Christmas party photography RSS

30 Nov 2009

The Christmas season is here again and so are the photography services available for most Christmas parties in hotels and venues all around UK.

There are many ways to produce a great Christmas photo; many photographers will use a special Christmas themed background or setting, others will just use Santa’s hats or Christmas season photography props.

Christmas

The biggest benefit of the photography service being available at your Christmas party is that there are not many occasions throughout the year when everyone from work or from your office meets up outside the corporate premises and it gives a good opportunity to have your group photo taken while you are having fun and enjoying yourself.

It has became standard that the photographer will print your Christmas photos for you there and then so everyone has a chance to get their prints at the same night. Alternatively, those who can not print onsite or just want to offer something different will provide your photos electronically and will upload them to their website for all Christmas party guests to see the images online afterwards.

The “print onsite” option, however, still remains the best choice as it is great to enjoy your Christmas party photos while you are at one.

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Instant printing services for events RSS

24 Nov 2009

The introduction of digital photography has allowed pictures to be a lot more adaptable and quickly processed. Instead of attending an event, having your picture taken and then getting your photographs developed at a later date, event photographers now have instant printing services available on site. Attendees who have their photographs taken can view their pictures on a screen and have the images cropped; adjusted so the colour, contrast and sharpness are more complementary; enlarged and/or removed of any red-eye. The picture can then be printed off in less than 20 seconds and will be water proof and tear proof.

Having instant printing services at an event acts as attraction and as a talking point. It also means that guests are a lot more likely to buy a picture. In the modern world of fast edited films and downloadable music, customers almost lack the patience to pay for a product and have to wait for it, when so many things provide instant gratification. It also means that guests can show other attendees their pictures while they are at the event, which attracts more customers to come and have their picture taken. Moreover it means that the guests can have something to take home with them, which often feels like more of a memento than receiving a developed picture after the event has finished.

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Studio photo shoot RSS

23 Nov 2009

Working within the closed, controlled environment of a studio, photographers have the power to produce near perfect pictures.

As well as having top of the range cameras, it is essential for photographers to have the right backgrounds, lighting and camera settings. It is also imperative that they know how to work with and position their subjects to achieve a desired result. Most photographers will envision the final result that they are aiming for, while some will rely more upon playing it by ear.

What background a photographer uses will be dependent upon the event that they are shooting and what the customers want, however usually seamless paper will be used – giving the textbook blank ‘portrait look’. Alternatively a backdrop may be used to provide a memorable picture. Whatever background is used, a good background will bring focus to the subject(s)’s face, as opposed to distract the viewer from looking at the subject.

The most common type of lighting used is strobe lighting since they have excellent light intensity control and light colour temperature control. Strobe lights have to be told when to fire, so ordinarily a sync chord is used so that the camera can communicate with the strobes. Diffused, soft lighting will usually be used in order to keep contrast low and prevent shadows from appearing in the pictures. Cold lights tend to be used over hot lights, as the heat tends to make hot lights difficult to work with. By using a flash meter, photographers can measure the light ratios of the room and calculate the brightness of their surroundings, the value denoting the brightness can then be used to determine the appropriate aperture and shutter speed to set on their camera(s).

It is often wrongly presumed that the same procedure is used for every person getting their picture taken. In actual fact the photographer will pose each subject differently and adjust the settings on their camera to compliment the subject(s)’s features to the best of their ability. There are different approaches for various types of face shape, noses, ears, hair colour etc. They will also tend to make men taller than women, spread out head heights, and bring people close together to give couples intimacy and groups unity. Many photographers however will simply give their subjects freedom to pose anyway they wish and work around them.

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Is using a charity photographer a good idea? RSS

21 Nov 2009

Hosting a charity event requires the organiser to have a lot of different considerations and choosing whether or not to have a photographer attend the event is an important decision that is often overlooked. The answer is obviously dependent upon the type of event being hosted, but more often that not, having a photographer at a charitable event only contributes to the occasion and takes nothing away from it.

Some may consider just having a friend take pictures as it is important to keep costs low for charitable events, but this is not an issue, as most event photographers will gladly turn up to your event for free (meaning your ‘on the door’ price will not have to compensate for their attendance). Having a professional there helps raise money in that it both acts as an attraction for people to come, increasing your ticket sales and/or likelihood of people donating, and in that the photographers themselves will donate by giving a percentage of their profits – which they make from selling pictures to guests throughout the event – to the charity the event is raising money for.

