Photographs of Primary Children

A new bishop and a new primary president both had the same idea for learning the names of all of the children. Take photographs and label them with the names. These photo albums will only be used by the bishop (probably bishopric) and the Primary presidency. There is no intent to put them anywhere on the internet or on the ward bulletin board, etc.

One person asked if the parent's permission is required before the photographer takes the pictures. I've searched in the handbooks and here and am not finding an answer.

So, if any of you have experience to share or can point me in the right direction, I would greatly appreciate it.

I doubt if there's anything that detailed in the Handbook. I'd focus on how to do with without creating a problem.

It starts with having a clear understanding of where the pictures will be and who will have access. Keep in mind, that if someone is given a copy, they might do something with it that will make someone unhappy. So that's why the details need to be worked out. (Also, someone could come along later and ask for a copy. Make sure you have an answer for that.)

You might consider photographing the family instead. That way the parents will know about it. One ward I know has a bulletin board of families. That particular building has a short, locked hallway that connects the clerk's and bishop's offices to the main hallway. The bulletin board is there. Photographing just children, especially away from the parents seems like it has a good chance of upsetting someone.

idjeeper2 wrote:One person asked if the parent's permission is required before the photographer takes the pictures. I've searched in the handbooks and here and am not finding an answer.

I too don't know of any specific policy about that. But personally I would never photograph any primary age child without at least verbal permission from a parent. The chance for misunderstanding is too great.

Thank you for the replies and suggestions. It's pretty easy to innocently start down a path only to discover (often too late) that it leads to a cliff.

The idea of a family picture has merit. We just went through a boundary realignment so there are many new families with parents that we are still getting to know.

I'll bet there are several families who would love to have a family picture taken. Find a good photographer or two and a location, and schedule families on 3-minute intervals throughout the day; or, have a ward activity and pull the families out one by one for photos. Give a copy to the family, and get their permission to post it on the LDS.org Directory.

Hold on to the originals, because LDS Tools 3.0 coming out in a couple weeks (and I assume the LDS.org Directory will be updated soon too) supports uploading higher-resolution photos than the current. LDS Tools 3.0 shows bigger photos and photos in more places (for example, the directory list sorted by individuals), so it's a good time to put an emphasis on taking photos.