Shifting Focus
After more than 20 years of providing wedding photography, I shifted my focus (all puns intentional) in 2007 to conventions, award banquets, and corporate event photography.
At the time, the wedding industry was being overrun with brand new photographers who’d received a gifted, consumer-grade, digital camera over the holidays, and decided that weddings would be the perfect training ground to practice their newfound passion. This development came much to the chagrin of unsuspecting brides and grooms, who had been misled by wedding planner bloggers who were hellbent on convincing them that anyone with a decent camera could do a professional job and save them thousands! It was time for me to move on.
From Posed to Candid
Our wedding coverage was a blend of traditional, posed (B&G, bridal party and group photos) images, and the story-telling candid images taken throughout the day and during the reception. In the corporate event photography world, the need for traditional, posed images is minimal. Typically, posed shots are only needed when group photos are requested, which for the most part is rare, but it sure doesn’t hurt to have 20+ years of experience in my hip pocket on how to handle these requests. Particularly when group requests might include from five to 150 people.
Corporate Events
Most corporate event work is company-wide, involving from 50-500 people. These events may last anywhere from four hours to four days. A lot of out-of-state companies will hold retreats in Florida, and hire a professional photographer to document the entire event. Some of these will require 10-18 hour days and bus rides, cabs, Uber, or trolleys to follow the attendees from one site to the next.
Award Banquets
These are often run like a wedding reception, but without all the drama! There is usually a staged area where speeches, presentations, awards, and prizes are handled. Stage or spot lighting will provide a well-lit area to reduce the amount of flash needed. Given a choice, I’d rather work with available light only, to reduce the perceived distraction that flash may have, but when available just isn’t enough, I know when and how to employ off-camera-lighting techniques to brighten, sharpen, and create depth to those images.
Adding to the stage area imagery, are plenty of candid and couple shots taken of the attendees. These types of events often request web service, allowing those in attendance to log in and purchase prints or digital files of themselves taken during the evening.
Conventions
By far, the most favorite type of corporate event photography coverage for me takes place at conventions. Conventions typically last three to five days, and the days are excruciatingly long. It’s absolutely not unusual to begin shooting “Yoga on the Beach” at sunrise, cover an entire day’s events, then be expected to photograph a “Midnight Madness” party until after 1:00AM. I have literally seen more than my share of 20 hour days, but you know what? Once you get in the groove of a great convention, the time just flies, and some of my very best imagery has come from conventions like these.
Travel
Depending on your personal perspective, the travel that sometimes accompanies event photography coverage is either a beast of burden, or a welcome change to your normal photographic routine. In my case, it’s definitely the latter. I’ve covered events in over a dozen cities across the US, and been hired repeatedly for convention work by the same clients year in and year out. In 2015 I was retained as the official photographer for KelbyOne Media to photograph Photoshop World in Las Vegas. It was an incredible experience being on the job, among over 5,000 photographers, and having the added bonus of working with a few of my photographic idols in the industry. I successfully provided the look they were needing last year, so in 2016 I’m headed back to Vegas for second round. It doesn’t get any better than that, to be endorsed by one of the industry’s biggest photographic educators as their official hired gun at event photography coverage! Bring on the travel, baby – we’re goin’ to VEGAS!