10 Tips For Better School Photos This Year

f you are anything like this mom, you are counting on your child’s school picture to feature your beloved one at his or her best. After all, school photos are usually hung on the walls, mailed to extended family members, sent electronically to friends, and shared on social media. Plus, wallet-sized photos will get tucked into holiday cards. No wonder you’ve got your fingers crossed that your child will take a great photo the first time around ─ especially since no one enjoys those dreaded photo retakes.

What’s my secret to scoring priceless school photos? Preparation and pep talks! Here are ten easy tips that will help you cajole better photos out of even the most unenthusiastic subject.

• Trim hair a couple weeks prior. Don’t save the haircut for the days before the scheduled photo shoot. Give freshly trimmed hair time to settle in, especially if your child is going for a new look or has cowlicks.
• Send them to school rested. A tired child is going to look permanently exhausted in the photo that is destined to hang on your wall. Set bedtime a little earlier for several days before the photo shoot.
• Feed them a hearty breakfast. Don’t stuff them, but make sure they eat a well-rounded meal. Send an extra granola bar too, in case they get the late morning or late afternoon slot. It’s hard to smile when your blood sugar is crashing.
• Pack grab-able grooming materials. If you want hair combed and lips glossed, then be sure to gather up everything kids need for a quick touch-up into a little case.
• Be thoughtful about what they wear. Dark, solid, classic colors never go out of style. Avoid tops with stripes, strong patterns, words, or logos. Avoid any clothes that are fussy or uncomfortable. Pay attention to collars and necklines that might gap or stick out when sitting.
• Keep accessories understated and timeless. How about a treasured pair of classic earrings rather than the dangling pink gummy bears? Make sure accessories will lay flat, so your child won’t have anything to adjust.
• Practice makes print-worthy. If you’ve had some photo flubs in past years, don’t dwell on them. Consider what you don’t want your child to do, then emphasize the solution. If you don’t want a toothless smile, ask your child to flash you a couple of practice smiles that “show those gorgeous teeth.”
• Be considerate of the camera-shy. If your child is resistant or tense about photo day, there is likely a reason. See if you can engage him in talking about his concerns in advance. A boy might say, “My pictures always look dorky when I smile big.” A girl might say, “My hair never looks pretty like [insert-name-of-friend-with-perfect-hair-here]’s.” Most children will feel better after simply talking about their feelings.
• Decide on a secret smile prompt. I have no idea what the photographer is going to say to invite your child to smile. But one way to get a great smile with teeth in plain view every year is to offer your child a personalized smile prompt. Will imagining Grandma opening the letter and finding the photo inside get the job done? How about imagining scoring the winning touchdown or a goal? Personalize your smile code in whatever way works best for your child’s temperament.
• Relax about retakes. Your child may not always end up sitting pretty on the first try. That’s just the way it goes sometimes. So follow all of these tips again on the second try, if it comes to that, and know that the photographer will be doing his or her best to get the shot, too.

Recipes for School Photo Disaster

• Avoid time-consuming amounts of hair curling, straightening, or arranging. Opt for a natural look instead, that won’t fade over the hours or frizz in unpredictable weather.
• Don’t force your child to wear clothes a relative made or sent. Go with an outfit your child likes that is comfortable for more natural results.
• Glasses get smudges or cause glare. Remove glasses unless they have anti-glare coating. Include glasses cleaning supplies with grooming materials, if needed.
• Avoid a naked look by wearing long sleeves rather than short sleeves or sleeveless.
• Don’t send kids with braces to school with food that will get caught in their teeth at lunch. Pack a toothbrush on picture day, even if you don’t think they will need it.
• Class clown? Make sure your child understands that purposeful pranks will be rewarded with suspended allowance to afford professional shots made necessary by school photos you can’t use.