photographer

account specialist

supervisor

sales account manager

business development representative

Lifetouch

Long days are not uncommon in the early part of the season, getting up at 5am to be at the job site for 6 or 630 isn't uncommon. Leaving the school at the end of the day some times you leave before the students other times you are not leaving until 4pm or later - if there is a team meeting you are not getting home until 9pm or later depending on how far you live away and how traffic is. 

Working in the schools varies day to day, some days you have a dream school other days a nightmare school. Just like the schools you are in the students vary in being great to work with to being less then great - but regardless you do you best to create the images that you've been hired to take. 

Diplomacy, Time Management are just two of the main things you have to learn to work with when in a school, since just because you are there all day doesn't mean you will actually have all the time to actually take photographs (its very much possible you will have to tear down and reset up do to various things happening in the school - which cuts into your time you are able to photograph). 

Parents can make it interesting since you have to deal with them as well as general staff (its not uncommon to have a parent hovering and being unpleased with the expression of their child - this is when being diplomatic comes in handy for trying to get the child to smile and the parent to back off if at all possible). 

It can be most enjoyable working with other photographers who you share various interests with, but also just being with various students if you enjoy being around them can be rewarding in its own fashion.

One of the hardest parts of the job is the hours, you can work 10 hours one day and the next only get in 4 hours or nun if you are not scheduled to work (though request or because they don't need you for the day(. Hauling around 200 pounds of photo equipment is also a fun thing, since not all schools are easy to get into, its not uncommon to have to carry your equipment up or down several flights of stairs and still have to be set up by what ever time you are told you need to be up and running (hence why you get to a school early).

If you want to hate your life, this job is for you. But don't worry, at Lifetouch they hate you too! 

Benefits are non-existent unless you work for at least a year AND 1232 hours/year or 42 weeks/year, which is nearly impossible because it's seasonal work with constant layoffs.

Wages are insanely low. Expected to use your own vehicle and pay business insurance. You are not compensated for this. Mileage is about 32-36 cents/km. Travel time is 10.45/hr, and you'll be lucky if you get 14/hour working wage.

Management is a JOKE. Incompetent. Completely and utterly incompetent. I think they got their degrees out of a cereal box. They're just so laughably pathetic and foolish, it's no wonder the company is failing so much.

Workplace culture is toxic, pure and simple. You're just a number. You're basically told that you're expendable. You are certainly made you feel like you neither matter nor have ever mattered nor will ever matter.

Hardest part of the job is watching the people around you crumble into shells of their former selves, complete with actual breakdowns, tears, stress leaves, and vicious political infighting. There are no opportunities for advancement. They will not provide job descriptions in an effort to force you to take on tasks that you are not being compensated for. The equipment fails constantly. Total overkill - they seriously use a scrim that is about 7 feet tall and 4.5 feet wide for student head shots. They attempt to use expensive equipment to cover up for their lack of professionalism and poor training of photographers and other staff.

There are no pros to this place. Just don't. You're worth so much more than this. You're not just a number. You're a person. You deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. Lifetouch will not provide you with that. Don't do this to yourself. Run away. These people are evil.

This job is perfect for the person who loves to meet people eye to eye, capturing their essence in a well calibrated photo.  If you like to travel around and meet people, and are available to work the necessary shifts, you will enjoy this job!  You must be physically fit to carry and set up a minivan-filling amount of equipment. You must be mentally fit to meet and connect positively with dozens of individuals every day.  You must also be capable of learning how to set up complicated mobile photography studio equipment, which changes depending on the type of photos being taken, as well as the necessary paperwork and monetary responsibilities. You must be able to look at each individual that sits in front of your camera with an objective eye and a subjective heart, caring to capture an image that will make themselves and their parent feel good when they see it.  You must be kind and patient, while staying on a tight schedule, producing consistent work according to provided guidelines.
Overall, this is a great job for someone who finds wealth in human connection and local travel, but you'll be doing it for love, not for the money; the wage is low, considering all that a photographer is required to be, do and give in the service of this job.

Great to earn some bucks. You travel a lot so be prepared for that, even all the way to fort mcmurray.
The management staff is great, the coworkers who work as photographers, some of them who have been there for a while, not so great. A lot of gossip amongst them, very judgemental, just like a high school with mean girls pretty much. Their staff turn over is very high and some have even confessed to me they are quitting because of the coworkers and it's a reason why I left too and management staff don't seem to care or do anything about them. I enjoyed the job, not the coworkers.
You do not need photography background to work this job, which has pros and cons to it. Meaning, yes, an easy job to get into, but if you don't know the basic functions of a camera and have a problem, prepare for some people to freak out about it. I'm an actual photographer and know how to work cameras, but not all who work there know anything about them and how to go about fixing an easy problem, it's kind of sad really.......
I enjoyed photographing the students, staff, etc. but prepare for long days for bigger schools. The hours fluctuate depending where you are. You may get half a day, you may get a full day. You must have a car of course.

Overall, I did like working this job but disliked working with the snotty children who were my coworkers. Mind you not all of them were like these people, but a good chunk.

