Hi Everyone

As a professional conference photographer in Edinburgh, Glasgow and throughout Scotland, I have a wide range of experience in photographing events in Scotland and whether you are a wedding photographer in Edinburgh, a sports photographer in Glasgow, or an award ceremony photographer in Scotland, its the same set of rules and all the genres interplay with each other because they all involve uncontrolled photography, although some more than others, sports photography for instance offers less control over what will happen than at a conference photography event.  Rugby can also be a bit easier to predict than football, due to the action remaining in one area for a period of time, as opposed to football when the action can transfer from one part of the pitch to the other, the rules are the same however.  So for what its what its worth, here are some top tips for the event photographer.

1. Do your research, so you can predict as much as possible, with a conference, it is the timing of the speakers and the programme, for sport, you have to develop an understanding of the rules and to be able to predict what will likely happen next and in this case you can learn a lot from watching sport live.

2. Find the key players at the event and communicate with them regularly , in addition to creating a good impression, event photography, with the exception of some sports, is about trust and establishing good relationships, as much as it is about talent.

3. Position is everything and this is true of all types of events, whether you are photographing sport, conferences, birthday parties, or any kind of event, where you stand is crucial.  For instance as a wedding photographer in Glasgow, I once had to constantly assert myself to the amateur snappers, most of them with phones nowadays that my position was the priority and I even had to remind them that the wedding couple would not have been pleased if their photos had been less than perfect due to guests in the way and blocking the professional photographer.

4. Reacting fast is crucial in all event photography commissions, you cant afford to miss the key moments at a wedding, you must pay attention at all times during sport and this also includes when the ball is out of play, you need to watch the crowd, check out the reactions of the participants etc, remember when the famous photo of Eric Cantona was taken for instance.

5. Vary the lenses you use, try wide angle, at a conference to get all the participants in, get down low for rugby, so you are level with the players and you may get that magic try photo, its not all about long lenses, usually up to 300mm is fine and the rest is taken using shorter focal length lenses.

6. Don't forget to capture the emotions and this one is crucial, ie the emotional bride or father in law, the goal celebrations, the speaker at a conference who manages to generate laughter at the event, the list is endless.

7. Break the rules sometimes, try new angles, different gear.  I have used my infrared photography gear as a wedding photographer in East Lothian and Edinburgh and the clients were delighted with the results.

8. Look at what you have done and study where you can improve.

9. Keep your editing as short as possible, cropping and exposure should be your limit for most sports photos, whilst you may get the opportunity to work more on some wedding and conference photos later due to the time involved, but remember time is money, I learnt this as a sports photographer, getting home at night and having to work on the images and send them off right away, there was no time or energy for any fancy stuff.

10. Finally, enjoy it.  I get a buzz from all types of event photography and I usually come away feeling high at the end of the photoshoot.  I also feel I have been part of the event and can't wait to get home to see the results.

So hope that helps.  Until next time.

Kind Regards

Colin

www.colinwrightphotography.co.uk