Your attendees will enjoy having the photographer(s) there, as they will bring an impressive mobile studio in which the attendees can have their picture taken for free. The fact that there is no obligation to actually buy the pictures taken of them, unless a customer wishes to do so, provides extra entertainment for the event and hosts a hospitable environment.

It is also worth noting that by having a photographer, you are enabling yourself to have good quality pictures that you can remember the event by. If you took pictures of the event yourself throughout the day (assuming that you even had the time), the number of pictures taken and the quality of each picture would not be anywhere near as high in comparison as if a professional was doing it. Plus, it would just be another thing on your plate.

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How to find a good school prom photographer RSS

20 Nov 2009

Before you start looking for a prom photographer, it is crucial to decide what kind of photographer you are looking for/what you are looking for within your photographer. Most school prom photographers will set up a mobile studio that invites guests to come and have their picture taken as a group, couple or as an individual, giving each attendee the opportunity to have a professional picture which acts a memento of the occasion. You may however, wish to have someone capturing the atmosphere of the occasion, circulating the event and taking pictures of guests sat at tables and people dancing. You can choose to have one of these types of school prom photographer, or of course, you could have both.

Think about other things prior to your search, such as how much you are willing to spend and what you expect from your photographer(s). You may for example, expect your photographers to have on site printing.

When you start looking for possible photographers, you should use every resource possible, but the best and most reliable source is word of mouth. Talk to other schools; ask who they have used in the past and what was good or bad about them. You can then create a list of different potential photographers. If you look at each company’s/photographers web-site, you will save a lot of time, as it will let you see what kind of photos they tend to produce and allow you to make a judgement on whether they are the kind of photographer(s) you are looking for. If you like the photos you should then arrange a meeting so you can find out what they are like in person. Do they seem professional? Are they enthusiastic and excited about working at your event? Ask them how they are going to work on the night. Ask about there credentials/qualifications.

The next stage is to find out what they offer. Is there an attendance fee or will they come to your prom free of charge? How much do they charge for individual photos? Is there a team or just an individual photographer? What equipment do they use? What does there mobile studio feature?

You want to be looking for a photographer/company with top of the range equipment and years of experience, but most of all you want a photographer with good referees that would recommend them to you.

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Choosing an event photographer RSS

19 Nov 2009

When you are choosing an event photographer it is important to make sure that they are experienced and good at what they are do, however it is absolutely essential to find the right photographer for you. Recommendations are the best place to start, ask your friends about previous photographers that they have used and start composing a list. It is all comparative, so use as many sources as possible to create a large list of potential photographers.

A lot of time can be saved by checking out each photographer’s website. This will let you eliminate possible candidates quickly, as it will allow you to quickly look through a lot of their work and determine if they have the sort of style you are looking for.

It is then best to interview all the remaining potential photographers and ask each one of them a lot of questions. Ask them about pricing, they may attend the event for free but how much they charge for each photo will impact the success of the event. More often than not, you do get what you pay for, so it is always worth considering stretching your budget. Ask them about what backup equipment they have (backup memory, just in case their system crashes, spare batteries, spare memory cards, etc). Ask them if there is a backup photographer just in case they become ill. Find out about the backup photographer and make sure you know who you are getting; people are often lead to believe that they are getting one photographer but are then sent a different one from the same company. Ask to see samples of their work – They will doubtlessly just show you a compilation of their best work or possibly one of their best albums, so make sure you ask to see more than they initially show you. Looking at photos from numerous different events from start to finish will give you an idea of their batting average and show you what you can expect from your event. If they do not show you very many pictures, ask yourself, why?

When you are looking at their photographs ask yourself, do you like their style? What kind of thing are you looking for? If you are not sure what you are after it may be worth asking each photographer’s advice to give you an idea of what kind of style people usually go for. Once/if you know what style you are after, you can narrow down your list of photographers according to what they specialise in. Some may specialise in black and white pictures, some may specialise in colour, so may prefer a traditional style while some may prefer more of a candid style.

As well as analysing their photographs, it is just as important to think about the photographers themselves. Do you get on with them? Do you feel comfortable around them and do you think they would make the attendees at your event feel comfortable? Do they seem motivated and passionate about photography and about your event?

Before you become too attached to a photographer’s pictures and personality make sure you talk to them about their credentials and experience. Do they have any relevant qualifications and experience? Are they a member of a professional organisation such as the EPS (Event Photographer Society)? What and how many years of experience do they have? Experience is equally, if not more important than their credentials, so do not necessarily discount a photographer with decades of experience just because they neglected to renew their certification.

Always check each photographer’s referees. Would past users recommend them? If they used to work for a company, what do they say about them?

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