Mart or our own photo sessions. :)

[LeeAndra]

This is FI's son's first year of school, and they had school pics last week. We discussed earlier in the week buying the smallest package for $13 which is only 2 3 x 5s, 4 wallets, and the class pic. He knows I can take better pictures than that. To get a package that would just cover grandparents was over $40.

And then it was that morning and allasudden FI decided he 'needed' to get a bigger package because he didn't want to 'mess with' trying to do a photo shoot with his son.

:confused:

Yeah, 'cause it's not like you have your son ALL WEEK LONG this week since your ex is out of town. Boy, it would be so difficult to run out to the park after dinner this week and take a few pictures in the leaves.

I have no idea how much he spent, but I'm sure it was too much.

Then as we were driving away from dropping him off at school, he turns to me and says, 'I hope somebody will wipe his face before the pictures get taken. I didn't have anything to wipe it off with.'

:thumbdown:

[scrapperjade]

My mom never bought the packages. I always hated them! Jostens used to take the pictures up here (FINALLY a new company got the school contract after 20+ years). It was dumb... they'd literally sit you down, say Smile, then snap and you were done. No double shots, didn't matter if he knew that you had your mouth half open, you'd blinked etc. We had to wait till re-take day, but that was always like 2 months later.

Mom would take us all to Walmart and get the hu-mungo packages and give them to everyone we knew and still had bazillions left over. It was a much better deal! Lots of times she'd give the school a copy and request that they print it in the yearbook instead of our "school" picture.

[lovely1m]

My child is not in school, but I don't plan, too. I will take my child somewhere and get good ones.

[DawnMarch]

I'm a photographer and I take my kids' pictures every year around the birthday. BUT, for some reason, I have to buy at least one of those school photos. Don't know why, but I can't NOT order something! Usually, just one 5x7 or 8x10, but this year they got smart and added the "Fun Pack" which is a bunch of things for the kids -- cards and calendars and bookmarks and stuff with their picture on it, so I had to buy them each one of those.

[Jennilyn]

This year, since my girls are getting their portraits taken and I'll be getting more from that, I only need an 8x10 of Kristen so I just ordered one for $15. I got lucky and Kristen's was pretty good the first take. I would do a retake on a yucky photo and if that one didn't turn out nice, I'd just go somewhere and get them taken. They don't do a yearbook or anything for the school so we don't need to do them at the school.

[KristinCB]

Lily is getting her school pictures done today. I'll see how they turn out, I probably will buy them just because but not sure.. the poses are SOOO bad that we have to pick from. lol

[Denise2987]

Ok, I will admit it, I did a bad bad thing. I scanned the school pics. The company that does my son's daycare pics sends home the proofs. You keep what you want and send back the rest with a check for the ones you kept. It just so happens that the school takes pics in the fall and spring and they are always within a week of his birthday or half birthday (which I have professional pics done for or set up my own photo shoot on location somewhere fun) so I don't need all those school pics in addition to the birthday/half birthday shots I have done. This year I scanned all three poses and just bought the storyboard 8x10 that had all three on one page (I don;t ahve the best scanner so i wanted one set of originals) and I sent back the rest. All I want the scanned copies for is LOs, I took his 2.5 year pics myself and loved them and had them printed for friends and family so I just didn't need the school pics. Plus, at $20 a sheet, they just weren't good enough to buy more than the one that I bought. They were really cute poses of DS but the quality of the pics just didn't wow me. It might sound snarky/braggy but I liked the ones I took better.

[ditzyscrap]

We bought Mason's last year and probably will every year unless they are horrible. Actually picture day is tomorrow - I need to remember that, lol.

[Leila]

We have to prepay for pictures here too. I considered just not allowing the boys to have their pictures taken, but there was a great wailing and gnashing of teeth from JP when I said that. So, we bought the $12 package for each kid. If I don't like it, they'll do retakes on 11/11 (if we're here. we might be in Dallas). If we do retakes and don't like them, we get our money back.

I already know I'm going to hate Devin's picture. He went in with a huge goose egg that was topped with a nasty bruise (you know, the nasty fading bruise color or purple and puke green? Yeah, that.) as well as a serious flare of the blepharitis (form of eczema) on his right eye. Believe me, I tried to cover that bruise with concealers, foundation...nothing worked because Devin is SO pale that even my "palest foundation in existence" is too dark for him. :thumbdown:

JP's should be ok, although he did admit to trying to smile like his dad. His dad didn't smile...he smirked an unintentionally evil smirk. Sigh...

[rach3975]

We have to prepay, but I always buy something. Usually a small package, something like 2 5x7s, some wallets, and a class photo. Sadly, that's a $25 to $30 package. DS2's school has the option of retakes if they come out badly, but at DS1's school it's a one-shot deal and they either come out well or they don't.

[HeatherStokes]

Oh thi sis my first kid and I plan to buy EVERYTHING I can...lol
We just had his 3 year portraits done a few months ago - but there is NO WAY I am going to miss out on the annual school photo. I soooo love looking back on mine and my brothers. It is tradition. Dylan has his very first School photos next week and I can't WAIT!

