Corporate event photography is a very specific niche of photography. Which has a lot of work opportunities for beginners and advanced photographers? So let’s get into the world of corporate events photography.
I’ve been doing corporate (event) photography for over five years now. When I started out studying photography, it was a niche that I had never considered, let alone considered as my core business.
Now, here we are: doing corporate photography as a day job and absolutely loving it! However, there is a lot to learn and a lot to know. Let’s dive in!
- What is event photography?
- Corporate event photography tips
- The best gear for event photography
- Settings for event photography
- Event photography questions to ask your client
- Create a shotlist for the event
- What to deliver in your event photography
- Price for event photography
- Event photography contract
- FAQs about corporate event photography
What is event photography?
This is a basic question, but let’s start with that. For many people, it’s concert photography, but it’s so much more than that.
In general, event photography is photographing the guests and occurrences of an event. This means at a party, wedding, reception, or even a funeral.
Of course, there are a lot of types of events. I tend to focus on corporate events like seminars, congresses, launches, and openings.
Types of event photography:
- Weddings
- Birthday parties
- Bar Mitzvahs
- Corporate party
- Dinner party
- Network event
- Product launch
- Congress
- Seminars
- Shop opening
- Business conference
- Conventions
- …
But you can also think about so many more types of events.
Corporate event photography tips
There is nothing more valuable than having experience in shooting corporate event photography tips. Though, for a starter, it can be handy to know some things at first.
After several bookings, you will get the hang and feel for things. 😉
- Arrive early and explore the venue. Depending on how big, half an hour or an hour should be plenty.
- Make a shot list of what the client wants. Keep it somewhere close to you (or make sure you memorize it properly)
- Think on your feet; things will happen suddenly and not according to plan. But you and the client will still want some photos.
- Dress properly; don’t underdress, but make sure to be comfortable too.
- Always be polite to everyone!
- If people don’t want to be photographed, respect that. Even if you technically have the right to do so.
- Stay out of the spotlight: it’s not about you. Learn how to compose yourself quietly.
- Have back-ups. I prefer the dual-card setup for raw + jpg so that you don’t lose your photos.
- Get used to bad lighting and learn how to flash with on-camera lights. I can recommend the Godox V1
- Don’t flash all the time, though; it makes you very noticeable and can make the photos less spontaneous.
- Get a fast lens, then get another one. f1.8 should be good, and f1.4 could be better. Learn how to select lenses for your events.
The best gear for event photography
I always think it’s a difficult question to answer. ‘The best gear’. Even though I am a smartphone photography advocate, it’s best to invest in a proper camera body and lenses. My Nikon D850 can handle a fairly high ISO setting. But of course other camera’s too.
Look at which one can do higher ISO without getting too much noise.
The best camera for event photography
As a body, it’s best to use a camera that can manage in low light situations and has plenty of pixels. I use the Nikon Z7II and Nikon Z8, which I can highly recommend.
Preferably, the camera you choose has two card slots, so you can use the overflow or backup functionalities while shooting.
A second body never hurts, either for a different type of lens or as a backup in case yours fails. I usually have one with either a tele or wide-angle lens and a second one with a 50mm.
The best lenses for event photography
It’s best to have a wide range of lenses with a low f-number possibility. My current kit, for example:
A 16 to 35mm f4 lens for wider angles: the entire room, buffets, and stuff like those
A 35 mm f1.8 lens for more candid action shots
A 50mm f1.8 lens for candid shots: It’s not too far, but still far enough not to disturb the people. While still getting decent close-ups.
A 70-200mm f2.8 lens for public speakers and zoom shots.
And a 60mm f2.8 macro lens for close-ups and details. Though I rarely use this one.
You can see that I cover the entire range between 16 and 200 mm. Try to have at least the 35-135mm range covered. This way, you can make a nice combination of wide and close-up shots.
In my opinion, the macro is nice to have. It’s only useful if your clients ask for many detail shots, which you can usually do with non-macro lenses, too.
I am looking to limit my amount of lenses to 24-70mm f2.8 and 70-200mm f2.8. This ensures I have enough room to zoom (hey, that rhymes!).
I know corporate event photographers who do everything with only a 50mm. It is possible, but I recommend having some type of range available.
Flashes for event photography
I hate flashes. I really do. And I do 90% of my shoots without using mine. Though for that 10% of events, you are really happy you have at least one with you.
In general, I like to stay away from flashes, as they can be obnoxious to the event’s guests and spoil candid shots of people.
Hate them or love them, investing in one can really help you get a shoot done. And since they are fairly affordable, you will earn them back quickly. I adore my Godox V1.
Batteries and memory cards
Get a lot of them. Some seasons it might get really busy. And you can’t speed up the time it takes for a battery to charge fully. So having plenty of spares helps you a lot.
Usually, one battery is enough to get through a (half-)day of shooting. However, that really depends on how heavy you are spraying with your camera. It’s also different if you use two cameras at the same time. And what type of camera you use.
Memory cards are something you should not cheap out on too. Both in quality and in quantity. Remember, your expensive camera is cool and all, but it needs a good card to save those awesome pictures.
Get a system to organize your cards so you know which ones are empty and full at a glance. I keep them in a wallet by caruba, and depending on whether the logo is facing inwards or outwards, I know if it’s okay to use the card or not.
Settings for event photography
This one is dependent on yourself. So I can only tell you how I shoot. There is not really a good or bad way to do it. It’s just a matter of thinking about how you are doing the shoot and why you are doing it that way.
I like to shoot with:
- Burst mode: because of people moving around. Get a couple of shots, so you have options afterward to pick the best one. Don’t go wild, though, 3 or 4 is already plenty!
