I have to be honest here and say the early bird get's the worm and I now can confess he did. Lifetouch got the contract for a local first year jv high school. I met with the principal this am to attain permission to strobe his first ever jv basketball game. (I needed permission from him because the new coach ok'ed it but asked me to check with the principal to be sure) He asked me about the contract for 1 year that he signed with lifetouch and whether this in any way was breaking his contract with them. I told him from my past experience LT was not interested in sports other than to do his team and individual pictures. My other response was to see if he would allow me to look at the contract to make sure. Needless to say no copy of it close by so what do you say to principals when they bring up LT.
I do not want this to be a flame out seesion on LT just looking to see what you have seen if you have looked at there contracts and to see if they have any verbage about sports images or T & I..
I shoot at several schools where others have the yearbook/T&I contracts but the action is open so, yes, it can be done without violating the agreements at these particular schools. However the school officials know what the contract says and how to operate within their agreements.
In your case nothing can be determined until someone reads the contract, be it you or the principle. It should be a matter of public record but I don't know how to help you track it down.
If I were you, I would keep in touch with the principle and politely nudge him into answering your question. If you push too hard you may get the dreaded rubber stamp "No" which is the easy way out of anything some people don't want to deal with.
I had a similar experience with my local school and LT.
I was wanting to shoot the HS games, action shots,(boys & girls) and knew that LT had the T&I contract last year. I asked the school principal to see the contract with LT(public record), he found it, and I was good, to go for shooting the actionshots.
One year later, I now have the T&I contract for the school
You may want to look over that contract yourself to make sure though, as they may word each one differently
Thanks guys. BTW he gave me the ok to strobe his first ever bb game and asked me to come see him this spring to discuss handling the other stuff. Maybe it did not hurt that I offered him some shots of the game gratis.
This is a huge headache for me personally. Usually Lifetouch does not contract with schools individually, but with the school districts (that is how it is here in Alaska and how it use to be in Seattle). Each contract varies. I have seen contracts that they have total photo control, contracts that they will do team and individuals if needed (ie: no booster shooter), and contracts that state they will shoot up to 60 games total for all sports combined for the yearbook. Yet, principals usually never see the contract, and my experience with Lifetouch is that they are very protective of their contract, and are very hesitant on sharing it. Your best bet is to do what I am doing in the next couple weeks. Walk into the Lifetouch office, ask to see the owner/manager, and introduce yourself to them. I have a contract with the booster clubs, not the school, but I need to see the contract so I know if there is anything that I can not say yes to if the school or boosters asks. I try to do this each year. Usually, Lifetouch has no problem with me because as they said one year, a booster photographer can provide coverage that we just can not offer. But, Lifetouch varies from owner to owner, city to city. Best to hear what the contract is from Lifetouch themselves.
I have never worked for Lifetouch but know several photographers that do. The contracts they have are not always with the school districts, in some cases they are with individual schools. In my area there are a few competitors who have opened the market by showing that they can do equal or better work.
Lifetouch wants to secure exclusive rights to senior portrait packages, and Team & Individual packages, because that is what generates the most profit for them. In exchange for these rights Lifetouch will give to the school shots of sports, and other events such as pep rallies, school plays, dances, etc. for use in the school paper and yearbook. The sports shooting is usually one game of each varsity and JV team. Lifetouch does not seek to supply "coverage" in a photojournalistic sense. I suppose that they might find a conflict where someone shooting to sell to parents threatens their T & I business but I have never heard a peep about them attempting to exercise exclusivity on the sidelines.
In my area the people who shoot sports for Lifetouch are all freelancers who get paid by the assignment, and in some cases of long travel distances, a mileage allowance. Around here Lifetouch is considered a good gig not so much for the pay but as an experience-gaining step toward something better. It will force a photog to learn to shoot at different venues and know different sports. Just the fact that you get assigned by someone as opposed to shooting what & where you want is a threshold to pass as you break away from being a "parent with camera" to becoming a pro.
Personally, I am kind of neutral regarding Lifetouch, but if it fits your needs - go for it.
I shoot next to the Lifetouch guy at sporting events and help him identify key players, set up shots etc. Never an issue. They just don't have tribal knowledge and appreciate the support.
As someone who does contract work for Lifetouch, I can say that what WmPat says is pretty much right on the money. When I am not working for them, they don't say anything about my presence on the sidelines and when I am working for them, I don't try to run anyone else out of my way. Lifetouch has the county contract around here, but I've never seen them try to keep other shooters away, even at events where they are shooting.
As for "photojournalistic" coverage, I am not sure what WmPat means, but generally I am instructed to get shots of action, band, cheer, dance, and student fans and any special activities like senior night or homecoming events when I am shooting for them. These images are provided to the yearbook for their use and may also be put on the web for sale as well. I've been told though that their sales are pretty minimal and just a small fraction of their other sales.
Generally, it is a big field and their is room for everyone.
I also worked for Lifetouch doing the sports T&I as well as photographing seniors. We normally covered a game or two for action for the schools that we had contracts with. I personally have seen a sales rep attempt to run off another photographer that was doing some "mug shots" for a team while we were photographing the team and individuals. That was the only time though. Only because he was in the team shot and would not move. Other than that it's always be pleasant on the sidelines. WmPat you are absolutely correct about the senior packages and T&I. They do bring in the most money and territories hate to lose those contracts.
timgangloff wrote:
..... As for "photojournalistic" coverage, I am not sure what WmPat means, .....
I just meant to say that Lifetouch doesn't sell shots to news media, at least not that I am aware of.
To the OP, if you are having a bit of difficulty working around the Lifetouch contracts perhaps you should contact their local office and ask if they need any more shooters.
