The Essential Conference Photography Shot List Your Marketing Team Actually Needs
500 photos and not a single one of the sponsor logo. Sound familiar?
Your photographer delivered six hundred images from last week's conference. Your marketing team downloads them, starts scrolling, and within ten minutes you hear: "Where's the shot of the keynote speaker with the slides visible?" "Did anyone get the sponsor booth?" "Is there a single photo of the registration area?"
Six hundred photos. None of the ones you actually needed.
This happens more often than you think. Not because the photographer was bad, but because nobody told them what mattered (and they didn’t ask). They used their judgment. Their judgment prioritized different things than your marketing plan required.
The easy fix is a shot list. Not a vague one. A specific, organized, printable document that your photographer carries through the entire event. It's the difference between "I got 500 photos" and "I got exactly what we needed."
Here's the one I've built over years of shooting conferences and events in Vienna - from international multi-day legal competitions with 3000+ participants, huge tech conferences in Berlin or Bern to opening weekends of important cultural institutions in Vienna. Feel free to copy it, customize it, and hand it to your photographer.
Why a Shot List Matters
Let me be direct: a shot list is not micromanaging. It's communicating.
Your photographer doesn't know that your lead sponsor contractually requires photos of their banner in context. They don't - and can’t - know that your annual report needs a wide shot of the full audience during the keynote. They don't know that your social media person specifically requested candid laughter shots for Instagram.
Without a shot list, photographers default to what looks good.
What looks good and what your marketing team needs are often very different things. Stage shots are dramatic but useless without context. Candids are charming but don't satisfy sponsor obligations.Without a shot list, photographers default to what they find in front of their lenses.
They might drift around, shooting what’s in front of their lens. On the other hand, with a dedicated shortlist they actively are on the hunt to complete the list - a much more target-focused approach.Without a shot list, expectations might not be aligned.
The photographer knows what to prioritize. Your marketing team knows what to expect. Your sponsors get documented. Your annual report gets its hero image. Nobody sends frustrated emails the day after the event.
The Shot List
Before the Event
These shots are easy to forget because they happen before the "real" event starts. But they're some of the most useful images you'll get. Tip: You might let your photographer come 1 hour earlier to secure these shots - or actively decide against it for budget reasons.
Empty venue/room setup - Clean, branded, no people yet. These are your hero shots for next year's event website. They show the scale and production quality without distraction.
Signage and wayfinding - Event banners, directional signs, welcome screens. Proof that your branding was present and consistent.
Sponsor displays and logos - Every sponsor banner, booth, and logo placement. Photograph them clean and well-lit before crowds arrive. Your sponsor report will thank you.
Registration area - The setup before the rush. Name badges arranged, welcome materials stacked, screens showing the program. This documents the preparation work your team put in.
Technical setup - Stage, screens, lighting rigs, AV equipment, live-streaming setup. Useful for your technical team's post-event review and for vendor documentation.
Catering setup - Before anyone touches it. The food presentation at its best. Catering companies appreciate these, and they work well for social media.
Why these matter: Your event website next year needs venue photos without this year's attendees in them - these are the hero images that convince next year's attendees to register. Your sponsor report needs clean logo shots that prove their branding was prominent, not buried behind a crowd - and that report is what determines whether they renew at the same level. Your production team needs setup documentation so they don't repeat last year's mistakes. None of this can be recreated after the doors open.
During the Event - Presentations
This is where most photographers naturally focus. The trick is getting the variety your marketing team needs, not just twenty angles of the same speaker.
Speaker on stage - wide shot - Shows the full stage, the screen, the production. This is your "we put on a serious event" image.
Speaker on stage - close-up - Expressive, engaged, mid-gesture. The one that goes on social media and in the speaker's own promotion.
Speaker with slides visible - Both the person AND the screen content readable in one frame. Technically harder than it sounds (exposure difference between a lit person and a bright screen). But essential for content documentation.
In General:
Give your photographer a list of all speakers so he/she knows what to expect
Request portrait and landscape shots, so the usage is flexible
Audience during keynote - Wide shot showing engaged faces. This is the image that tells future attendees "this room was full of people who cared."
Panel discussions - Multiple panelists in frame, showing the dynamic. Individual close-ups of each panelist for their own use.
Q&A moments - Audience members asking questions. These prove engagement better than any metric.
Moderator interactions - The transitions, the introductions, the moments between sessions that show the event's personality.
Why these matter Press coverage needs the speaker-with-slides shot - without it, editors run the story without an image or don't run it at all. Social media needs the close-up - it's the image that gets shared and tagged, extending your event's reach beyond the room. Your attendee survey follow-up needs the full-audience shot - it reminds people why they came and primes them to register again. Next year's promotional materials need all of them, because "500 industry leaders attended" is a claim, but a photo of 500 engaged faces is proof.
During the Event - People
This is where conferences are won or lost photographically. The human moments.
VIP arrivals - Your keynote speaker walking in. The sponsor CEO greeting the organizer. Board members. If they're important enough to be on the VIP list, they're important enough to be photographed arriving. Your photographer should query to know which are the important ones
Networking and conversations - Two or three people in animated discussion during coffee breaks. These are the shots that make your conference look like a place where meaningful connections happen.
Groups at coffee breaks - Slightly wider than networking shots. Show the social atmosphere, the mingling, the energy between sessions.
Attendees at exhibits or booths - People actually engaging with sponsor displays, demo stations, or poster sessions. Sponsors love these as long as you clearly see their logos/setups.
