Event photography: How to capture the energy of an event

Cherry Beesley at Simply C Photography explains her approach to photographing events to capture the very essence of the day.

As a commercial photographer, my regular assignments tend to focus on producing corporate images including headshots, products, brand shoots. I am also lucky to have been asked to capture many commercial and residential property images as well as some events.

So, when award-winning photographer, John Ferguson, asked me to help him capture an event organised by ‘Aspiring Solicitors’, hosted by BCLP Group in London, I was Simply thrilled to oblige. It’s a pleasure to work with other passionate photographers to create images which really embody the energy of the evening and is a blend of both our styles of photography.

Aspiring Solicitors was formed in Autumn 2013, by Chris White, with the primary aim of increasing diversity in the legal profession. The organisation works with law firms and legal teams to provide events, mentoring competitions and a range of additional services to their members.

Because of the aim of the event, I was keen to portray the organisation’s focus on diversity and individuality through my photographs. Though I would be working in a room full of people, I knew that I wanted to capture the individuals who would be attending and, even when photographing groups of people, it was important to me that I could capture the most natural images of people being themselves at the event.

When photographing spaces, objects or food, or working with businesses for their corporate headshots there is more time to take and re-take the photos until everything is just right – events are a totally different process.

Over the years, I have learnt that in any photoshoot there is an element of patience (in fact this is a huge characteristic of my candid style) and the perfect shot is rarely the first one taken. At an event shoot the dynamic of the room, and its energy, are constantly changing; people mingle, laugh, chat and interact spontaneously and as the photographer, it is my job to capture this. This means taking lots of shots until guests are so used to you being there that they fully relax.

Even though many of my shoots are all about people forgetting I’m there, they actually work better when people get to know me! As contradictory as that sounds, I want my subjects to feel comfortable with me in the room and trust that I am working with them to capture them in the best way possible.

Because I only ever work with natural light, my portrait and human-interest shots often have an added level of authenticity. This also means that my style is versatile and lends itself well to an event shoot – especially one where I need to make individuals stand out whilst capturing them in a room of others. Being experienced in working with the light available also means that I don’t need to carry lots of equipment or position people under hot, unflattering lamps.

I thoroughly enjoyed working with ‘Aspiring Solicitors’ and testing the versatility of my preference for candid, naturally lit photography. Need a photographer for your event or project? Get in touch with me today by calling 07775851827 or you can email me here