Traditional Team Photos vs. Composite Team Photos: Which Is Better?

The answer might surprise you.

Neither.

They’re two different ways of creating a team photo, and both have advantages. The important part is understanding the difference before photo day and choosing the one that works best for your team.

The Traditional Team Photo

You know this one.

Everyone together. Players lined up, sitting on the bench, coaches in ty. One photograph captures the entire team at the same time.

It’s classic for a reason.

There’s something about actually having the whole team together that’s hard to duplicate. For hockey and other team sports, that traditional team photo is still incredibly popular.

But it comes with one major limitation:

Everyone needs to be there.

We regularly get asked, “Can you just add our missing player afterward?”

Typically, no.

Digitally adding someone into a photograph that was created with everyone together can be extremely difficult to make look natural. It may require pulling apart and rebuilding portions of the original photograph, and even then, the result isn't guaranteed.

If someone misses the traditional team photo, you should expect that they won't be in it.

What About a Composite Team Photo?

A composite solves that problem differently.

Instead of photographing the entire team together, we photograph every athlete individually using poses specifically designed for the finished team image.

Then we build the team photo digitally.

It has a different look and feel from everyone sitting together on the bench. Some people love composites. Others will choose a traditional team photo every time.

Neither is wrong.

The big advantage of the composite is flexibility.

If an athlete misses photo day, we can photograph them separately and add them into the finished team image.

But there’s still a deadline.

The Part Nobody Talks About With Composites

Just because we can add someone later doesn't mean an entire team should wait indefinitely for one missing player.

At Infinite Eye Sports, missing athletes typically have a one-week window after photo day to come into our studio and be photographed.

After that, we move forward.

The players who attended photo day shouldn't have to wait weeks for their photographs because we're still waiting for someone who may never come in.

So yes, composites give you more flexibility. They don't eliminate the need for good planning.

So Which Is Better?

Neither.

If you love the traditional look and can get everyone together at the same time, the classic team photo may be exactly what you want.

If attendance is a concern or you prefer the designed look and flexibility of individually photographed athletes, a composite might make more sense.

The important thing is to decide before photo day.

The poses, lighting and photography we use to create a composite are planned specifically for that finished design. You can't simply photograph one way and decide afterward that you'd rather have the other.

One More Thing When Choosing Your Team Photographer

Ask them about this.

A professional team photographer should understand the difference between a traditional team photograph and a composite, the advantages and limitations of each, and how that choice affects photo day from the beginning.

If they don't understand the difference, or their answer is simply, “We’ll figure it out afterward,” that should probably raise a few questions.

Team photography is more than showing up with a good camera.

It’s planning the final photograph before the first one is taken.

And when it comes to traditional versus composite team photos, the best choice is pretty simple:

Choose the one that works best for your team.