What Will The Event Photographs Be Used For?

This is without doubt the most crucial part of an event photography brief. There is often a specific reason for the event photographs. Letting me know what that reason is will hugely increase the chances of you getting great photos. There are sometimes secondary reasons for the photos, so it’s good to let me know that too, but definitely rank the reasons in order of importance.

Asking For An Event Photography brief

When booking in an event to photograph, I always ask how the photos will be used. A recent example was a conference I photographed at Excel London. The client primarily wanted photos for social media, mainly Twitter and Instagram, but also to put on their own app feed during the conference. From this I knew I needed not only to get great photos that would work well on those platforms, but also get them to them quickly and in the format they needed to get them online easily.
A secondary reason for the event photos was a record of the conference that would be used in internal correspondence and newsletters as well as for their photo library. As a result, when I had got a good load of shots to them to use immediately, I was able to spend a bit of time documenting the event thoroughly.

A Good Event Photography Brief Can Sometimes Be No Brief At All

I often find that just knowing the way the event photographs will be used can be enough of a brief to get the photographs my client wants. Sometimes being over briefed can restrict the way I shoot. For example I might approach photographing the event from a completely different angle if I have the freedom to do that. This can mean much more interesting shots with loads of energy as I will be following the feel and atmosphere of the event. Whereas if I have a specific brief I will always follow that.
Often the confidence to let your photographer shoot the event the way they see it comes from having worked together regularly.
I’ve photographed the Effie Awards Judging Panel a few times. The photographs I’ve shot have changed hugely as the client felt more confident to let me photograph the event as I saw it. As a result, the feedback from not only the client, but also many people from the company I was shooting for has been excellent.

Conditions At The Event

As a London Event Photographer I’ve shot events at a huge range of venues across the city, such as the ExCel London, the Hilton Park Lane, and even the Houses of Parliament. So it’s likely I will have an idea of the conditions I will be shooting with at the venue where you are holding your event. However, it’s also possible you will have exhibitor stands or some kind of performance or stage that will be exclusive to your event. It’s a good idea to let me know anything like that so I can be totally prepared for your event. This can sometimes mean me bringing specialist equipment, or might mean I will ring the venue to check if I can have access to specific areas to have a particular view.

Where And When I’m Needed

At lots of events I photograph there will be times when there will be a particular shot needed or a specific person photographed. For instance if awards are being given or a speech. It’s very important I know the rough timings and location of those shots so I can prepare and be in the right place at the right time with the right photographic equipment.

What Not To Photograph

This is a slightly odd one, but comes up surprisingly regularly. Sometimes there are things that my client doesn’t want photographed. This can be particular people who have requested not to be included in any photos or more often it can be a part of the event that is just of no interest to the client. For instance I often spend time photographing audience reactions to awards or speeches. Occasionally a client will say that while those shots are great, they just have no use for them. As a result, I can use my time and energy photographing what they do want.

The Best Event Photography Brief

Hopefully the information above will be helpful when putting together a brief for me or another photographer at your event. There are many other factors at an event, but I’ve specifically kept it to what is relevant to me as a photographer for the reasons I made above about not over briefing. If you’re interested in reading more about my work you might like this page about my conference photography.
If you have any questions or want to talk to me about a particular event, please get in touch through my contact page or by email at neil@neilwalker.com or by phone on 020 3633 5512.

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Looking for the Light

I’ve talked about looking for the light before and it will feature again in most of my blogs without a doubt, because it is the single most important factor for a London event photographer when looking for images to shoot.
In this particular instance, taking event photographs for the CFA Institute within a huge area without any natural light in the ExCeL London, finding areas which have interesting light is more difficult than usual. The light itself in the conference halls is pretty good, very even and bright, which means I don’t have to worry about pushing my cameras to the limit to get great shots. However, it does mean most of my shots will be similar in terms of the lighting. You can see what I mean from this blog post about the London conference where I took this photograph. As a result, at an event like this I am always looking for any areas that have lighting out of the ordinary.

