Meet the Team

All our talented photographers are young at heart and parents themselves. They understand children and are great at bringing the best out of even the most nervous child. They deliver not only photo sessions that are great fun and aim to capture beautiful memories, but can also be relied upon for a safe and streamlined photo day, no matter how many children you have on roll.

We’re Hiring! We’re after more exceptional School and Nursery photographers! If you’d like to join our growing team, take a look here.

Meanwhile, let’s introduce the people our School and parent customers are most likely to meet or talk to …

  • Hannah

    ‘Happy Hannah‘ is our second Buckinghamshire-based photographer… and one of the following facts is untrue – can you spot it?

    Hannah has 8 years experience as a professional photographer, with a thriving portrait business herself. She has ADHD and, being a mum of 2, knows just how to put nervous and neurodiverse children at ease and work within their boundaries. She also owns 2 cats, so knows how to herd them – a helpful ability, you’ll agree!

    But don’t cross her – she’s also an undefeated amateur boxer!

    You’ll love Hannah’s bright and cheery approach to photographing children.

    Hannah was fantastic at providing a first class photography experience for our pre-school children. She set them at ease and the Christmas photographs were superb!
    Preschool manager

  • Panche

    ‘Picture-Perfect Panche‘ is our Schools photographer originally from Veles in North Macedonia, Panche has been settled in the UK for years and brings over 17 years’ photography experience with him, not least with Schools of all types

    He’s calm, capable, great with children, and knows exactly how to keep photo day running smoothly, even when faced with the usual mix of missing jumpers, wobbly smiles and fidgety children. Panche enjoys scuba diving and the Minions, which frankly makes him an excellent fit for us… Anyone calm enough to cope underwater, and who appreciates the chaos of small people is clearly in the right line of work!”

    You’ll love Panche’s friendly, experienced approach and his talent for capturing natural smiles without making photo day feel like hard work.

    They provide school and parents with a first-class service in addition to beautiful photographs to cherish.

  • Jenny

    Meet ‘Jazzy Jenny’!

    Based in Middlesex, Jenny brings almost 15 years of professional photography experience and a huge amount of energy to every nursery and school she visits. As a mum of twins, a little bit of chaos never fazes her!

    Whether she’s pulling funny faces, making silly noises, or talking to stuffed toys, Jenny has a knack for helping even the most camera-shy children relax and enjoy their photo day. Her playful approach means plenty of natural smiles, genuine expressions, and happy memories captured along the way.

    When she’s not behind the camera, you’ll usually find Jenny exploring the outdoors. She loves camping, swimming in the sea, discovering caves, and spotting wildlife with her family. A proper fan of adventure!

    They provide school and parents with a first-class service in addition to beautiful photographs to cherish.

  • Greg

    Greg is one of our Primary School photographers… and our very own Captain America!

    He grew up in the USA before relocating the Kent where he has been a professional photographer for over 20 years. He has raised 4 boys, so can manage a rowdy bunch if necessary! With a background in being a school mentor, youth leader, parent liason and even a councellor, making children feel relaxed and confident is second nature.

    We’re proud to have ‘Cap’ on the team!

    They provide school and parents with a first-class service in addition to beautiful photographs to cherish.

  • Danny

    Also known by the children as ‘Dan the Camera Man‘ , Danny Higgins is the Owner and Head Photographer of Smiles At School Photography. Supported by his loyal sidekick ‘Cheeky Monkey‘, he is passionate about bringing the best out of your little ones in their photos, whilst a terrible line in Dad jokes helps to get those natural smiles for which we are well known (and the odd groan) out of older children. A photographer for over 30 years, Danny has been described by friends as having ‘an excess of personality’, which we like to think means he likes to have fun and create great relationships. Danny’s wife, on the other hand, says he’s just a big kid – with that we have to agree!

    With two small children at home, he has every opportunity to hone his smile-making skills, and his long-suffering kids are usually happy to help develop new ideas and photo styles in his home studio.

    Danny also has over 15 years of experience in Corporate Sales and Marketing, which he puts to good use in developing amazing marketing solutions for Schools and Nurseries. He understands what is needed to best promote educational settings and encourage parents to entrust their children to their care, and many of our clients come back year after year for great promotional images, display solutions and fundraising ideas.

    Danny is excellent with the children, and understands how a nursery operates and will always work around the different children’s routines and their needs. The feedback from parents has been very positive. We are overall very pleased with the quality and service and will continue to use (them).
    Nursery Manager

  • Sally

    ‘Sal the Photo Gal‘ as we lovingly call her, is our longest-serving photographer (10 years and counting!) Like Danny, she’s a little bit bonkers and ace at getting the best smiles from the children, aided by ‘Monkey’ to entertain the smaller kids.

    She’s a mum of 2 girls, so knows what it takes to encourage the best from the children, but beware – if you bring a tiny baby in for sibling photographs, you may not see them for some time! She gets all gooey-eyed and will do everything she can to get the best – and often first – professional photos of them!

