No and yes. According to information sent to the Class of 2011, BHS seniors had the opportunity to schedule a Gold Package picture session for their yearbook picture at Prestige Portraits between June and Sept. 3 without incurring a $15 sitting fee. However, any other package session option did involve a $15 fee. And now that the deadline has been extended to Oct. 2, all sessions will require a $15 sitting fee.
Apparently, because this is the first year of an agreement with Prestige Portraits and a different procedure than BHS has previously used, there has been some confusion.
Having had 23 years of experience with school yearbooks, seven of those at BHS, the Director of Communications says that these things are common for senior yearbook pictures regardless of the photographer:
1. Consistency is important to the quality of senior yearbook pages, thus all seniors are photographed by the same photographer, and a dress code is generally required;
2. Senior yearbook photographers want to maximize their potential to provide the whole picture "package", since seniors can choose another photographer for those personal pictures, thus they will offer special "packages" and waive the sitting fee for a period of time.
3. A percentage of all fees, sitting fees and picture packages, comes back to support the school.
4. Yearbooks have deadlines - the earlier the delivery, the earlier the deadline, so a cutoff date MUST be made to accept senior pictures. Seniors have had four months to be photographed. Oct. 2 is the drop dead date for yearbook pictures.
Most area high schools are also using the services of Prestige Portraits (Avon, Ben Davis, Pike, Ritter, Mooresville, Zionsville, among others)and each school negotiates their own agreement, although there is usually very little difference between them.