Why I like this Photo

While a lot of the light at the ExCeL London is excellent, in some of the halls and rooms the light is purposely more moody. In the hall I took this shot, the light was bright and even. As a result, when I saw this little scene happening near me I walked over to capture it. It has several things to it that I like. The way I framed it, including the reflection makes the shot really interesting and the light, in particular the almost monotone dominance of the blue really creates a great feel to the shot.
Add to that the reaction of the man we are facing and the concentration of the man to the right which brings in a human element. This is added to by some of the less corporate objects in the shot like the man to the right’s watch and the coffee on the side. All these things combine to create an image that, while it could be just a good corporate shot, is actually more human.

Working at a Conference

If you’ve worked at a conference as an exhibitor, you’ll recognise the feel to this shot. It has the feel of a conference winding down. In particular the coffee and the relaxed feel to the men in the photo contrasts with the more frenetic feel to the exhibitors at the beginning of an event. While this is something most people will miss, once you know a bit of the background and my thoughts on why I took it, you can really feel the atmosphere.

Technical Information

I’ve been working with Fuji’s for some time now. I wanted to use a fairly wide angled lens for this shot, so I chose the Fujinon XF 23mm F2 on my XT3. Because the subjects in the shot were very relaxed, I knew I had some time to get the shot right. I tried a couple of different apertures, from F2 through to F4 to see if that would change the shot significantly and finally settled on F2.8. I didn’t want the shot to be dominated by a shallow depth of field as I wanted to get that end of show feeling coming from each of the subjects rather than just focusing in on one person. In that instance it would become all about the shot and not the people in it.
The XT3’s are almost silent, even when using the mechanical shutter, which means that although the subjects knew I was there, they weren’t disturbed by me, which is crucial to the way I work.

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ExCeL London

Every time I go to the ExCeL London I’m amazed at the size of the exhibition spaces they have to offer. Having been a London event photographer for over twenty years, photographing events all over the world, I still haven’t photographed an event at a venue with comparable space and versatility.
It also helps that it’s a very easy place to work as a photographer. Most importantly it has good lighting, but it also has lots of space and levels to shoot from.

The Conference Theme

The theme of the conference this year was disruption around the world and how that effects the investment management industry. Technology, business innovation, globalisation and demographic shifts were all covered by speakers and within the breakout groups. How to take advantage of the changes was key to the conference, with many impressive speakers bringing their opinions to the table.

Speakers at the Conference

Speakers at the CFA conference included noted economists, best selling authors, leading researchers and successful practitioners. Some of the speakers were within smaller breakout groups and some on the main stage speaking to two thousand people. Notably Mohamed A. El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz spoke on the main stage about global markets, disruptions, opportunities and risks. Sir Ivan Rogers, who is a former senior British civil servant and served as the Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the European Union, spoke about Brexit, a continuous theme throughout the conference.

Break Out Groups

It was interesting that, in common with a lot of other conferences I’ve photographed in the last few years, this conference had some breakout groups focused on personal wellbeing. The most impressive of these in my opinion as a London conference photographer, and certainly the best attended, with some delegates having to sit on the floor to hear her speak, was Laurie Santos who is head of Silliman College and a professor of psychology at Yale University. She spoke about the course she runs at Yale called “Psychology and the Good Life”, where she teaches 1200 students about behavioural change through positive psychology. The You Tube video I linked to above is very similar to the presentation she did at the CFA conference.

Photographing a Conference

Every London conference is different, not least of all because of the amount of delegates, and as a result the different venues used. In my experience as a London conference photographer, some are held in tiny venues for only a few people and some, as this one, have a lot more people attending. This also means the way I approach the photography is different too. For smaller conferences the photography is often to document the event, sometimes for an annual report or newsletter and as a result the photographs can be delivered the day after the event finishes. However, for an event like the CFA World Conference, the photographs are predominantly used for immediate use on social and other types of media. In an age of twenty four hour rolling news, it’s important for an event such as this to get it’s message out as the event is happening, since a day later it’s old news for a lot of media.

