How To Organize Preschool and Daycare Portraits

For Photographers

How To Organize Profitable Preschool and Daycare Portraits | Sharon Leger Education

If you are a family photographer that is looking to make a full-time income from your family photography business, you may want to consider preschool and daycare portraits. Before you run away screaming, stop for a second though! This is a great way to get paid to market to your ideal client during a slow season. Win, win! 

In this blog post, you will learn how to organize profitable preschool and daycare portraits by: 

  • Establishing a connection
  • Creating flyer/permission form
  • Creating set (keep it simple) 
  • Shooting 
  • Selling images (share Pic-Time code) 
  • Upselling mini or full sessions

Step One: Establishing a Connection

Your first step to being able to offer preschool and daycare portraits is to establish a connection with a local organization. The first preschool that I worked with was the preschool where my children went. They didn’t have a photographer that worked with them, so I was able to offer my services and have been with them the last four years now. 

What if you don’t have kids in local preschools or daycares? You can ask friends if their children have photographers who already come to their schools and reach out to local daycares and preschools via email to offer your services. Your biggest sell is that it costs the organization nothing to bring you in. Not to mention, parents are thrilled to have the opportunity to have pictures done while they are at work. Use this to your marketing advantage when chatting with local preschools and daycares. 

Step Two: Create a Flyer and Permission Form

Once you have established a connection, your next step is to create two very clear forms. The first is a flyer, advertising when you will be going to the daycare or school. This should be one page, have a sample of  what families can expect and include your website so they can see your work. 

The next is a consent form for families to agree that you are allowed to photograph their children. Be sure to have them write the names of each child being photographed. You will also need permission to use their child’s photo for marketing. Finally, provide a space where they can opt into your email list so you can send them future information about booking mini or full sessions in the future. Don’t have an email list? Now is the perfect time to start one (I use Flodesk – see my code here).

Step Three: Create a Set

Once your paperwork is in progress, it’s time to start planning your set. I like to keep these very simple. First, decide if you are going to be outdoors or indoors. If you’re going to be outdoors, you may want to scout the location at the right time of day to ensure you have the best lighting at that location. If you don’t, you may want to use artificial lighting indoors.

Step Four: Communicate With Daycare and Preschool

Before the day of your daycare and preschool portraits, be sure to ask if a teacher can assist you day-of. Ideally, they will brijng the kids to you and help you keep the consent forms in order so that you know which child is which. I like to ask the teacher that is assigned to me to number the consent forms and write a quick note as to what the child is wearing so that I can quickly identify kids. 

Step Five: Photograph the Preschool and Daycare Portraits

When the day arrives, be sure to get as much variety of images as possible so that you can upsell your galleries. Remember, families didn’t pay for a sitting fee, so you want to make sure that the portraits sell themselves! Provide a great client experience to these kiddos so that they go home raving about you to their parents.

Step Six: Selling Images Using Pic-Time  

After editing the images, it’s time for you to sell them to the parents. I try to do a fast turn-around on these since the lighting is pretty consistent and parents are super curious to see how they turned out. 

Personally, I use PicTime (feel free to use my discount code here). The images are watermarked so that parents can’t screenshot them and I have prices listed – $25 per image, $75 for full gallery. After doing this for five years now, I have an upsell success rate of 93% since the images are affordable and adorable! You may want to be strategic about the time of year you do these as well, since they make great gifts for Mother’s Day/Father’s Day. 

Step Seven: Upsell To Full Sessions or Family Mini Sessions

After the carts close, now is a great time to share with families other opportunities to work with you. I like to schedule these preschool portraits right before I release my mini-sessions for the year since I can offer families a discount code. While this doesn’t necessarily bring you a ton of new clients, I have found that I get consistent ideal clients from the preschool each year. This helps me to create a foundation of repeat clients that rave about me. 

Preschool and Daycare Portraits: Conclusion

And that’s it! Preschool and daycare portraits are my favorite way to ensure that I am working year-round. In addition, once you do them once, you have a simple, profitable process that you can rinse and repeat. Once you have a good flow, you will then be able to expand to other daycare and preschools to offer them portraits as well.

