Some Hollywood Private Schools Are Robbing Children Of The Hilarity Of Class Portraits By Hiring Celebrity Photographers

Some private schools in L.A. are hiring celebrity photographers to shoot children on portrait day. These children are being robbed.

From the Hollywood Reporter:

Vince Bucci, who has taken wedding portraits for the likes of Kim Kardashianand Avril Lavigne, is gearing up for picture days at Wildwood School and Westside Neighborhood School.

Meanwhile, New York-based Dennis Kleiman, whose subjects have includedDenis Leary, The White Stripes and Ozzy Osbourne, founded Stomping Ground Photo with an aim to bring an editorial edge to those Sears-like picture packages. Hollywood Schoolhouse, Temple Israel of Hollywood and The Willows all hire him.

Why on earth would you rob your child of the hours of laughs they will get from looking back on their school portraits? Seriously. They are supposed to be bad. Really bad. I grew up in the era of the Jekyll and Hyde portrait; a double image photo with one of “you” smiling into the camera lens and the other “you” staring pensively off into the distance. Horrifyingly fantastic.

Kids are supposed to be kids. They are supposed to wear the mismatched outfits that they picked out and look totally stupid and adorable in their class portraits. Why are we styling the hell out of them and having them shot by celebrity photographers? Well, I guess “we” aren’t doing anything. I can’t get into the minds of those who can afford to pay $15,000 a year to send their children to kindergarten. I guess if I were paying that much I would want some perks, too.

“Last year we had a parent apply to the school just based on the amazing photos in the yearbook,” says Lisa Smith, photography teacher at Hollywood Schoolhouse.”

I don’t even have a response for that.

(photo: bikeriderlondon/ Shutterstock)