- Continuous autofocus: so all my shots are sharp, I rarely miss one.
- RAW: This gives you many options while editing the photos afterward.
- Aperture priority: I like to control my depth of field when going from candid shots to posed group shots and back. The shutter speed is fairly unimportant to me.
- Shutter speed: Although keeping an eye on shutter speed is important, try to keep it above the length of your lens. So, a 200mm asks for a 1/200s shutter speed. I even like to double it, just to be sure everything is sharp.
- ISO: I generally like to keep my ISO low to reduce noise. Unfortunately, at events, you don’t have that luxury. I feel okay going up to ISO 6400 (depending on the quality of the low light available). But anything above that requires a flash, in my opinion.
Event photography questions to ask your client
Having a conversation with your client in advance of the event is essential. You can do it in person, by phone, or even by email. How you do it is unimportant as long as you do it!
A couple of questions you need to have answered by your client:
- What type of event is it?
- What are the types of shots they are looking for?
- What are the key moments for them?
- Could they deliver you the full planning of the event?
- When do they want the photos delivered?
- Are there any VIPs they especially want photos of?
- Contact information of important people at the event
- Location (with Google Maps link) of the event
- Will there be parking or easy public transport?
- Is there food provided for you too?
Create a shotlist for the event
- Detail shots
- Any sponsored banners
- Giftbags and other goodies
- Nametags
- The buffet or food being served
- The event venue
- The exterior
- The interior, while it’s still empty
- The interior with people (preferably at a busy moment)
- The attendees
- Candid interactions
- People checking in at the frontdesk/guestlist
- People interacting with sponsored materials
- People exchanging business cards
- Any side events happening
- VIPs, sponsors, speakers, …
- Keynote speakers
- On stage in the context
- On stage close-up
- People applauding
- Any crowd interaction that might happen
Not everything on this list will happen at all events, so adjust to your situation. It’s also best to stay flexible and open to change. Schedules can change during the event, and extra people to photograph might join (or leave).
What to deliver in your event photography
First, always make sure to fulfill your promises to your client. That’s the base of everything. But what can you promise?
You can promise a certain amount of shots you will deliver. For example, 30-40 photos per hour. However, in my opinion, this depends on the type of occasion and how the schedule is set up.
Don’t give your client all the photos. They want the good ones. It is your job to select and edit the right photos for the clients. They don’t want to see the bad ones.
Another easy thing to do as an extra for your client is to give the photos in different resolutions. I am not just talking about full-res en web-optimized shots. I am talking about making crops for Instagram, too, for example.
Price for event photography
The price is probably one of those things you would like to discuss in advance. Though it depends on what you think you are worth. And even more importantly, what the client thinks you are worth.
Usually, the prices for event photography range from 100 euros to 300 euros per hour at the event. Be aware of the “at the event.” One hour of shooting also requires an hour of selecting and editing.
Make sure to include that time in your price, too.
Factors that might bump up the prices include second shooters, extra material you might need for that specific event, and photo booths, …
Event photography contract
You might want to consider having a contract for each shoot you do. Of course, you don’t have to make a new one every time.
I had a lawyer make me a template with my specific needs. I can still edit and add stuff, but it’s a good basis that works for 90% of my clients.
Consider hiring a lawyer for this too. They have the experience of creating these documents and will make sure everything has a legal basis.
What you might want to include:
- Timings of delivery and the event
- Time on site and for editing
- Deliverables (give a range, for example, 40-50 photos)
- Deposits/cancellation fees
- The ownership over the photos
- The allowed use of the photos
- So many more things; discuss these with your lawyer.
FAQs about corporate event photography
For this, you can calculate your hours photographing, editing, traveling to the venue, and communicating with your client. Also, the material you use has to be included in that cost. Any additional costs like hotel, travel, or rentals too.
There is no one solution for this. The best camera would be one that you know and can trust. It does help if the camera can handle some higher ISOs without too much noise.
This depends on the type of photographer, their skills, and of course, your event.
There’s no templated way to go about this. But you can find some photographers via Google and look at their portfolios. Keep the ones you like and contact them. See if you like the way they respond. It’s all about their work but also their personalities. See if there’s a match for both.
You can find and experiment with all the flashes available on the market. The best of course is an on-camera flash, as this is the easiest to use on events. I use the Godox v1 with their set of light transformers.
You should calculate your costs first. See what material you need, how far and long you need to travel to the venue, and how many hours you will photograph and edit the photos. With all those costs in mind, you can start discussing prices. Ask for a bit more than your costs. How much you can ask will also depend on your client.
Everyone has their preferred way to flash. For me, it’s tilted the flash to a 45-degree angle with a Godox diffusion dome and around -1.5 flash compensation. This adds a bit of extra light without the images getting too flat.
There’s no one answer, but I suggest that if you could only bring one lens, you should bring the 50mm. This one is flexible to do it all reasonably well.
Maybe start with photographing local events. Send the organization an email in advance to ask for permission. This is a great way to build up experience and a portfolio. Who knows, the organization might use your photos and promote you. Sometimes working for exposure is fine.
Disclaimer: In this article are some affiliate links. This means that, if you buy or book something, I get a small percentage of the fee. This comes with no extra cost to you but helps me run this website.
I don’t think I’ve seen a more comprehensive guide to event photography.
Excellent job!
This comprehensive guide to corporate event photography is a goldmine of knowledge! It covers every aspect of the craft, from preparation to post-production. A must-read for Best Wedding Photographer looking to excel in the corporate event space.