It is a profession that almost everyone has memories of: the school photographer. One of those days when your hair was covered in gel, you had to wear your best blouse, and no one ever knew where to put your hands. But behind that annual tradition lies a world that few people know. This is what Krijn Westerburgen (45), school photographer from Oisterwijk, who, together with his wife, runs a family business that has been documenting Brabant schools since 1978.
“My parents started in Tilburg in 1978. I joined in 2003,” Krijn tells Omroep Tilburg. “Back then we still took the photos with rolls. If someone stood with their eyes closed, well… then you just stood in the photo with your eyes closed. That was just the way it was.” Today, Krijn and his wife serve approximately 220 schools, mainly in Brabant and Tilburg.
School photographer Krijn Westerburgen shared on LinkedIn that he has to deal with closed eyes, people looking away, tongues sticking out and yes, sneaky middle fingers in the group photo every week. The message went fast, because everyone recognizes it: the annual school photo day when everything has to be perfect, but rarely is.
Rascals
That LinkedIn message from Krijn went fast. “There are always a few crooks around. That’s always been the case,” he says matter-of-factly. “But from groups 7 and 8 onwards you see the most. Then they have seen something on TikTok and then it suddenly has to be photographed.”
It is often done subtly, almost professionally: arms crossed, middle finger hidden against the upper arm. “Sometimes I only see it afterwards. You pay attention to eyes, hair and whether the clothing fits properly. It is impossible to keep a 100 percent eye on everyone.”
Photoshop as an emergency measure
A group photo is never good the first time, so Krijn sometimes has to intervene digitally. “Sometimes we just take a whole head from another photo. We do that every day.” A tongue sticking out, eyes closed, someone laughing just too loud: Krijn and his team have now become surgically skilled at this.
Yet there is a limit. “We once said: children should learn that they have responsibility for how they look in it. But when we left a photo with the middle finger up, the teacher didn’t even want to hand it out. Well, that makes you feel like a fool too. So we correct it anyway.”
Doesn’t run by itself
The outside world sees a school photo day as something that happens automatically. But according to Krijn it is hard work. “Yes, people underestimate that. We work with scripts that even include breaks. At small schools this is even more flexible, but at schools with five hundred children… that has to be correct down to the minute.”
400 children per day
The profession is physically and mentally more demanding than many people think. “Sometimes I have four hundred children in one day. Then the first child and the last child have to be treated equally kindly. You cannot get tired or be short. You are cheerful all day long, or at least professional.”
It’s all about contact. “Children in group 3 do not yet understand that sticking out their tongue is annoying. Preschoolers sometimes find it exciting. You have to loosen them up with a joke. But if you do that just too hard, they laugh with their mouth wide open and then that happens again,” says the photographer, laughing.
A family legacy
Although everything goes digital these days, it remains a profession in itself. “We have been doing this work for almost fifty years now. It is tough, but wonderful work,” says Krijn proudly. “You make memories that will last a lifetime.”