A typical day would be visiting at least 3 schools to make sure communication is present. Making sure if there were any concerns they were being taken care of in a timely manner. I would also attempt to sign on new account by visiting 3-5 prospects per week. The biggest takeaway is understanding how to create and maintain professional relationships. Our management team was very hands off and allowed us to follow the process of relationship building, we had one on ones every two weeks and made sure we were on track to hit targets. Our team were very open and honest and would jump to help each other out, wether it was a second person at a presentation or help with a computer problem, someone would always jump to help out. The hardest part of the job for me was learning how to manage 102 accounts. I took over a previous reps territory, and I found it very difficult at first to properly manage all the accounts and build the required relationships with the key decision makers in each account. The best part of the job was the professional relationships I did make and getting to the point where I could walk into an account and have people know who I am. It reinforced that I was servicing their accounts and solving any problems that did arise.

This job comes with a lot of repetitiveness, and working with kids of all ages. It requires some strength/stamina, for hauling, loading/unloading, and set up/take down of equipment.
Furthermore, it requires a lot of patience working with the kids. My biggest struggle was the teenagers. Some are fine but I ran into so many aggravating issues with some of the older kids. 
You are required to rate a selection of your photos weekly (based on pose, attention to detail, genuine smile, etc), so when you get a lot of difficult people that refuse to cooperate and would rather waste time and give you bad poses or goof off, it isn't fun to have those photos come up for review. All the management sees is the quality of the photo, not the struggles you faced with the individual. 
I know people that really enjoyed working there but, even after 7 years of working with children (plus more volunteer work for many years before that) I still found I wasn't cut out for the frustration that can arise from kids like that.
The little ones also can sometimes urinate or throw up (usually out of nervousness or too shy to speak up), so be sure you can handle that if it should happen to you. 
The training was good, helpful, and the management is kind and supportive but overall I personally would not like to work there again. It all depends what kind of patience and stomach you have for things of this nature.

The company was so awesome to work for. Management and coworkers were all really nice, friendly and understanding when mistakes were made. They treated you more than just a human being; they treated you as a friend. I bring this up because I worked at a place where they treated me very poorly.

Pay was what I expected for temporary, base-line work and while the job required a lot of physical activity, it wasn't what I would consider difficult or mentally taxing. I often found myself having fun doing the job, and I don't think I ever had a day that I would consider bad.

The hardest part of the job was moving and setting up/taking down my equipment. It's heavy and it takes a while to set up, but it's good physical activity. 

Prior to actually getting into the job, I was really worried about having to photograph difficult students (such as those with special needs), but it actually turned out to be rather rewarding, especially when you end up with a brilliant photo of the student.

Working here really opened my eyes to proper portrait photography and I built up a lot of skill in the time I was there. I'd recommend this company to just about anyone.

I get up at 4:00am in the morning, stop by the office and pick up my equipment. Drive a hour depending on the city I am going too. Find where I am suppose to be set up but most custodians don't know that I am even coming. Set up equipment which usually takes about a hour. Then run by the office and advise what we should start with that day which classes and what not. Finish the school, stop by office do a last call. Tear down equipment, go back to office say good-bye and hope to see them  next year. Load car and come home a hour. I learn new things every day for example how each school is specific about how they do there photography day, also that we don't do retakes for spring unless school specifies it. I adore my co-workers, we always have a good time working together. We are professionals but know how to keep upbeat through the madness of the day. The hardest part of the job is not getting a raise every year but still promoting a smile at work, also the custodians not knowing where we are to set up which takes up more time then it should. The most enjoyable part of my job is the kids I get to meet that put a smile on my face and my co-workers who always know what to say when having a rough day.

Terrible management they are rude and make sure to make you feel terrible about yourself. You always have to search for information because you never have all the info about the job. Your never gaurenteed full time work you lucky if you get 8 hours a day when hired as a full time employee. Pay is terrible for what you have to do everyday they say you get benefits but it pretty much impossible to get them because they make it so you need a certain amount of hours per year and you never can get that many it pretty much impossible. 

I have worked there two years and nothing has got better, if anyone asked if they should work there I would give it a solid NO! 

The only reason why I am still there is because I need money and first chance I get to leave I am leaving. Very unorganized especially when doing grad photos there's always something changing and there are so many rules and they always cristisize you for your work and it's never good. 

They always make you review your work which is good but they point out everything bad it in instead of the good. They never make you feel good and appreciated for your work they always make you feel replaceable. 

Don't do it to yourself! There something out there that is worth more than working for this company

As I was based outside the Winnipeg district, 90% of the schools you had to photograph were between a 30m and 2 1/2 hour drive. The days were definitely long, most days being longer than 8 hours (including driving time) but they usually flew by. You get to the office every morning, load up the van with equipment, drive to the school and set up before school begins. With the job being mostly based in/around rural Manitoba, it was a great opportunity to be able to experience the province through the job! Lifetouch requires/prefers you have your own vehicle as well just in case all the vans are out on the road.

The job requires a lot of trust in your (small) team and a lot of the time you work alone (go to the school yourself), so you must know how to properly set up everything, work the equipment and know how to troubleshoot, and conduct yourself in a professional manner for the schools you are attending. Some schools are organized and some are not and the job at the end of the day is based on working with youth (nursery-grade 12).

The job is very rewarding though at the end of the day if you're interested in photography and things related in that field. Being able to take great photos for children's parents that they will keep forever is a great feeling!

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Photographer 44 salaries reported	$17.60 per hour
Account specialist 4 salaries reported	$17.65 per hour
Supervisor 4 salaries reported	$49,300 per year
Sales account manager 2 salaries reported	$68,525 per year
Business development representative 2 salaries reported	$79,675 per year

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