If you want to see if preschool and daycare portraits is the next right step for you, be sure to check out my quiz: “Are you ready to scale your business?” to find out if this is the best way to focus your energy right now. 

How To Organize Profitable Preschool and Daycare Portraits | Sharon Leger Education

Choosing Sharon As Your Photography Business Coach

You are in the right place if you’re looking for a family photography coach who: 

  • Is all about concrete, action steps
  • Went from a full-time teaching job to full-time photography
  • Has been a stay-at-home mom, a work-from-home mom, a home-daycare- mom, a full-time working mom and now a small-business mom! 
  • Can help you implement strategies to help you grow your business quickly without getting distracted by all of the shiny things 
  • Will push you to try new things in your business to say good-bye to slow season forever! 
  • Want systems and action plans you can implement on your own

Want to see if we’re a good fit? I totally get it! Fill out an application here and we can schedule a no-pressure meet-and-greet to see if I can help you get where you’re going quickly. 

Still not sure? Last year, I wrote a book to document my personal growth journey that helped me (and my business!) get to where it is today. You can check it out on Amazon here. 

"I am so happy to have had Sharon capture photos of my family. She was so easy to work with, from scheduling to planning and coordinating, she could not have made the process more simple. She showed up on the day-of super prepared, with a whole wagon full of stuff just in case, including snacks for my kids! 

Kim

4 / 15

She worked so well with my children: she truly understands that children are going to get bored fast and she worked around their moods perfectly.

I love that she captured my kids' candid smiles, and not just the posed ones. To top it off, the final product was beyond my expectations and delivered in under a week! You can tell that she loves what she's doing and it shows in her work. She is truly a gem and I can't wait to work with her again as my children grow up!"

"We loved how simple and stress-free our son’s cake smash session was—we didn't need to worry about props or set-up. 

Alexis

When we showed up, Sharon had everything ready for us and we got to just be present in the moment. 

The portraits captured all the sweet little details we want to remember from his first birthday, and we were so happy to share them with our family. It was the perfect way to celebrate this milestone!" 

2 / 15

"Sharon was absolutely lovely to work with. I'm not the type of person who particularly enjoys photoshoots, but she is exceptionally adept at putting her clients at ease. Her studio is equal parts tranquil, tasteful and casual so that my wife and I were not in the least bit overwhelmed.

Kevin

Sharon anticipates every possible need and plans accordingly so that you don't have to. 

She is able to maintain the pace of her shoots, moving them forward judiciously without making the client feel rushed or unappreciated. She was completely down-to-earth and personable. It sounds cliché, but talking with her felt like catching up with an old friend – exactly we needed after the hectic experience of bringing our first child into the world. Sharon was more than worth the cost."

3 / 15

"Sharon was amazing to work with during our recent newborn session! She was very responsive with any questions I had before the session, and even offered advice on outfits for my older children. I borrowed a gorgeous dress from her client closet, which helped me feel more confident and comfortable for photos. 

Amanda

I was nervous about how the session would go with two young children and a newborn, but Sharon had everything so organized and prepared, that everything went flawlessly.

She was so calming and kind, and her studio felt so welcoming! The finished photos are all so beautiful, that I can't even come close to picking a favorite!"

4 / 15

"I was first introduced to Sharon in 2024 when I did a session of personality portraits, and I was instantly impressed. A few friends had used her before and raved about her work, and now I completely understand why! Sharon truly works magic behind the camera. She is incredibly organized, answering all questions and planning every detail ahead of time. 

Merissa

There’s never a need to stress about locations, directions, or even bad weather—she has a backup plan for everything!

One of my favorite parts of working with her is the dress consult to help plan outfits. She has such a great eye for style and helps put together looks that photograph beautifully."

5 / 15

"Sharon and Amy were fabulous! Right from the initial booking they made me feel special. I wore three beautiful dresses that Sharon already had available for me to wear from her client closet (I LOVE this feature!). We tried on several dresses until I found one that fit comfortably and I felt fabulous in.

Nicole

Amy & Sharon were great at communicating with me every step of the process.