[Kat Stokes]

I only bought the class picture this year. I took him to Penney's the same week of school pics and got some fabulous ones done for a heck of a lot cheaper!!!

[Robin Carlton]

I agree with the milestone marker so I always buy them - plus I love the super cute class photo every year. It just makes me smile see them all lined up with their teachers standing there all dressed up. It's too cute!

R

[lizzyfizzy]

hahaha! i always buy just one picture, just cause...you know. i think most people spend a tons, but unless traci comes to my kiddos school they just don't turn out well. its a shame about the catsup! LOL! :D

[mommy2aria06]

Aw, ketchup pics sound so cute...and funny lol! I can't believe no one told the poor girl she had ketchup on her face :shakeshead:

Anyway, yes, when my daughter is old enough for school I will buy something each year. I still have all my school pictures (which I made my parents buy every year- and of course I had the have the really expensive package lmao) and I look at them every once in a while. To me its more about the memory of that location on that day that sticks with me kwim? Like how for my first grade pictures I am wearing my brownie outfit because that was all I would wear every Monday during first grade lmao

[ShortCake]

I buy them every year. So far I have the boys back and they are both terrible.

[Traci Reed]

You can come out here and Ill take em for you :D

[Denise2987]

Aw, ketchup pics sound so cute...and funny lol! I can't believe no one told the poor girl she had ketchup on her face :shakeshead:

Anyway, yes, when my daughter is old enough for school I will buy something each year. I still have all my school pictures (which I made my parents buy every year- and of course I had the have the really expensive package lmao) and I look at them every once in a while. To me its more about the memory of that location on that day that sticks with me kwim? Like how for my first grade pictures I am wearing my brownie outfit because that was all I would wear every Monday during first grade lmao


OMG I am totally wearing my brownie outfit in my 2nd grade pic because I had a brownie meeting that evening and there was no way I wasn't going to wear it!! lol my mom made me put a flowered vest over it to "de-brownie" it but I still know!!!!

[crecia27]

I have been SO unhappy with school pictures. I always tell my husband they must be male photographers because they have no attention to detail. How hard is it to straighten a shirt, or get their hair out of thier face (or wipe off ketchup?) Even my 16 yr old said he'd rather I take them! :thumbup:

[Sharon Kay]

You should have a "picture retake" day. Call school and ask.

[scrappychic]

I just got the $19 package at Mckenna's kindy. You have to prepay before they even take the pic which really sucks. At the preschool they'd print them before you pay so you could at least see how they turned out, in which case I paid $50 for the 2 girls.

[Angie4b1g]

but i will probably scan them into my printer and print them on photo paper to make more copies.

AHH my eyes. I'm going to look the other way. :D

[thisisfunstuff]

Looking at those I was starting to think that ummm hmmmm maybe I could go pro with a little more work. Specialize in taking photos of kids with glasses, cause I've done it since she was 2 :)
I kinda like the ketchup smile. It's real LOL but I still just can't pay for it kwim?


I would appreciate any tips for the whole taking pics with glasses thing!!! My 3.5 year old has been wearing them on & off for a year now (long story) & I have several pics that I LOVE of her, but the glasses have a huge glare! grr!! Is there a way to fix that with PSE? gotta be, huh? hmm...

[Paula]

Here in our school district, they take a photo in the fall that you have to pay up front for - usually $25.00 for the smallest package. I don't ever buy this because I don't want to have to take photos that I don't want.

But, in the fall, they do reshoots. They send home the package and we pay for the pieces we want. I usually will buy the 8x10 from that (if it's good) and it usually is $12.00.

[tuneskids]

I guess we luck out ... we get proofs of the photos before we have to order & pay, and one of the specials that they do is a photo retouch (scars, acne, dirt, etc) for $6. They also do vignettes, different tones (B&W, Sepia) and offer portrait or landscapes. Plus I can go online and order so many extras with their photos (we are given a code with purchase). Could also get all photos on CD too.

I have only gotten a few of the kiddos school pics in the past, haven't done every year. This year, I got 1 8x10 of each kiddo, but we get to take advantage of a family package - third and each additional child is half off, so I got all four kids for the price of 3. Can't remember right now how much it was, but it wasn't too bad.

[Meadow92]

I don't buy them anymore. I can take and edit them myself and have them printed through Walgreens so much cheaper. My daughter has a habit of doing the fake smile when she gets school pictures. I am also doing her senior photos this summer/fall. :)

[Stacey42]

We have to prepay and I won't do it. In this day & age there is no reason for me not to be able to see a proof before you get one cent of my money. They use a digital camera. They could email me the proof immediately & have my response before the end of the day. Possibly even within minutes. I just can't bring myself to pay for photos I have no control over.

I take them to a portrait studio one a year at my convenience. Photo day always seems to arrive when I have no time to get them hair cuts. If I get them done at the mall, I can get their hair cut there & then go get the photo right after. :)