Photography of interviews records still images: the setting, the spokesperson and the interviewer, and the moment of the conversation. It does not record sound or moving pictures. Decide whether you need interview context, spokesperson portraits, or both, and ask us separately whether any video or audio can be included for your date.
Interviews are part of most launches. A spokesperson speaks to a journalist in a quiet corner, a presenter records a short piece, or a founder takes questions from several outlets in turn. They are also a place where it is easy to assume photography can do things it cannot.
This page separates what a still photograph can record from what it cannot, and helps you decide what to commission. It follows from our guide to small media roundtables and briefings.
What can photographs record at an interview?
A still photograph records the setting, the people and the moment. It can show a spokesperson in conversation with an interviewer, the product behind them, and the branding in the room. These images are useful for your own channels, for a case study and for the records of the launch.
What it cannot record is the conversation. Sound and moving pictures are separate services. Whether we can include either for your date is a question to ask us, and we confirm the answer in writing. If you need them, our guide on booking photography and videography together explains the choice.
Two different needs
| Need | What it looks like | When it is arranged |
|---|---|---|
| Interview context | Spokesperson and interviewer in conversation, setting visible | During the interview, if allowed |
| Spokesperson portrait | Posed image, plain background, good light | In a short separate slot |
Many teams ask for both and assume they will come from the same moment. They rarely do. Interview context needs to be natural, and a portrait needs a few minutes of set-up. Decide which you need, then plan the time.
Is the photographer in the room?
Interviews vary. A television-style interview with lights is already set up for cameras. A quiet conversation with a journalist may not welcome a photographer at all.
Ask each interviewer's team whether photography is welcome, and if so, from where. Keep the rule simple: if in doubt, the interviewer decides. Some interviews will have no photography of the conversation, and the portrait slot becomes the main output.
A hypothetical example
Imagine a launch where a founder gives six ten-minute interviews between 2pm and 4pm. The brand wants one image of the founder with each interviewer, and a portrait of the founder for future use.
The team asks each outlet whether a photographer may stand at the edge of the interview space. Four agree, and two decline. The photographer records the four, and the team arranges a portrait for the founder in a five-minute slot after the last interview. The two outlets that declined are covered by a wide image of the interview area.
Spokesperson portraits
A portrait slot is short, but it needs thought. The background, the light and the pose should match how the portrait will be used. Our portrait format and crop brief helps you decide whether the image is for a press kit, a website or a social channel, and our event portrait appointment planner helps schedule several spokespeople.
If several spokespeople are involved, our guide on brand announcements involving several spokespeople explains how to share the time fairly.
Using interview images
Interview images show people other than your own team. Before sharing them, check whether the interviewer is comfortable, and whether the outlet has a view. Our guide to personal, internal, press and advertising uses of photographs explains how use changes the questions.
Questions to settle before the day
- Which interviews are most important to the brand, and which are optional?
- Is there a backdrop or a quiet corner reserved for interviews, and who controls the lighting there?
- How long is each interview, and is there a gap between them for a portrait?
- Will the interviewer's image be shared, or only your spokesperson's?
Answering these early keeps the interview hour calm. It also shows which interviews the photographer should attend and which should be left alone.
What to send us
Send the interview schedule, the names of the spokespeople, the places and the outlets. We read the brief, ask what is missing and confirm the still-image coverage in writing.
Checklist
- List every interview with time, place, spokesperson and interviewer.
- Decide whether you need interview context images, portraits, or both.
- Ask each interviewer's team whether photography is welcome in the space.
- Schedule a separate portrait slot for each spokesperson.
- Ask us in writing whether any video or audio can be included.
- Agree who approves interview images before they are shared.
Send us the interview schedule, the spokespeople and where interviews will take place, and we will confirm which still images we cover and what stays outside photography.
Plan interview photographyCommon questions
Do the photographs include the interview audio?
No. Photographs are still images. If you need audio or moving pictures of an interview, ask us whether this can be included for your date, or whether another supplier is better placed. We confirm what is included in writing.
Can the photographer stand in the interview space?
That depends on the interviewer, the spokesperson and the space. Some interviews are small and quiet, and a photographer in the room changes the conversation. Agree beforehand whether the photographer is present, where, and for how long.
Should spokesperson portraits be done at the same time as interviews?
Usually it is easier to arrange portraits separately, in a short slot with a plain background. Interviews run to the media's timing and are hard to interrupt. A separate slot gives better images for both purposes.
Who decides which interview images are shared?
Your team does. Interview images often involve both your spokesperson and a media representative. Agree before the day who approves them, and whether the interviewer's image may be shared.
Plan interview photography
Send us the interview schedule, the spokespeople and where interviews will take place, and we will confirm which still images we cover and what stays outside photography.
What happens next: You send your event details on WhatsApp. Our team reads the brief, asks what is missing, then confirms in writing whether the date, venue and coverage can be booked, with a quotation. Opening WhatsApp does not send anything, and a message is not a booking until both sides confirm.
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