London Conference Photographer

My brief as one of two photographers covering the conference was to capture not only the feel of the event, but also specific aspects as they happened. Most importantly of course I needed to document the venue and the setup. We were very lucky with the weather, all three days at ExCeL were beautifully sunny, so the light we had, particularly for outside shots, was lovely. I then needed to capture the speakers and audience reactions in both small rooms for the break out groups and the huge auditorium with the main stage.
The contrast between the two types of rooms is huge, though the technique for getting great shots in them is actually very similar. Taking account of the colour temperature of the lights on the stages, as opposed to the light on the delegates, getting a range of different angles and interesting perspectives and covering all the speakers was part of my brief.

Working as a Team

I was working with Harry Richards Photography, he and I have worked together a number of times and we both know well how the other works. As a result it was a stress free experience and Harry & I split the coverage we needed between us. Here’s a link to his blog post from the event.
Because our photographs needed to be turned around so fast, Harry & I regularly took our photographs to be downloaded and retouched by a third photographer David Baird, who made quick work of making them available for use.

Your London Conference

If you found this article interesting and you’d like to see more blog posts like it, you can find them on my blog page. Alternatively, here are a few that you might enjoy. Here’s a blog about an event I photographed for Mazda and here’s one for the CPA.
Please use my contact page to ask any questions you have or to book me for your event or conference.

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The Publishers Association AGM this year was at the Science Gallery. It’s not a venue I’ve been to before, though I’ve shot at lots of places shooting commercial photography in London all around it over the years! It’s a great venue for a small conference or event and is particularly useful for me as a London event photographer as it has an auditorium layout to it. This means that I am above everyone else when I shoot from the back, I have a really good view of everyone and everything and I can take photographs unnoticed and from lots of different angles. All great reasons for me to really enjoy shooting there.

Publishers Association AGM

I really like venues where delegates and speakers aren’t aware I’m photographing them. It makes a difference to the way they act and I genuinely believe people look their best when they don’t know they are being photographed. I can use long telephoto lenses so I am further away, but at this focal length it makes a difference to the way the shot feels and loses any sense of intimacy or connection with the subject. As a result, I believe it’s best to be closer to the subject, using a short focal length lens but be discreet and very much in the background.

This years Publishers Association AGM boasted Dame Helena Morrissey DBE as the guest speaker. She is founder of the 30% Club, chair of The Diversity Project and head of Personal Investing at Legal & General Investment Management. Her talk was extremely interesting with a lot to feel positive about with advances in diversity in the City.

Other business passed off smoothly and I was able to not only get all the shots I needed, but had time to try a few more interesting shots that are a bit beyond the brief. Sometimes my clients really like something a bit more creative and other times it can’t be used, but for both myself and the client my view is that it is better to get some interesting shots, if I have the time, as it can really add to their photo library. Also, in a sea of event photos on the internet, it can be good to have something that will stand out occasionally.

Other Blog Posts You Might Like

If you enjoyed this blog post, then you might enjoy these too. Here are the Mazda Awards at the St Pancras Hotel, the Build UK AGM the Publishers Association AGM 2018 and the CFA World Conference.

Contact Me

If you’d like to talk to me about your event, you can go to my contact page. You can also check out my FAQ’s page and see more of my work on my blog page.

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Juul are expanding rapidly in the UK and recently had to move in to new, larger offices in Holborn. To celebrate their success and the fantastic new offices, they decided to have a launch party and approached me for some London event photography. The top floor in the new offices is perfect for a launch event, with loads of space, not only for socialising and drinking, but also for dancing. There’s a big terrace looking out over the many other offices in the area too, where guests could enjoy the spring evening.

Speeches and Presents

I started the event by getting some shots of the outside of their new offices, as doubtless they will want those for any social media and pr about their move to Holborn. I then got some shots of guests arriving and socialising in the reception area. The light was good and the mood very upbeat, which meant I got some great, energetic shots of everyone talking and laughing, always a good combination for a London event photographer.
The formal part of the night included some speeches and gifts for members of staff that had contributed to the outfitting and move to the new offices. Then after a ribbon cutting everyone moved upstairs to where the real fun was to begin.

