And how to avoid them before they cost you hours of rework

Flowing student photos can save massive amounts of time—but only if it’s done with intention. Below are the most common pitfalls we see yearbook staffs run into, especially mid-year, and how to avoid them.

1. Adding or Removing Students Mid-Year

The Pitfall:
Adding new students or removing withdrawn students after photos have already been flowed can cause gaps, duplicates, or unexpected reshuffling if the proper steps are not followed.

Why It Happens:
Flows are based on your current roster at the time the flow is applied, if students are not removed/added properly and the pages frame tags are incorrect, the system will not auto-flow correctly 

How to Avoid It:

Finalize your student list before flowing whenever possible

If changes are required:

• Add or remove students before flowing
• Add or remove students from Manage People data instead of manually adding or deleting their portrait on the pages
• Use placeholder frames for students who haven’t been photographed yet to save their spot on the page

Pro Tip: Keep a running list of “expected changes” (new enrollments, seniors leaving early) before finalizing your flow.

Click here for directions on how to add a student properly. 

2. Moving Pages After Flowing

The Pitfall:
Reordering pages after students are already flowed can cause confusion about where students should appear—or make it feel like photos “disappeared.”

Why It Happens:
Flow order is tied to page sequence at the time of flow. Moving pages doesn’t update the logic retroactively.

How to Avoid It:

• Lock in your page order before flowing student photos
• If you must move pages:
  • Do it early
  • Double-check student continuity across spreads
  • Consider flowing in smaller sections (by grade or alphabet range)

3. Disorganized Student Lists

The Pitfall:
Students appear out of alphabetical order, in the wrong classes, duplicated, or missing entirely.

Why It Happens:
The student list wasn’t fully organized—or naming conventions were inconsistent—before flowing.

How to Avoid It:

Confirm:

• First and last names are in the correct fields
• Students are in the correct group you are flowing by. You can reach out to the school for rosters to confirm.
• No extra spaces or special characters
• Duplicate records are removed

Pro Tip: A clean student list = a clean flow. Spend the extra 5 minutes upfront.

4. Not Using Multi-Flow (The Fastest Way to Flow Students)

The Pitfall:
Flowing one page of a large group at a time—slow, repetitive, and prone to mistakes.

Why It Happens:
Users either don’t realize Multi-Flow exists or aren’t confident it’s working correctly.

How to Avoid It:

Use Multi-Flow to:

• Flow multiple pages at once for the same grade or class
• Maintain consistent spacing and order
• Save significant design time

Before running Multi-Flow:

• Confirm all pages use the same layout
• Double-check your student order
• Flow one page of the section onto a template you want the entire group to use

Click here for directions on how to use Multi-Flow for Portraits

5. Other Common Flowing Pitfalls

These sneak up more often than you’d think:

Mixed Layouts: Different frame counts break the flow

Manual Overrides: Deleting or Copying Portrait Frames without adjusting the tagging

Late Photo Uploads: New photos won’t auto-insert unless you update them in manage people data and adjust your page for additional portraits

Final Advice

Flowing student photos works best when it’s treated as a process, not a one-click fix. A little prep goes a long way—and saves hours of cleanup later.