Manjot Ghumaan

I would work at a different location daily and interact with various types of people for school picture days, graduations, class photo days, and staff groups. I would first work with the custodial staff as we were often the first in the building, which would consist of getting ready for the day ahead, such as the shooting location which was often times half the gym, if any other classes or events needed that space later in the day, and how many chairs or benches were needed for group shots. After all the equipment was set up, the lights were tested, and all the wires and stands were taped down so no one could trip on them (typically took anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour), I would meet with the office staff and organize the shooting schedule. I would either be working by myself for the day or with a team of other photographers. While on a team, I would help and guide the new hires through the shooting day. Different schools had their own ways of doing things and I would have to be adaptable to fit their needs. For example, some schools would have the special needs students get their photo taken first before things got too loud and busy, for those shoots I would have to work with the support staff on how we can get the best photo possible. Solutions such as having a teacher stand behind me and the camera and wave to the student or shake a toy would make them look in the direction of the camera, then I would have to be patient and wait for the right time to get the shot. Patience and the ability to stay calm and collected became my greatest strength, not just from working with children, but also from situations that would arise like if it appeared that we weren't going to get all the photos taken before the end of the school day. In that case, you would have to stay calm and pivot your approach, such as calling the next class down when 10 students were remaining in the current class. By the time the next class comes down, the first class is done and you have a steady flow going with no pauses in between. For the days when the kids from online school came in, I would work with the parents in these cases as they would accompany the students. I would take two shots and then turn the laptop to the parents and ask if they would like any changes and if they are happy with the photos. At the end of the day, you tear down all the equipment and burn all the photos onto a USB, organize all the photo cards, and any special request for photo edits is written on a note in the job bag. Finally, sign out with the office staff and wheel out all the heavy equipment.