Office Social Area

The new Juul offices have two floors of work space and a social area on the top floor. It was here the party was really going to get going.
The cocktail bar and specialist beers got everyone in the mood and the photobooth provided a lot of fun. Later in the evening the DJ Dave Clarke got some of the guests dancing.
I also had the pleasure of working alongside film maker Philip London doing video of the night.

London Event Photography

This is the tech bit! Here’s a bit of info about how I approached the night and the type of photographic kit I decided to use.
Since this event was going to be fast moving and a huge mix of very tight shots as well as long shots picking out guests with a short depth of field, I decided to pack my medium zoom to cover the night. It covers 24mm to 82mm and with a widest aperture of F2.8 all the way through it meant I had plenty of scope to shoot with the available light. I usually shoot with prime lenses, but this event was very fast moving and I was often in quite tight situations with little scope to change lenses. The lens worked well on the night, getting me all the shots I wanted, without having to resort to using any flash. If you’ve read any of my other blog posts you’ll know I much prefer shooting with the available light rather than using flash. That way I can really get the atmosphere of the event, something that it’s much harder to capture if I’m flooding the scene with flash. Used well, flash can be useful, but it’s even better not to have to use it at all!

Your London Event

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my blog post on London event photography. If you have an event and have any questions, then please use my contact page to get in touch. You can also look at my FAQ’s page and check out some other posts on my blog from lots of London events.
In particular, you might like to have a look at these blog posts, here’s an event I shot for Mazda at the St Pancras Hotel, and here’s an event I shot for the Publishers Association at the British Academy.

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The St Pancras Hotel has to be one of the top venues for event photography London. It is not only beautiful, but because of the way the windows are laid out, the light is very directional giving lovely contrasty patterns I can use to create great, interesting photographs.

Mazda All Stars Awards

I was photographing at this iconic venue for Mazda, who held their annual All Stars award ceremony there. The production was by Phoenix Animation and the event was planned by Black Tomato.
As well as the drinks reception I was photographing the dinner and awards with relaxing and dancing afterwards.
The great light meant it was a really enjoyable night for me as I was able to make the most of the atmosphere in my shots. To do this I used my fastest lenses, letting the ambient light really give an idea of what it was like on the night. In some venues, as a London event photographer, I use a little bit of flash to lift the shadows caused by the lighting, but at this London event I just used the available light to get great shots.

Great Atmosphere at the Event

The atmosphere at this event was excellent, the master of ceremonies was extremely funny, and kept everyone laughing. This meant I was able to pick out great reactions amongst the guests while they enjoyed themselves unaware I was taking photographs of them. I used a long lens for some of the shots so that I could capture guests spontaneously laughing. However it’s important to get a lot of variety in the shots from an event, so I also shot with a wide lens quite a bit closer, getting lots of reactions, but also a sense of the venue surrounding the guests.

If you enjoyed looking at this blog post, you might like to see more events and conferences I’ve photographed. You can see them on my blog. You might also like to see my FAQ’s page. If you have any further questions, or if you’d like to chat about or book me for your event, you can use my contact page. I look forward to hearing from you.

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Commercial Photography in London

Photography, though always important, has become so much more so with the rise of the internet and social media. Having an online presence is essential for almost every business and nothing is more crucial than having great photos. You can use stock photos, however, because they are so generic by their very nature they won’t look as good as having your own professional photos .

Finding the Right Professional Photographer in London

Once you’ve found the right commercial photographer, you should have many years of great photography. Also, if your photographer can’t shoot on the date you need them, they can usually recommend an alternative photographer who suits the style you’d like. This way, finding the right photographer for you first time can leave you with trouble free and beautiful photography for many years.

Tips for Finding the Right Photographer for you

Style Over Substance

Don’t be fooled by mediocre photographs with fancy filters. Because filters are a doddle to apply these days it’s easy to look at a photographer’s photos and think they are great, when three months down the line you’ll look back at them and think they look dated. Imagine the photographer’s photos without filters to really see if they have an eye for light and framing. Fancy tricks rarely stand the test of time and with the fashion cycle running ever faster it’s quite easy for a shot to look dated very quickly unless it is shot beautifully before the filter is applied.

