This is the question that gets asked too late at a German corporate event with great reliability, and it is the organiser’s to answer rather than the photographer’s. What works, and is common practice, is a combination: a notice on the invitation, a second one clearly visible at the entrance, and a marker for anyone who does not want to appear — a different-coloured lanyard, or a sticker on the badge. We work to it, and check the selection against it again before delivery.
The second thing is the running order. Five hours covers a conference or an evening event provided it is settled in advance which three moments absolutely cannot be missed — the board on stage, the award being handed over, the group photograph at eight. Without that list you get two hundred and fifty good photographs with the three important ones missing. A first set for social media the same evening, the full gallery within five working days.
What event photography costs depends less on the number of guests than on the length and on whether things happen in more than one place at once. Five hours covers a conference day with one stage, or an evening with a reception, speeches and dinner. If two halls run in parallel, a second photographer is the honest answer rather than one person commuting between rooms. Before the day, send the running order, a named contact with a mobile number, and the names of speakers, board members and guests of honour, with photographs if possible. Check with the venue, too, whether any areas are off limits for photography.
Once you enquire through the form, a fixed price follows by phone or email, and the written confirmation names what the photographs will be used for: press releases, the intranet, social media, the website, the annual report. Make that list complete, since the rights of use follow it. External speakers often want to use their stage photographs themselves; the organiser should settle beforehand, with them and with us, whether that is wanted, so it can go into the confirmation. The social media set is meant for posting that night or first thing the next morning.
