My approach to Photographing the BMA Conference and Awards at the Queens Hotel Leeds
The Bathroom Manufacturers Association (BMA) Conference and Awards is a prestigious annual event that brings together industry leaders to network, strategize, and celebrate achievements. This year’s two-day event in Leeds was filled with memorable moments, from informal networking to an inspiring conference and glittering awards evening. As a freelance event photographer, I had the privilege of documenting the occasion.
The unique lighting setups, event flow, and high-energy atmosphere made for a fun couple days balanced by technical challenges and creative opportunities.
Day 1: Networking Dinner
The Environment:
The dinner took place in a venue illuminated solely by overhead and wall-mounted lights. Despite the absence of natural light, the warm tones created an inviting atmosphere ideal for candid shots of professionals connecting.
Photographic Approach:
Using either a RF 70-200 2.8 or a RF 24 - 70 2.8 I captured natural interactions, the wide f-stop meant I was not relying on flash, ensuring minimal intrusion into conversations. Wide f-stops are often used creatively to separate the subject from the background. This also helps to create a more artistic yet editorial set of pictures.
Detail Shots:
When shooting just about any event you will want to take a variety of Close-ups to show detail, groups of people networking and a mix of wider shots to showcase the busyness of the occasion and overall layout.
Day 2: Council Meeting, Conference, and Awards Dinner
Morning: Council Meeting
My got to is a telephoto lens to capture participants discreetly, ensuring a clean, composed aesthetic while staying unobtrusive. I focus on framing the shots thoughtfully to include key elements like branding, banners, or logos to emphasize the event's theme and professionalism. I always have an eye out for featured moments—such as speakers interacting with visuals or addressing the audience—to convey purpose and context. I chose a depth of field normally f.28 to highlight subjects while softening distractions. Priority is given to natural interactions and genuine expressions, as these evoke authenticity. A balance of technical precision and storytelling ensures images that resonate with clients and audiences alike.
Conference Highlights
The conference was an intellectual and visual highlight of the day, featuring superb keynote speakers, interactive discussions, and breakout sessions. The venue’s lighting setup made the experience especially photogenic.
The Lighting: The venue was equipped with dynamic colored mood lighting. Despite the potential challenges of working with colored lights, the stage itself was well-lit, offering the opportunity to capture clear, sharp images without relying heavily on a high ISO. In this scenario you need to make sure you get a good exposure. Make sure your speed is fast enough to capture action, depending on your lenses you should be shooting at f-2.8 or maybe wider. If wider make sure you capture the eyes of your main subject in focus. I recommend always shooting without a flash this will enable you to capture the ambient lighting. It is better to have a high iso for a well lit picture. I then use Adobe Lightroom Classic to handle any noise issues. It has not let me down yet and I hvae shot in some VERY dark rooms
Photographic Strategies:
Speaker Shots: I focused on capturing speakers in action, mid-gesture or during moments of expression. The well-lit stage allowed me to use a low ISO (400-800) with a medium aperture for optimal sharpness and contrast.
To balance the vibrancy of colored lights, I applied a custom white balance setting, ensuring skin tones remained natural. Although I always shoot RAW and I recommend this. With RAW files you have you capture much more detail so have more leeway whwn editing in Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.
Audience Interaction:
Every client likes the photographer to capture moments of audience engagement, including laughter, note-taking, and participation.
Awards Dinner
Lighting for Success:
The stage lighting was bright, crisp, and evenly distributed, making it ideal for capturing both individual and group award moments without compromising image quality. Unlike some venues where dim lighting can present a challenge, here I was able to: Keep ISO levels moderate (800-1200), preserving detail and avoiding too much noise. Relying on the venue lighting without the use of additional flash, maintaining the atmosphere while ensuring clarity.
Event Highlights:
Celebration Moments: Candid images of attendees celebrating with colleagues and networking after the ceremony added an emotional, human element to the story of the evening.
Detail Shots: I documented the stunning table decor, elegant meals, and branded signage to provide a full picture of the evening’s sophistication.
Reflections on Technical and Creative Challenges
Adapting to varied lighting and settings over the two days was key to successfully capturing the event:
Day 1 – Networking Dinner:
The absence of natural light made a fast lens indispensable for sharp, well-exposed images without intrusive flash use.
Day 2 – Conference and Awards Dinner
The stage lighting for the awards dinner and conference was superb, allowing me to keep ISO levels low and capture sharp, vibrant photos even in dynamic lighting conditions.For colored mood lighting, custom white balance settings played a crucial role in maintaining natural skin tones and ensuring accurate color representation.
Post Production Workflow: Subtle adjustments to highlights, shadows, and white balance tied the visuals together into a cohesive narrative that honored the professionalism and vibrancy of the event.