Documentary, Traditional or Contemporary Photography

Choosing the right photographer primarily means starting with their style. While certainly not the only thing to consider, it’s obviously very important. Documentary photographers like myself, tend to shoot mostly in the background capturing what’s happening without controlling events. This not only means you can relax knowing the photographer will get great natural and spontaneous photos, but you also won’t have to spend lots of time organising and arranging people and places for your photos. I quite often go into a variety of locations, from boardrooms to building sites, where, even though the people know I’ll be coming, they are just planning to continue with their work or event without thinking about the photography. Here are just a few events I have photographed as a London event photographer that have been shot in this way. Duchess of Cambridge event, Effie pre gala judging day, Build UK A Smart Future event, CSCS on site photos.
Traditional photographers will expect to set up the vast majority of their photos and you’ll need to arrange people and places for the shots. Usually this means a more staged feel to the photographs as well as being heavily lit.
Contemporary photographers tend to try to get the feel of a documentary photographer, while using a traditional photographer’s techniques with arrangements and lighting.

Organisation Skills

Taking great photos is obviously the primary skill of a photographer. However, there are a lot of things that have to happen before a photographer even gets to the location for the photoshoot. Being organised is extremely important, primarily so that when I get to a location I am thinking about the photography and not the arrangements. Who I am going to meet, the brief, the conditions I am going to be shooting in, these all have to be considered long before I even start getting my cameras ready for the photoshoot. Finding a photographer who is not only good at taking photographs but is also organised is very important.

Good To Work With

Being good to work with isn’t just about being pleasant or a fun person to be around, it is also about having good people skills. Almost all the photography I do is with and of people. I’ve photographed people from the jungles of Colombia for energy companies, to boards of directors in London boardrooms, as well as everyone in between. As you can see from my blog posts, I go into a huge variety of locations with all sorts of people. It’s imperative the photographer you choose has the skills to interact with all sorts of people to get the best out of them when being photographed.

Photographing in Stressful Environments

As well as having good people skills, a photographer must be able to work in fast paced and stressful environments. From industrial locations with dangerous equipment to professional kitchens with busy chefs and at events where I only have a few seconds to capture an image, a cool head is important to get the shot I want. A particular situation I was in that needed a cool head and was in fact one of the reasons the client said I was chosen, was photographing the Duchess of Cambridge at an event.
I also photograph a lot of events at the Royal Museums Greenwich, in particular The Cutty Sark and The Queen’s House. These locations are beautiful and full of priceless art, so must be treated with care. Rushing round with cameras flying is not an option!

How your professional photographer’s images are supplied and licensed

It may sound obvious, but it is important to be clear on the first event you do with a photographer not only a price, but also how the photos will be supplied and the licensing for the photos. I supply all the best photos from an event or photoshoot, individually retouched and hi res as a download so my client has immediate access to them. I also give the client full usage rights to use the photos as they like. This creates a good long term working foundation, so the client knows they will not have to renegotiate a price for further use of a photo and can set up a system for distributing the photos as they will know exactly how they will receive them every time.

Professional Photographer’s Insurance

When choosing a commercial photographer, it’s worth checking they have all the professional insurances they should. This is a very good way to check if a commercial photographer really is a professional and runs their business properly.
The insurances an event photographer should have are camera insurance for their cameras and lighting, public liability insurance for at least £5m, though I personally have £10m as I work in a lot of venues with priceless works of art. Also they should have employers liability if it is not just them working in their business and importantly also professional indemnity insurance in case something on the photoshoot goes wrong.
It’s very easy for a photographer to email over a copy of their public liability insurance before a photoshoot just so you know it is all covered.

