Corporate Event Photography

Virgin Galactic event

I shoot corporate event photography, sometimes for major corporations and sometimes for institutions putting on public engagement events, but in the end, it is all about narrative and engagement. The story is everything.

Some moments require experience to anticipate a spontaneous and beautiful image that captures authentic moments of the event. Clients typically want key moments from their shot list, as well as a collection of spontaneous moments, well-narrated images emblematic of their event. What they expect from corporate event photography is images they can share on social media to promote an experience that they sponsor.

Often, the moments are predictable and status quo, but they are necessary. At other times, the moments must be anticipated, so I always look for points of inflection where people are emotionally responding to each other, so I can round out the event. These moments of emotion are what bind the audience to an event, and the images are greatly valued by my clients for their social media value.

When it comes to folks speaking at a podium, I seek hand and facial gestures that convey engagement with the audience. Often overlooked by clients is the audience and stage in the background to give an overview of their event.  Also, it is important to capture direct audience engagement with the person on stage. It is all part of the narrative.

The overall narrative of talking heads, crowd, and social engagement shots is the minimum my corporate event photography clients expect; they are a departure point to find great moments of emotional engagement that we don’t expect from corporate events, something that people can remember and relate to.

In this picture of Richard Branson launching Virgin Galactic’s White Knight Space Plane, I had to anticipate the possible moment and place myself at a point where I would not miss it.

It was one of the “must-have” moments of the day, and the client was expecting a great image out of this moment. That is where experience came in. I was one of two corporate photographers hired for the event and had privileged access, allowing me to place myself where the crowds of press photographers could not. I cannot imagine how Virgin would have reacted if I had not gotten the shot.

Along with the standard event images and the emotion, there are sometimes quirky moments that last for only a few seconds, and you have to respond in a flash and know exactly what to do and how to do it.

In both cases above and below, the images were fleeting, and I managed to get them for my respective clients.