Professional Conference Photography

A request came in this week for conference photography. This Toronto conference required the photographer to be onsite at an airport hotel for about 20 hours over two days. It seemed to be a routine event so I quoted my usual $1,800 per day or $3,600 for two days.

They turned me down. [Update: this conference, scheduled for late March, was cancelled due to the pandemic.]

I checked the hotel’s web site for the cost of its lowest priced coffee-break catering service for events ($18 per person). The conference web site showed that at least 245 people had registered. These numbers suggested that my $1,800 per day was about forty per cent the cost of a single coffee break ($4,400). Or to rephrase that, my two-day quote was $3,600 and the event’s estimated total cost for coffee and cookies was at least $17,000.

From Zero to Hero

Photos from previous editions of this same conference were shot by amateurs because the EXIF data in those online pictures showed that they were shot with a cell phone or a bottom-end amateur camera. Also the poor quality of those images clearly indicated that an amateur shot the photos.

There is a big sticker shock for customers thinking of moving from amateur photos to professional conference photography. From zero dollars for an amateur to maybe a couple thousand dollars or more for a professional. But conference organizers have to decide how important good photography is to their event.

Professional photography may have little value to small or one-time events. But recurring events, especially those with high costs, need to market themselves to attract conference attendees and sponsors.

Simply put, professional conference photography will make your event look professional. These photos can show that your event was properly organized, well executed and enjoyable to all. Using professional photography makes you look like a hero.