A Commercial Photographer’s Brief

Finally, and though this isn’t strictly a tip for choosing a commercial photographer, I think it’s worth mentioning how important a good brief is for a photographer. Knowing what it is you want shot and in particular why you want the photos is very important. Again this is a great reason for finding a really good photographer and using them consistently, as over time the photographer will really begin to understand the mindset behind your branding and needs.

I hope that was helpful, if you have any questions, or if you’d like some more information about me and the way I work you can contact me through my contact page, or have a look at my FAQ’s page.
If you enjoyed this post, you can see more on my blog, in particular, you may like these posts, CPA Spring Lunch, CSCS on site photos, and The Publishers Association staff photos.

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The CPA’s lunches are great to photograph, most of the people use this London event as a chance to network and so know each other, which means I get a lot of great shots of people laughing and enjoying talking to each other…always a good thing to photograph. The event is a chance for people in the construction and manufacturing sectors to discuss the state of the industry and it’s future in a casual setting. The guest speaker at this event was Dr Peter Bonfield OBE, Vice Chancellor at the University of Westminster, and former CEO at BRE Group, who talked about how he saw the next few months and years in the industry.

Documentary Photography

As always I photographed the event in my documentary style, capturing the feel of the day as well as covering the speakers and any set up photos the CPA and guests wanted. It’s a pleasure to photograph an event at The Brewery, there’s a lot of space, meaning I can move around without attracting too much attention and get the right angle on the shot I want. Most of the people in the room were professionals, so even if they did notice me, having a photographer covering the event was very much expected.

Event Lighting

The lighting in the rooms I will be shooting in is one of the first things I check as a London Event photographer. It can make the difference between a difficult and an easy event. With great lighting I can get all the shots I want without having to worry too much about the lighting, however, if the lighting isn’t great I will need to be careful how and when I photograph the guests to make sure the light is flattering, sometimes waiting until they have moved into an area of good light. On some occasions I will use just a little flash to lift the shots and take any dark shadows away from guest’s faces. I blend flash with the available lighting so it doesn’t change the atmosphere at the event, particularly as I am there to document it rather than create a mood that wasn’t there. In particularly dark venues I will use a lens with a shallow depth of field so I can make the most of the light that is available. A good telephoto lens will help with shots where I want to pick out a particular person or photograph a speech, and a wide angle is great for taking photographs where I am in a room with lots of people talking as I was initially with this shoot.

Cameras for London Events

I’ve just upgraded my cameras from the Fuji XT2 to the XT3. One of the advantages of the new camera is the low light capabilities. Sometimes in dark venues I will be working with the fastest lenses I have and still be struggling with the low light and be at the extremes of what my cameras are able to do. However, with each new camera upgrade this part of being a London event photographer gets easier. The XT3 is now very comfortable in low light I would have struggled in even as short a time ago as when I was using the Canon 5D mark 3. Used well this means I can get great images I couldn’t have shot a few years ago. Event venues have some of the most challenging lighting you will come across, which makes working as an event photographer extremely satisfying. Getting a great shot in difficult circumstances is a fantastic feeling, particularly if it’s captured in a documentary style without extra lighting changing the feel of the event.

If you like my work and want to see more then please check out my blog.

If you have any questions, or if you’d like to book me to photograph your event, then you can use my contact page.

You may also like to see another CPA event I photographed earlier in the year, The CPA Spring Lunch or this blog post about my work as a corporate photographer in London.

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This was an interesting shoot, I was told I was chosen for the shoot because I am a calm & capable professional photographer and would be just what they needed to meet and photograph the Duchess of Cambridge. Always nice to be complimented on my way into a shoot!

Hornsey Road Children’s Centre

The shoot itself was at the Hornsey Road Children’s Centre which the Duchess was visiting to find out about the project. The brief was for me to follow the Duchess and document her visit. The press corp were going to choose one professional photographer to come in too, so I would be working alongside them. The rest of the press corp would be camped outside. I’ve seen the press at events before and to say they can be intimidating is an understatement, a calm head was definitely needed. Security and protocol had to be taken into account too as there are certain things you are allowed to do and things you are not allowed to do in the presence of a royal.  Though interestingly I suspect the duchess would have been game for most things and looked quite out of place in the glare of the cameras. Where she looked most natural was chatting to the mothers at the centre, talking about their lives and experiences, some of them quite traumatic.

