December 7, 2022
Hi Mary,
I am sorry it has taken awhile for me to get back to you, but with the holidays upon us and, me wanting to give this letter some thought, I am only now getting around to responding.
Since I started doing this job, some 40 years ago, I have made many changes in how ordering could be done and the majority of those changes in the ordering process have come from parents who were in one way or another, not completely satisfied with the process. For example, since going digital, I have heard parents say, “if you photographed 4-5 images of my child, why can’t I pick the one I want?” To which I responded that my years of doing this have honed my skill in “editing to the best pose”. I’d say that 98.5% of parents have always been pleased with the selection but still they wanted the choice for themselves. This is the way that I figured out using the tools at my disposal. I did not invent any of this, I only see how I best can utilize what I have and try to please as many as I can.
I have heard, back in the day, that some parents complained that the packages were too fixed, they didn’t want everything that was in a package. So we went to a system where they told me what they wanted, you probably remember that, a prepaid envelope with multiple choices. By the way the minimum order up until 3 years was $45.00, today it is $49.00. Back then, it involved,1000’s of envelopes, a long back-end process and time, lots of time, which I did for years.
As the digital age evolved, I found more ways to make the process easier. Four seasons ago I implemented online payment, no cash, check or credit card, just fill out the form and pay online. Parents, for the most part, followed instructions, many did not, creating long hours of figuring out orders.
Finally, 2 seasons ago, I went to this current method. I take 4-5 images of each child, place it into a gallery and parents order from there. Is there a little bit of work involved, yes, but they can order whatever combination of photos they want. Is it cumbersome, a bit but not so much. In the two seasons that I have done the ordering this way, this is the first complaint I have had.
Prices higher?
Yes, they went up a slight amount. Why, because my costs went up. Gas increased, hotel nights increased, the price of printing increased, the price for web-hosting and e-commerce went up, taxes went up, etc.
Up until 4 season ago, JA Photography covered the cost of the above was all paid from order. I just could not do that any longer. Today, if anyone wants to order something from online, like anything else they order in the state of California, sales tax is applied. I cannot afford to cover shipping either.
What I do is great photography. I get expressions on children’s faces that parents are ecstatic over and wonder how I dod that. I ave photographed a quarter of a million children and I have pages of testimonials from parents who are grateful and thrilled with their child’s portrait. I have been with you for decades and I know you realize tat too. This is what I do.
The class composite situation was unfortunate. I released the photos when I did because I had heard from parents, anxious see their child’s portrait. Some, quite literally, came in phone calls and emails on the same day that I photograph their child. In most cases, the schools I photograph have their photos online in 3-4 days, but building composites is a bigger process, (one made easier with the system we developed this season), but it still took over a week to get it done, and I perhaps made a mistake posting MCS online prior to the completion of the composites.
Perhaps I can issue an online credit to your parents of $15.00 applicable to any new order, now or in the future.
I am sorry that this became a situation at your school. Please understand that it as always been my objective to make school photography as free from strife for you as possible. However, as Rosane Rosanna Dana would say, “it’s always something.”
The times change, people change, technology and the economy change, and so do systems.
I hope this makes sense.
Thank you, Mary and have a great and safe Christmas and New Year.
Always my best,
John
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