Not familiar with PSPI? If you’re a volume school or sports photographer, you should be. Professional School & Sports Photographers International made its successful debut at WPPI in Las Vegas this past March with a day of seminars (including “You Have the Contract, Now What?” by Pat and Joy Cahill, and “Why Wedding and School Photography Are a Match Made in Heaven” by Linda Russell). WPPI Director Jason Groupp says the upcoming event in February 2017 will have even more, with multiple programs scheduled throughout the entire week.

PSPI brings together photographers, vendors and labs, committed to serving all regardless of size or sales volume. PSPI Managing Director Mark Schoenrock (based in Minneapolis) could not be more pleased with what PSPI now enjoys, thanks to the partnership with WPPI and PHOTO+, he says. “PSPI is a member of a stable, credible, financially healthy parent organization and a member of a premier photographic industry leader with expertise in the photographic marketplace, photography trade shows and publications.”

All PSPI PHOTO+ memberships include access to The University for School and Sports Photography at WPPI, access to over 80 Platform Classes, a 3-day pass to the Expo and free admission to all special events during the week-long conference in Las Vegas. At WPPI earlier this year, PSPI attendees sat in on such classes as “You Have the Contract, Now What?” by Pat and Joy Cahill, “Why Wedding and School Photography Are a Match Made in Heaven” from Linda Russell, and “School Law (and more) for School Photographers” by Lifetouch Inc.’s Laurie Dechery.

There are various levels of PSPI membership: Individual ($149) grants one full PHOTO+ membership, a full Platform Pass for free, annual subscriptions to Rangefinder and PDN, and savings on competition entry fees and vendor discounts on gear, software and insurance. Bronze Level ($1,000) gives ten PHOTO+ memberships, along with other perks, Silver Level ($1,700) bumps up to 15 PHOTO+ memberships, and Gold ($2,800), hands over 25 PHOTO+ memberships.

In addition to education and the other advantages of PSPI, which focuses on school and league photographers but welcomes pro shooters as well, one invaluable resource is having a forum to share current legislation and information around important issues, such as copyright ownership, data classification and security, digital guidelines and industry advocacy.

According to Groupp, it was a logical move for WPPI to forge a partnership with PSPI, which had around 400 to 600 members prior to this alliance. “Having a home for volume school and sports photographers just made sense for our audience,” he says. “I think the most exciting thing is the advocacy and protection of rights on the photographers’ behalf. Our group has never been able to do this, so it’s an exciting new effort for us.”

As a third-generation owner of a family-run school and sports photography business, Courtney Lutz of Visual Image Photography has become a big proponent of PSPI. When she started some 20 years ago, all lab work was still outsourced, an aspect that she believed needed updating. She attended her first trade show to buy lab equipment, and the manifold opportunities offered by the shows have lured her back for years. “Meeting industry leaders and peers to talk about technology and industry matters is the best way to grow your photography business,” Lutz says.

AT WPPI, volume photographers can venture beyond their current markets and learn from leading professionals in the fields of portrait, wedding and family photography (which is particularly good for those with underutilized senior portrait studios, Schoenrock notes). The natural overlap of those markets with school and sports photography, it seems, had just been waiting to be noticed.

The 3 Rules of School Sports, by Courtney Lutz

1. Strive to have the highest quality photography. We spend weeks training our photographers to take individual portraits. It takes many seasons before they can move into the lead role to take team and group photos. A precise training guide and hands-on experience is key to making sure our photographers capture the best image of every athlete. Specifically, we focus on the lighting, posing and expression of every image, and we pay attention to details in our camera.

2. Exceed customer service expectations. Our photographers represent our company in the field, so it is important that they have a positive, energetic personality and are able to interact well with people—especially children. As a customer service-based company, we respond quickly to every request. If we do make a mistake, we own it and we fix it no matter what it takes. When photographing thousands of athletes and students within a season, you have to have a process to keep everything in order. Having a system and software that keeps data organized is a must for your customer service needs.

3. Build and maintain great relationships with our schools and leagues. Our sales team gets to know our customers by communicating with them often and listening to their needs. Learning what our clients do within their job gives us opportunity to make things easier for them. One of our main goals is to schedule an efficient photo day so coaches and teachers have more time with their athletes.

For questions and inquiries regarding PSPI membership, contact Jason Groupp: Jason.Groupp@emeraldexpo.com.

Romy Ashby is a frequent contributor to Rangefinder’s sister publication, PDN.

Related Links:

PSPI: A New Beginning