Challenging Lighting

Before the day, as with any shoot there were plenty of preparations to go through. The most important of which was to prep for the challenging lighting at the centre. With mixed lighting throughout I had to be on the ball on the day and make sure my exposures were spot on. Fluorescent lighting is not good for skin tones, so it’s important to factor that in, however, when you add in some tungsten light too it means I had to use auto colour correction rather than being able to adjust for just the one type of light. Auto is generally very good, and getting better with every new camera, though there is only so much it can do. As a result getting the exposure perfect really helps with the adjustments I need to make in my post processing. I also had to make sure I had backup cameras in the centre as I needed to travel light, but have any necessary extra gear nearby in case of an issue or a lens I particularly needed. I wasn’t sure before the shoot if I would need my telephoto lenses or whether I would be allowed to get close enough to use wide angles, so having the option was useful.

Access to the Duchess

The duchess herself was very charming and while I had certain constraints, ultimately I was surprised how free I was to photograph her as long as I didn’t step on anyone else’s toes, literally and figuratively! Getting on with other people on a shoot is imperative as ultimately it is that that will often mean you will get a shot, or not. The very people you have been talking to ten minutes before can be the ones that make it possible for you to get a shot, or if they don’t feel confidence in you then they may stop you or get in your way rather than help you. I try to be professional and helpful on every shoot I am on, partly because that is the way I am, but also because it is imperative that as a London event photographer I inspire confidence.

Work as a London Event Photographer

Once again an extremely enjoyable and interesting shoot. Part of the joy of being an event photographer is getting into new situations and using your wits and problem solving to get the best shots. If you’re interested in seeing some more of my work you can check out my blog. In particular, you might enjoy these blog posts, Build UK Build a Smart Future event and the CPA Spring Lunch.
If you have any questions then you might want to check out my FAQ’s. There are loads more photos and assignments on my site for you to see. You can also get hold of me through my contact page.

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I was very pleased to be chosen to photograph the Effie Awards this year. It’s a great event to photograph as a London event photographer and started with a photo shoot of the judging panel choosing the winners. The venue for this was Oath in High Holborn, high up in the offices with glass surrounding the room we were in which meant I had wonderful light to use for the shoot. After being introduced I left them to get on with their judging while I floated around in the background getting shots of them talking and discussing the entries.

Effie Judges photographs

Because they were all sitting around a table I was able to use a telephoto lens with people in the foreground to give depth in the shots, which also had the advantage of making me less conspicuous. With the Fujifilm mirrorless cameras I use I was also able to shoot silently without the clatter of the shutter I used to have when I shot on DSLR’s. I used a short depth of field to keep my subject in focus while everything else was out of focus, really drawing your eye to the subject and making them the most important part of the shot.

Head shots

This technique is also very good for company headshots. Rather than using a neutral background and having each person looking to camera, having them talking around a table really gives energy to the photos. It also takes the attention away from the subject, making them less self conscious. I personally think that the way people look when they are concentrating and talking is better, it looks more dynamic and interesting for the viewer too.

Beautiful light

I know I mention the light a lot in my blog posts, that’s because for a London event photographer the light I get to use for the shoot is possibly the thing that effects the quality of the shots most. Great light means I get wonderful clarity in my shots, great skin tones and contrast as well as making my job a joy to do. With good light I can shoot with a variety of photographic techniques, lenses and equipment, some of which I can’t use in difficult light. Trying to get great shots in bad light is part of my job and that’s fine, but it does mean I am pushing my cameras to their technical limits meaning I’m not going to get as good shots as I would in better light. On this particular shoot, as well as having good soft light, it was also surrounding my subjects, which meant I could shoot from several angles and not have to be so aware of the light every time I moved.

Contact Neil

If you’d like to contact me to have a chat about an event or shoot you have coming up then you can use my contact page, or you might find your question answered on my FAQ’s page.

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