    With plenty of experience in photographing all ages (plus 10 years previously in film…), her fun, energetic approach is sure to delight!

    Just wanted to say how amazing Sally was this morning! We had a couple of challenging children (one in particular that wanted to be in every photo!) and she dealt with them brilliantly. She is so good with the children and managed to get some lovely pictures of them all. It is always a pleasure to work with her.
    Preschool Manager

  • Tracey

    Tracey, AKA ‘Smiley Face Trace’ is our photographer based on the Surrey / Hampshire border. With girl’s best friend ‘Mrs Woofington’ on hand to encourage a smile or two from the little-ones, she is a dab hand at getting the most out of Preschoolers for superb photos and genuine smiles. Now a (young) grandparent, she loves the little ones and enjoys getting the opportunity to photograph children who engage with her unique style of silliness – something we suspect is less appreciated by her older kids!

    With 20+ years behind the camera, she has all the experience needed to get the best from every child, and just the right amount of crazy too!

    Thank you so much! The photos look lovely. It is always a challenge to get great pictures of my kids when they move around so much. So I really appreciate it.
    Day Nursery Mum

  • Dee

    ‘Busy Bee Dee’ is our Hertfordshire based photographer (although she’s sometimes spotted further afield) Like the other members of our team, she’s slightly nutty and loves making photography fun for everyone. 22 years’ full time photography experience means she knows pretty much all the tricks for getting the best smiles from our early years subjects. Assisted by ‘Mr Buzz’  (and a tickling stick) she’s great at getting giggles and natural expressions.

    Another parent in our team, and although her daughter is now grown up, she still goes all mumsy when babies and little-uns are around so be prepared for lots of coo-ing and laughter!

    She’s also our Dance School expert, with the knowledge and skills for perfectly on-point photos every time.

    Just to let you know all went really well yesterday at our toddler group photo morning. Our mums commented that Dee was fantastic with the children!
    Toddler Group Manager

  • Kiera

    ‘Krazy Kiera‘ is our Disney-obsessed photographer, working out of Surrey on the London border. She has over 20 years experience in photography, and has the patience of a saint.

    She’s the mum of a teenage girl so has managed most stages of childhood! And with her experience photographing megastars at movie premieres, can handle big kids too!

    Feed her a sweet coffee when she arrives, and away she goes. We love having her on the team!

    Kiera was amazing! Patient and encouraging.
    Nursery Manager

  • Cate

    Cate Hooper – ‘Happy Hoops’ – is our amazing videographer based in Eversley on the Berkshire-Hampshire border.

    With a keen eye for storytelling, Cate captures meaningful moments that tell powerful stories. As a mother of two grown children, she has spent years refining her skills by documenting family life and now, with Cate’s expertise a huge asset to Smiles At School, we’re perfectly positioned to tell your School’s story through fantastic video content. From long form video to short snippets perfect for Social Media.

    Lovely working with Cate. Pleased with the footage she filmed.
    School Head

  • Steve

    Steve heads up our fantastic print lab. With over 16 years in business with extensive experience in the School photography industry, Steve helps us produce amazing prints and gifts from your treasured photographs.  He’s also a dab hand behind the camera and we rope him in from time to time when we’re up against it!

    Steve was absolutely brilliant today. He was so kind and patient and hard working, and so good with the children and adults.
    Preschool Manager

  • Hayley

    If you ever have cause to call the office for assistance with your web orders, then Hayley will have been the fantastic person to steer you through. Her unflappable nature and full understanding of our systems means she can fix a problem with the wave of her hand. And we challenge you to catch her not happy and smiling – we’ve yet to! Although, camera-shy Hayley won’t show here face here sadly!

    We are overall very pleased with the quality and service and will continue to use Smiles at School
    Nursery Manager

Naturally all staff are covered by the relevant full public liability insurance, hold up-to-date DBS Checks, and work to current Safeguarding guidelines at all times.

But, at the end of the day, our customers’ feedback tells us whether we’ve hit their expectations, and more often than not, they are exceeded. If you’re looking for a new photography company to make your School or Nursery stand out, why not give us a try? Get in touch for a short meeting or discussion. We won’t take up your whole day, but it might make the rest of your photo days much easier and, dare we say it, might even bring a smile to your face!

Enquire Now

It’s a simple 3 step process to book us to help with your next photo day or project!

  1. Complete this short enquiry form
  2. We’ll email you to arrange your shoot, or book a meeting
  3. With your requirements sorted, you’re booked!

If you are a parent, please use the parents’ enquiry form instead…

Our 'No Smile Left Behind' Guarantee

Our unique no-risk guarantee means you can be confident we will deliver what we promise - smiles all round!

Nothing is too much trouble to do. Their photos are amazing - we love them!

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