Candid reactions - Laughter, surprise, focused listening, note-taking. The moments that feel real because they are.
Speaker interactions off-stage - Presenters talking with attendees after their session. These often make better promotional images than the stage shots.
Why these matter: Your social media thrives on human moments - a candid photo of two people laughing over coffee gets more engagement than any keynote wide shot, and that engagement translates to reach for your brand. Your sponsor packages need proof of engagement - not just "200 people walked past the booth" but visual evidence that people stopped, talked, and interacted, which is the difference between a sponsor who renews and one who doesn't. Your attendee recruitment for next year needs images that trigger genuine FOMO - "I should have been there" is the emotion that drives early registration.
During the Event - Branding and Sponsors
This section exists because sponsors pay money and expect documentation. It's that simple.
Sponsor logos in context - Not just the banner alone, but the banner with people walking past, sitting nearby, or engaged in conversation in front of it. Shows the logo was seen, not just hung.
Branded merchandise and materials - Swag bags, branded notebooks, pens with logos. Close-ups that show the branding clearly.
Step-and-repeat / media wall - People posing in front of it. This is the most straightforward sponsor-value shot and the one most often underserved.
Sponsor booths with visitors - Booth staff talking with attendees. Demo in progress. People picking up materials. Active engagement, not empty booths.
Co-branded moments - Your logo next to the sponsor's logo. The welcome slide with all partner logos. The printed program showing supporter names.
Why these matter: Every sponsorship deck for next year's event needs these photos - they're what turns "we'll give you logo placement" from a promise into a demonstrated deliverable. Every post-event sponsor report needs proof of visibility, because that report is what the sponsor's marketing director shows to their CFO when deciding whether to renew. If your photographer doesn't capture these, you're not just having an awkward conversation - you're making the renewal negotiation 10,000 euros harder.
Details
The small things that elevate documentation from "functional" to "complete."
Catering and food presentation - Close-ups of plated food, buffet arrangements, coffee station aesthetics. These work extremely well on social media and show production quality.
Name badges and programs - A clean shot of a badge showing the event branding. The printed program open to the schedule. Close-up of the attendee lanyard.
Venue architecture - The building itself, interior details, unique architectural features. Especially important at distinctive venues. When I shoot at the Konzerthaus or the Paris Photo, the venue is part of the story.
Atmosphere shots - Lighting effects, decorations, table settings, floral arrangements. The mood of the event captured in a single frame.
Technology in use - The event app on someone's phone. The live polling results on screen. The QR code being scanned. Documents that your event was modern and interactive.
Why these matter: Annual reports need atmosphere. Social media needs food photos (this is a universal truth). Venue documentation helps your production team plan next year.
After the Main Program
The event isn't over when the last speaker finishes:
Award ceremony or closing remarks - If there's a formal ending, it needs documentation equal to the opening.
Group photos - Speakers together. The organizing team. Award winners. VIP groups. These are often the most-requested images after the event and the most regretted when they're missing.
After-party or reception - The relaxed moments when the formal program ends. Different energy, different light, different value. At events like the Nestroy Gala After Show Party 2021, the after-party photos are often the ones that get shared most.
Departure moments - People saying goodbye, exchanging business cards, the room as it empties. These bookend the documentation.
Why these matter: Award photos get used for years. Group photos become institutional memory. After-party shots show the human side of your organization.
How to Customize This for Your Event
This list is a template, not a prescription. Every event is different. Here's how to make it yours:
Start with your deliverables. What do you actually need the photos for? Press? Social media? Sponsor reports? Annual report? Website? Each use case has different requirements. Work backwards from there.
Mark priorities. Not everything on this list is equally important for every event. Highlight the non-negotiables. If sponsor documentation is critical, say so. If you don't have an award ceremony, delete that section.
Add event-specific items. A product launch has different needs than a panel discussion. A book presentation at Josephinum has different priorities than a pre-opening of a photo-conference. Add what's unique to your event.
Include names and faces. Attach a VIP list with photos to the shot list. Your photographer can't capture the board chair greeting the minister if they don't know what either person looks like.
Share it early. Give the shot list to your photographer at least a week before the event. Not the morning of. They need time to plan their approach, identify potential challenges, and ask clarifying questions.
The Shots People Forget (And Regret Later)
From years of post-event conversations, here are the images people wish they'd asked for:
The organizing team. Everyone photographs the speakers. Nobody photographs the people who made it happen. Get a team photo. They earned it.
Setup and teardown. The behind-the-scenes work. Useful for documenting effort, for thanking vendors, and for planning next year.
The empty room after. A quiet, atmospheric shot of the venue after everyone leaves. Oddly powerful in annual reports and retrospectives.
Specific attendee groups. "We needed a photo of the delegation from Company X together." If specific groups matter, put them on the list.
The building exterior. Especially for events at landmark venues. A clean exterior shot with your event banner or signage is surprisingly useful for future promotion.
Making It Work
Hand this list to your photographer. Walk through it together. Cross off what doesn't apply, add what's specific to your event, and agree on priorities. This is also the time when a single photographer recognises that for the given list he/she would need a second shooter to completely cover the agenda (e.g. because stuff happens simultaneously in two conference rooms)
Then let them do their job. A shot list isn't a leash - it's a compass. A good event photographer will use it as a foundation and bring their own eye for the moments you couldn't predict. That combination of structure and instinct is what produces documentation that actually serves your needs.
The goal isn't six hundred random photos.
The goal is three hundred intentional ones that your marketing team can actually use.