Conference Photographer Archives - Creative Camera Media

Lets Talk Front Covers

by Simon Kearsley | 19 May 2023 | Conference Photographer, Content Creation, Event Photography

Do you Ever Really KNow it’s going to be the front Cover?

The simple answer to that is NO….. But you can increase the odds of getting THE cover shot if….

You Shoot Portrait for the shots that are likely to be considered.
You can encapsulate the theme / essence of the Event in just one shot.

So with that in mind I can take you through some of our Event Photography that we were pretty sure would end up on the front cover.

TUCO Conference 2019

We knew this was going to happen and once we’d got the party photos we knew it was time to set up in the exact spot and wait for the Fireworks to commence.

It has copy space above for the Magazine Logo. It has copy space below for the tag line. Yes there are around 5 of these images all with fireworks in various stages of illumination and all could quite easily have ended up on the cover. This is not just a right time and place image, this was a sit and wait for the action to unfold image.

National Pizza Awards 2022

This one is a great example of right place right time great composition. This is the winner of the National Pizza awards 2022. Of course at the time of taking the image we had no idea that he would go on to be crowned the winner but from a story telling viewpoint it has all the elements that make a great cover, Pizza, Action, Pizza oven, logo on jacket. What’s not to like.

National Burger Awards 2019

With all the craziness of the competition going on all around sometimes it is necessary to just take a moment and think, would that make a great shot….?

So here we are, burger in hand looking straight down the barrel of the camera lens, light transitioning from left to right. I knew as soon as the image was taken that it was the cover shot. The tension, the drama and of course the hero of the hour (The Burger) right there front and centre.

TUCO Competitions

This again is an absolutely perfect cover shot.

The concentration of the chef in the heat of competition, getting ready to serve up the most amazing plate of food ready to be judge by some of the finest pallets in the country.

Loads of copy space, the story telling of the image.

StrEAT Food Awards 2022

This one was by no means a define cover shot, yes it was the winning dish, yes it was well exposed and composed, but at the time of capture we still had another 24 dishes to photograph. The point is that you have to take every still life food competition image as if it the cover shot because you never know which on it will be. It could the the prettiest plate or it could be a bit dull to look at.

It’s all random….

That’s absolutely not true. You try to put yourself in the mindset of the editor, the studio magazine creator and you shoot for them. They are the people who will ultimately bring the story to life, you are just there to make it look pretty.

Just a small selection of front covers over the years from Events we’ve covered.

HCA Forum 2023 – An Event Photographers View

by Simon Kearsley | 26 Apr 2023 | Conference Photographer, Event Photography

We’re there to tell the story of the Forum…

BUt also help the Marketing, Editorial and Socials Teams…..

Here’s how we do that.

Start off by getting to the conference early before registration opens to get the lay of the land both the conference stage and to say hello to the production crew / check lighting. Walk the floor of the exhibition to see who is most likely to get busy soonest (usually a coffee supplier) so we can nail down the busy vender shot for the marketing team and editorial (to show the event was a success ).

Then onto the registration desk to chat to those beautiful people who will be handing over the delegates bags and ensuring they are logo out towards camera. Great branding for the event organiser and Forum leadership.

And then it begins.

Into the Forum

Form here we’re off into the conference hall were we need to speak to the speakers and forum leader to try to get them to remove their lanyards (they don’t always) as they can look a bit messy. This then leads into getting a headshot / three quarter shot of each speaker.

These photos are for magazine and socials.

Then it’s to the back of the room where we get a busy room shot. These serve Marketing (look how busy we are) Editorial (scene setters) and socials (great start to our wonderful event).

Question and Answer.

Forums usually have discussions (If the speaker doesn’t overrun their time allocation). Its important for Editorial to have some of these interactions in images as it tells the story of the day.

Onto the awards

In most Forum Events there is an Awards ceremony where the industry leaders and contributors come together to celebrate the achievements within their sector throughout the previous year. We are expected to get a nice staged photo of the award winners on stage receiving their award. But you only have seconds to get the shot as you don’t want the event organiser pulling you to one side, as you’re the reason the events is running over schedule.

And then we get to the festivities and dancing

Showing then the conference delegates had a great time is a delicate balance between enjoyment and professionalism. Something for the Marketing Team, Editorial and Socials to work with.