Are you hosting a conference and looking to book a conference photographer? How do you know what to look for?
We've put together our Top 7 List of Conference Photography Tips, so you can know what to look out for in a great conference photography album. What are the photos that are going to be amazing to share with attendees or on social media?
Here's our Top 7:
1. Speakers: Speaker shots are crucial to a successful conference photography album. Without photos of the speakers, it's like capturing a birthday party without the birthday boy. Take at least a few close up shots of EVERY speaker and a few shots of the speaker with attendees in the photo, (showcasing the speaker talking to a big audience). This is important to get great shots of the speakers because they are typically the highlight of the conference. Don’t be afraid to change perspective. Usually speakers will be standing up there for 15-30 minutes at a time to give you plenty of opportunities for multiple unique shots. Make sure to bring all the appropriate lenses and equipment to get these shots.
#PROTip: We recommend a fast lens to capture all those moment. Speakers are usually moving around.
2. Food & Decor: A lot of effort goes into the setup and production of a conference. It’s always critical to get their hard work captured. This is especially true when the food or beverages are supplied by sponsors who often eat the costs to get the word out there about their services.
3. Sponsors: Conference sponsors CANNOT be missed! This is so important as they are often looking for great images of their work post-event. Where would a conference be without its sponsors?
#ProTip: Ask the event organizer for a list of the sponsors prior to the event so you can plan to keep an eye out at the event. Know the schedule ahead of time.
4. Attendees Mingling and Candids: Candid shots of the guests help showcase the conference and are often used for mentioning on social media. Almost every tech conference will want to tweet or post photos on Facebook to show how many awesome people came out for the event. Laughter and smiling are usually good signs of a good conference.
5. Group Shots: Posed shots of the guests are also just as important. Group shots are usually ones that guests will want to share and post on their Facebook walls. Everyone loves to tag everyone else in these shots. Don’t be afraid to ask attendees to huddle up for a group shot! However, you don’t want to interupt guests too much. You don’t want to stand in front of attendees while they’re listening to a speaker.
6. Venue: Conferences often love to make a shout out to their venue and often host in the same venue annually. Interesting angles of the venue makes for an interesting album. You don’t need tons of images, but probably an exterior shot as well as images of various rooms they’ll be hosting talks in.
7. Photos of the event production team & conference organizer: Conferences often have a ton of volunteers that dedicate a lot of time into the production of such an event. The guys behind the scenes also love to be recognized and praised for their work. Wouldn’t it be lovely if they could print out a team photo after the event?
These are just our must-have photos for any standard conference or summit. There are so many interesting angles and photos you can get if you understand the event and the venue though.
What are your favorite conference photography images?
Have a few other ideas? Let your conference photographer know what you have in mind or your vision for the photography. This will help everyone be on the same page about photography.