Free Google Doc Template
Designed with busy exhibitors in mind, I’ve assembled a photography shot list template, as a downloadable Google Doc for you to use at the next event you exhibit at or attend.
It takes a lot of time and, let’s face it, tears, when assembling a trade show exhibit. Even if you hired out the design and build portions, you still need to deal with the logistics, order forms, staffing, and so on. I don’t need to go into the details of what you already know.
There is incredible value in quality photographs. They make your company look more polished as if you gave thought to how you presented your brand image—which you did!
So here it is, a comprehensive list of all the photos you will want to take as an exhibitor. You can use some or all of it as a shot list for your professional photographer or just for yourself to remember all the shots you need to take.
Before the trade show
Planning starts before the show floor opens—and so does photography! The booth setup day(s) are great for grabbing behind-the-scenes photos, especially if your audience is primarily consumers.
- Building the booth: Going BTS is like lifting the curtain of Oz. What is it like to build a booth? Oh, you had to make a run to Home Depot because someone forgot to pack a trash can into the booth pallet? It’s hashtag relatable and makes you more personable to the audience. We all make mistakes and forget things!
- Booth fully assembled: Wide angles and closeups. Get different POVs, as if you’re someone walking down the aisle.
- Group photo of excited staff members: I recommend doing this with a booth fully set up and BEFORE the floor opens. Don’t wait until the last day, because people will probably be tired!
Inside the booth
This is not only useful for your own marketing reference, but needed, especially if you have activations in the booth. You’ve spent so much time perfecting this activation, and photography is part of great execution.
- Any booth activation
- POV: From beginning to end, how a booth visitor would experience it
- The wide-angle view from outside the booth
- The close-ups of what it is
- Any guest speakers, brewers (I work in coffee), baristas, staff, etc.
- Products/services: the ones you want to highlight for the show
- By themselves
- Each one in use, from start to finish
- General product lineup
- Wide-angle shots of the booth, from multiple viewpoints
- Closeups of staff and them interacting with guests
The show floor
You’ve got to make time to walk the floor. I recommend doing a speedy walkthrough of the whole floor, aisle by aisle, noting down which booths you want to come back to. Then, revisit those earmarked booths to talk to people and get to know the show.
- Specific partners, resellers, customers: their booths and their products/services
- New products that were announced (pair recording a demo video for social media or reference use later with photos)
- Amazing booths: some of these booth designs can be nuts!
- From above: a wide-angle view of the floor
- From within: wide-angle shots of walking the floor, taking into account the visitors and exhibitors
Outside the floor
The show floor doesn’t exist in a floating space. It’s inside a venue, and I bet there’s signage outside the venue and at the floor entrances. Plus, you’re probably attending happy hours and after-show-hours events.
- Venue entrance with show signage
- You/your staff with signage somewhere
- Show floor entrance with show signage
- Lectures/workshops you attend
- Crowd mingling
- Other show activations, like brew bars, sampling tables
- Any events or happy hours that you attend
Post-show
Breaking down the booth: again, BTS is great