Amy didn’t go overboard with the makeup, she made me look like myself but a little extra glam. An elevated version of myself. They were so fabulous and I would absolutely book them again. I 10/10 recommend Sharon and Amy for maternity or family photo sessions."

6 / 15

"Scheduling was super easy through her website and Sharon is very communicative. Sharon offers a dress consultation so you can go to her studio and try on multiple dresses that fit whatever theme you choose for your photo day.

Nicole

I've never seen a photographer offer a whole closet of dresses to choose from and this takes out ALL the stress of picking an outfit for pictures.

Another priceless offering when it comes to taking the stress out of family photos is hair and makeup (additional fee). I scheduled with Amy for a few hours before my shoot. Amy was so easy to talk to and did a fantastic job with the look I wanted. I'm already looking forward to another booking and have referred her to my friends and family. I cannot recommend Sharon and her team more."  
 

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7 / 15

"We recently had our second family session with Sharon and 

Jenna

we were yet again blown away by the entire experience. 

From her expert outfit planning, to making the journey to join us at our beach for photos, Sharon created a relaxed, fun environment from beginning to end. The photos we received were beyond what I could have imagined! She captured our family perfectly!!"

8 / 15

"I recently had the pleasure of working with Sharon for a family beach session, and she was amazing from start to finish! Sharon's attention to detail and professionalism made the entire process seamless. Her empathetic and supportive nature made a world of difference, and the photos turned out beautifully. 

Alexis

I highly recommend Sharon to any mom looking for a talented and compassionate photographer, who takes the stress out of planning.

Her work is exceptional, and she truly cares about her clients. Thank you, Sharon, for capturing these moments for us!"

9 / 15

"Sharon is the absolute best! We worked with her for our maternity photos, newborn photos, and our cake smash one-year-old photos. Each time, Sharon is so professional and friendly, makes us feel right at home, and take the most beautiful photos. We are blown away every time! The client closet is awesome and Sharon really went the extra mile to find gowns that complimented me. 

Jen

We had so much fun taking all of these photos and can’t wait to work with her again!

We will cherish these photos forever."

10 / 15

"We did personality portraits for the second time with Sharon and they came out so well! 

Kelsey

The kids had such a blast and she really captured their unique personalities!"

11 / 15

"We did both our maternity and newborn photos with Sharon and she made each experience beyond amazing. I met Sharon first at our dress consultation and knew we were going to work well together. It’s incredible that she gives you access to some many dresses and really knows how to make a pregnant lady feel beautiful.

She made my husband (who admittedly did not want to take the pictures) feel so comfortable, got him laughing and even looking forward to the newborn shoot.

Then, at the newborn shoot Sharon was so patient with us (it was our first trip out) she again made me feel so beautiful in her huge selection of dresses and was so good and rocking out baby boy to sleep."

Alexa

12 / 15

"Stop reading reviews and just book your session with Sharon Leger Photography right now. Sharon has been there for my family even before we were an official family. She poetically captured our engagement, maternity and our newborn’s first photos.

I couldn’t imagine trusting anyone else with these precious moments.

I am not an easy client. I am nervous, unsure of myself and overly aware of every physical flaw (especially postpartum). Sharon made me feel comfortable and beautiful every step of the way. We love Sharon Leger Photography, especially the woman behind the lens! Thank you for everything, Sharon!"

Dawn

13 / 15

"Sharon is an absolute gem! It has been 3.5 years since I found her and since then she has captured the most adorable and perfect pictures of my two sons and our family.

From newborn sessions, cake smashes and family photos, not one detail has ever been overlooked. Her process is seamless and she makes everything so accessible and easy.

She offers so many options for photo opportunities and has perfected a style that really is timeless! She was so wonderful with each of my children when they were newborns, that it made the experience so worth it! Couldn’t recommend enough!"

Melissa

14 / 15

"It’s hard for me to find the perfect words to describe what Sharon has given me.

I reached out to her when I was thinking about doing maternity photos, and she quickly convinced me that I would not regret it. She was right. Not only do I not regret my maternity photos but I actually love everything about them. Every time I look at them, all of those amazing feelings I felt while I was pregnant come right back as if I’m still in the moment. They are something I will cherish forever."

Kimberly

15 / 15

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