Red Carpet Photography – What to learn? Part one.

Over the past 10 years I have heard a lot of negative comments about doing red carpet photography.  And to be honest most of that is very true.  Yet I have heard a lot of positive things from doing red carpets… And to be fair most of it (not all) is false.

Yes, most of the negative stuff you hear is true and most of the positive things you hear about shooting it are false.  Note: I said MOST; but not all.   I say it like that because of the simple fact there’s a LOT to learn when it comes to red carpet photography.  You are going up against sometimes 30 other photographers: of all skill levels.  And they all are using different settings with different poses and/or angles in mind.  But you all are only using ONE SET OF LIGHTS. Yes, they all have different flash settings, wither it be the on-camera flash or a speedlight.  All those cameras and some of the speed lights work on radio frequencies and if you are not on top of your game your photos can and usually will come out horrible. Believe me I know.  Some have been so bad I keep them on a separate drive away from my PC which is currently running Windows 11 from Microsoft.

The first time I ever shot a red carpet was for a indie movie called “Love All Humans” a anti-bullying film.  And well the photographers there should have watched the movie.  I was in a hallway with about 30 other photographers and this hallway had very old fluorescent lighting.  Plus some other photographers brought their own lights and such.  Needless to say, I was still editing my photos by the time that event became old-news.

What to learn…???

•        Expect the unexpected.  By that I mean if there’s a lot of hype around a upcoming event then expect to be surrounded by other photographers.  And when it turns out that you’re the only photographer there…Then it’s a big relief, but your photos NEED TO BE perfect.  On the flip-side if there’s almost no hype around a event but it turns out there’s 30 other photographers then you need to be not only good you also have to stand-out.
•        Not all photographers have the same intention as you might.  You might be a PPA (Professional Photographers of America) member and have to abide by a code of ethics.  Other photographers might not follow a code of ethics.  Believe me they WILL steal your images if it gets them on page one of google or even better published and paid.  You could be there just for the experience or actually getting paid to shoot it.  While the person next to you could be a paparazzi photographer and just looking to sell their images to the highest bidder.  Another could be shooting for a news agency.  So my advice is get there EARLY and network.

    Getting there early ensures a few things.

•        It guarantees you a good spot.
•        You can find out what settings are being used on the lights
•        And you can size up the other photographers as they arrive.

Network at red carpet events.

•   Networking at a red carpet event is great.  Bring at least 200 business cards and/or have a QR code displayed so that all your information can come right to that persons phone once they scan it.  You may be wondering who do I give my card(s) to and why?
•        Get there early enough you can make sure they are in the hands of the location management and the event organizers offering your services.
•        Hand a card to each photographer that you talk to for networking reasons.  Who knows they might just get a client that you can relate to.  For example, I had a photographer from a event call me because his client wanted a outdoor boudoir and was transgender.  I in turn gave him a referral fee.
•        BUT the biggest group of people you can get your info into their hands or on their phones are those that are ON THE CARPET!  Yes, most of the celebrities I have shot on the carpet have asked for my business card and followed up with me.  That’s how I got invited to shoot the Pre-Grammy party for P Diddy.

BIGGEST THING THAT YOU'LL LEARN

The BIGGEST thing that you will learn doing red-carpet photography is to adjust your settings on the fly.  What I mean by that is to change your settings and your gear quickly.  And I mean VERY QUICKLY like within 5 seconds or less.

Below you will find a few images I have shot over the years as a red-carpet photographer.