Photojournalistic Event Photography

General

May 7, 2024

A live Day of the dead themed performance at night features a women with a costume carrying a torch.
A Dynamic and visually engaging event photo.

Photojournalistic event photography is a unique and captivating way to document an event. It is a style of photography that captures candid and spontaneous moments as they happen. Photojournalistic Event coverage is dynamic engaging, which allows the final images to tell a story. One of the key benefits of photojournalistic event photography is that it allows you to relive the event. The photographs will tell the story of your event in a natural and candid way. This means that the emotions and energy of the event, as well as the details, entertainment, and posed shots are all important. In this article, we will be diving into the art of photojournalistic event photography and what makes it special and unique. Bernadette and I both studied photojournalism in college, which shaped how we document events. Here are a few aspects of our narrative approach.

Table of contents

What makes event photos dynamic and impactful?

A stryker sales rep shows a doctor a new surgery tool at a booth at CNS near display case

The Importance of Storytelling

Event photography is all about capturing the essence of an event, the emotions and atmosphere that make it special. To make event photos dynamic and impactful, they should be ‘narrative images’ meaning that the different elements tell a story. When covering events we often think about how individual images convey what we are trying to capture as well as how a set of images convey a message. There are a few key elements that we focus on:

One of the key elements of photojournalistic event photography is storytelling. Each photograph should tell a story and convey the emotions and energy of the event. The photographer needs to be able to capture the essence of the event and convey it through their photographs. This allows the viewer to relive the event as it happened and feel a connection to the images. Visual story-telling is the basis of photojournalism. Many professional organizations like the NPPA offer workshops on visual story-telling and feature editorial images that are impactful.

Composition: The Key to Visual Interest

An elaborate event setup for a corporate event reception at Sunest Station

The composition plays a crucial role in photojournalistic event photography. Composition is about making choices as a photographer. These choices include making aesthetic and informational decisions. These might include asking yourself questions like:

  • What visual information in the viewfinder is visually interesting or distracting?
  • How can I frame this shot in a way that will draw the viewer in?
  • How can I maximize visual elements in frame like lines, shapes, and negative space?
  • Does this contribute to the visual narrative I am trying to create for my client?

All of these considerations will determine what is included in the image, how many layers it has, what gets emphasized.

Lighting: Capturing the Mood

Yoga class on the beach at a company retreat in San Diego during sunset

Lighting is an essential aspect of photojournalistic event photography. The photographer needs to be able to work with the available light and create images that are well-exposed and have a good balance of highlights and shadows. Different types of light quality can create a different feel in the photos. How we use light creates a mood and atmosphere that is conveyed in the final image.

Creating a Sense of Atmosphere

An Event photo of Employees mingle at a company event in a crowd

Finally, the photographer needs to be able to create a sense of atmosphere in their photographs. This can be achieved through crating images that show the event from different vantage points. Providing ‘establishing shoots’ that provide a visual reference about what the series of photos is about is crucial to creating a sense of the atmosphere of the event. In terms of candid shots, it is often how the attendee’s react to the ambiance and interact with each other that will define the atmosphere of the event. The photographer needs to be able to create images that invite the viewer to feel and the fun and excitement.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, photojournalistic event photography is about guiding the viewer’s eye through the images. It means the photographer must possess a combination of technical skills and creative vision. This requires the photographer to do be able to tell a story, compose an image, work with light and create a sense of atmosphere. The best event photographers have the artistic sensibilities and skills to do all of this with ease. If you include a photojournalistic approach to your event photography , it will produce impactful, visually stunning, and emotionally engaging images.