Paul Wilkinson Photography Blog

I wouldn’t describe myself as an event photographer. The idea of instant selection and printing smacks too much of Alton Towers for me (though don’t get me wrong here, I’m as partial to an instant photograph of me looking green and screaming my head off with my kids as much the next person) and this is really not what we’re about.

I’m very proud of the quality of imagery and product that we produce and consequently have shied away from the instantaneous sale that seems so prevailant at balls and events.

What I really like is to take time over each image to create something that is unique and will last a lifetime. OK, so possibly a little self-indulgent but you get my drift. This quality is something we’re continually working on to ensure we always deliver the best that we are able. When you see one of our prints you should a) instantly know it’s one of ours and b) be absolutely confident that you’ve bought something to be proud of for a very long time to come.

But here’s the thing.

We are, like all photography outfits, frequently asked to photograph at events and balls. If, and only if, it’s for a cause I really believe in or it’s related to a client who has been a friend of our business, we might just agree to it. Provided, of course, we can still create the same level of service as we would, say, at a wedding. Something that we can be proud of.

The Sir Henry Floyd School Prom is one of those events. Both Coral and Rory (you don’t have to look far down our blog to find pictures of them – they’re both friends to the business and, through that, to us personally) attended this school. Originally as a favour last year to Coral, we photographed their 2007 prom and, subsequently, we’ve done the same this year for Rory. This time at The Oxfordshire Golf Club – a favourite venue for us. And, just like last year, this year has been an absolutely ball – if you’ll forgive the pun.

We still didn’t provide instant photos though.

Instead, I shot throughout the evening using a huge white backdrop and a handful of lights – and I just captured images as if I were in our studio – but with the added benefit of a full soundsystem pounding away and 150 people seemingly trying to get in front of the camera all at once! By the way, if anyone would like to post the name of the DJ I’ll happily put them up ’cause he was awesome (as he was last year at the same gig).

The images are then provided for sale exactly as they would have been from, say, one of our weddings or portrait sessions. That way, when an image is ordered, we can provide exactly the same high level of quality that I would for any other session – admittedly this doesn’t provide that instant gratification of being able to take home a cheap print on the night (usually battered and covered in champagne mind you) but it does mean you get a beautiful mounted print that you can enjoy for a lot of years to come.

Which is exactly the way it should be!

Here are just a few of my favourite images from the night. Let us know what you think.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 3rd, 2008, 12:00 am and is filed under Events, For Website. You can follow any responses to this entry through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.