The Family Network business award ceremony, Birmingham corporate event photography

You may not know that another string to my bow is corporate event photography! No, not just weddings or family occasions, but business events, festivals, awards, and other kinds of corporate shindig – all across Birmingham and the West Midlands.

My friends know this, and if they get invited to a corporate event or an awards ceremony, often I’m their first port of call for advice about what to expect. What’s it like? What should I wear? Can I have a few drinks? Will I be expected to pose for photos? What’s the general vibe?

They’re usually disappointed by my answer though, because of course, no two events are the same – where one company might encourage its employees to go wild at the complementary bar to celebrate a year of great sales, another might have a totally different ethos, or a more contemplative or reflective vibe. The important part of my job is capturing that and reflecting it in the images, so that my clients get a set of photos that say ‘this is who we are!’

It’s always important to get shots of awards being handed out, handshakes between partners companies, and special guest speakers, of course. But my style is documentary, as you know, so as well as these more formal moments I’m always on the look-out for those little expressions, interactions, and moments that are a bit more candid and informal. It’s my job to dig a little deeper and find the personal stories behind the business.

That’s exactly why Laura Morris booked me to photograph the annual awards ceremony for her business, The Family Network. When she booked me, Laura knew I’d get those shots of the awards being distributed, but also manage to showcase the community that her and Vicky have built through her business. She wanted a set of images that showed that the event was fun, that it was community-filled, and that it wasn’t an event people were attending out of obligation!

The Family Network is made up of individuals with their own businesses, who get together to support and develop together. It was really apparent from the awards event just how brilliantly Laura and Vicky have done – it was such a supportive atmosphere, when award winners were announced, the room erupted for each and every one.

One of the challenges of these kinds of events can be encouraging people to showcase their authentic personalities – that always makes for the best pictures, but sometimes in professional settings people are a little bit more reluctant to come out of their shell. Fortunately, it wasn’t something that I had to contend with too much with The Family Network event, because everyone was comfortable with one another and a drinks reception at the start of the evening gave everybody the chance to catch up and feel more relaxed.

Laura had a brilliant MC in Dave Sharp, who did a superb job of bringing his energy to the event and encouraging award-winners onstage to open up about their journey and tell the personal story behind their business. She’d also arranged a fantastic guest speaker from Myton Hospice, and it was brilliant to see such good representation of a great local charity – award attendees really got behind the evening’s fundraising efforts. The feeling of the evening was celebratory, community-based, and most importantly, fun! That’s what my images capture, and that’s why it’s so important to choose a photographer for your event who can do more than snap images of people looking uncomfortable at lecterns! If you’re local, go check out The Family Network and the fantastic community that has been built – and become part of it!