TECH industry experts meeting over lunch
Sharing Thoughts & Good Food
event photographer stockholm
Last year I was approached by a global agency specialising in bringing together experts within technology community to document a networking lunch they were organising at a beautiful hotel Villa Dagmar Stockholm. The event aimed to connect technology experts from worldwide-known companies, such as Electrolux, Ericsson and such.
I approached the shooting just as any other event, focusing on delivering a whole picture of what was unfolding in those two hours. The agency received shots of genuine interactions around the table, amazingly-looking food that was served, the connections and the details of the venue, down to the lunch favours given to the participants.
Genuine Interactions & Spontaneous Moments
Documenting genuine interactions and being quick to catch spontaneous moments is the main focus of every event. The energy of people is what forms the event. Being constantly observant and "on toes" is therefore something I never underestimate. But it's not all just about capturing people laughing. There needs to diversity in the images in order to paint the picture that speaks of the overall energy in the room.
Therefore I flow around quietly to capture the conversation from different angles, focusing on shared laughs, face features of participants deep in thoughts, even the hand gestures and similar small details. It is that diversity of angles that will draw the viewer into the picture.
Let's be honest. More often than not venues are an important draw of the events. In order to enhance the storytelling I include the venue and the surroundings into the shots where it makes sense. Sometimes a powerful image will be wider angle shot, sometimes focusing a detail within the venue will be more effective. It all depends on the venue and the situation.
Event Storytelling is Nothing without Capturing the Space
What Goes When Food is Involved in The Event?
Nothing makes a participant more uncomfortable than being photographed with mouthful of food. There are definitely much more creative ways how to convey the "eating part" of the event than intruding on participants like that - may that be a moment of putting the food on a fork, food being served and such that will produce aesthetically pleasing photos without showcasing anyone chewing and grimacing.
Not forgetting about party favours or goodie bags being given out during or at the end of event is also important detail that should definitely make it into the pictures. Often such favours are sponsored by third party companies and I always make sure that there's an appropriate documentation of it for further marketing purposes.
"Party Favours, Goodie Bags, Sponsor Materials..."
