Event planners consider hiring a professional Long Beach Convention Center event photographer as part of their long list of responsibilities when working on a high-profile function at the famous Southern California venue.
Event organizers count on the skill of company events photographers to document what’s happening without being distracting, says educator and business consultant Mark W, Schaefer, whose clients have included corporations such as Johnson & Johnson and Adidas. An events photographer should be relatively unnoticed, and the resulting images are typically seen as promotional benefits. Company events photography is aimed at increasing exposure for their corporate interests, as well as adding promotional value for the benefit of any vendors or sponsors associated with the show.
Long Beach Convention Center event photographers are typically hired by event organizers.
Large-scale functions from parties to trade shows are often spearheaded by professional planners, whose roles include such matters as venue selection, interfacing with creative partners, detailing timelines, scheduling speakers and booking talent.
Los Angeles event planner Kristin Banta has a record of designing and executing some of L.A.’s most innovative events throughout California, from Coachella Valley to Ojai and north to Carmel. Her company website describes many of the details involved in heading up a major event, including:
- Design components
- Catering
- Signage
- Entertainment
- Staffing
- Lighting
- Furniture
- Draperies
- Linens
Clients hiring local agencies such as At Your Door Events use images from their events to share on social media and attract attention to their brand, so the corporate events photography they provide has to be first-rate. Award-winning event planning company Bravo Productions does large-scale projects involving features that bring to life their clients’ unique vision for their event. They’ve created custom theme parties and company events using such design features as ambient lighting, cabanas and vintage furniture. Some of their most notable events have been opening night premieres for feature films “Three Billboards” and “Crazy Rich Asians.”
One of the firm’s larger events was a retirement party for a CEO held at Aquarium of the Pacific. Thanks to parties and celebrations photography from the event, you can see that dozens of formal tables in shades of ocean blue were set up under a giant whale hanging overhead.
Unique customization broadens some of the duties of an event organizer. In addition to tasks, you might find on a basic event planner’s list, for major clients an agency takes care of needs specific to the client’s function, such as the delivery of artificial snow or booking a Long Beach Convention Center event photographer.
Hornblower Cruises company has taken customers on the water for personal celebrations such as parties or weddings, as well as professional gatherings from company anniversaries to retreats and seminars. There are yachts in seven California ports plus New York City, and the company’s client base totals about 50,000 currently.
Long Beach Convention Center event planners can partner with Hornblower to include a two-hour lunch or dinner cruise on the trade show schedule. The excursion price can include the cost of food and transportation for officials, vendors and a Long Beach Convention Center event photographer so the resulting conventions and events photography will include both on-site and off-site images.
Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center photography offers a visual guide for potential clientele.
Long Beach Convention Center event photography is distributed to media outlets and social media platforms, exercising mutual promotion with such entities as the Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau. When new fountains were constructed on the Terrace Theater plaza, pictures were shared and posted on the city’s Economic Development web page with an article about the changes. It’s a strategy that enables the public to gain access to the facility online and at the same time promotes business interests in the area.
Currently, the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center is featuring its $50 million renovations of the facility with redesigned spaces containing new architecture, lighting and sound systems. They include Top of the Lot, which is a rooftop event space; Terrace Plaza, where the pool is located; The Cove, with a marine motif; and the glass-domed Promenade Lobby.
With more than 400,000 square feet of space for corporate events, including exhibit space for conventions, there’s a real challenge for a Long Beach Convention Center photographer to fully reflect its multipurpose functionality. It’s been updated with newer technology also, such as wireless capability, which is a must-have for convention leadership seeking a fully-equipped Los Angeles area venue.
Just by virtue of its size, an event photographer has a challenge to fully feature the facility’s amenities, which include:
- 34 meeting rooms
- 3 exhibition halls
- 2 VIP lounges
- The Arena
- The Rainbow Pedestrian Bridge
Considered by some to be a “functional piece of art,” the Rainbow Pedestrian Bridge is formally known as Long Beach Seaside Way Pedestrian Bridge. Completed in 2017, it’s a 605-foot elevated walkway that connects the Promenade to the Terrace Plaza. Its wave-like canopy has colorful, programmable LED lights, an eye-catching design that began with a simple idea by the city of Long Beach to build an elevated sidewalk, according to architecture firm SPF: a which was responsible for its design.
Professional images of Long Beach Convention Center photography accompany the backstory to the construction of the bridge on the firm’s website. The goal was to eliminate the convoluted route from the Convention Center space to the theater area, which required climbing multiple stairs and passing such features as loading docks and equipment. A part of the government’s budget, the website declares that aspect as one of the biggest challenges of the project.
“Despite the limited amount of money allocated to this project, we knew the bridge needed to be an experience, not just a concrete traverse,” it says. “We decided to get creative with a Caltrans template to create an open, urban amenity that would not just remedy the circulation between the two centers but provide the city with a new public meeting place and a distinct architectural marker.”
The abstract wave design was a nod to the history of Long Beach as a seaside town and busy port. Though a Caltrans bridge template, it’s a standout on the Convention Center property.
There are plenty of visuals of the rest of the venue online from the work of Long Beach Convention Center event photographers who have captured the meeting space in use. A few of the events that return to LBCC annually include the Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo, the Bridal Show and Wedding Expo, and the International Women in Aviation Conference.
The range of Long Beach Convention Center event photography reflects the flexibility of theater and ballroom facilities for end users.
Baked into the LBCC renovation is an ability for renters to customize events through easy alterations in spaces available. There are four ballrooms at the Convention Center.
The Pacific Room can be altered in size and shape on command to create a customized space, which you can see in conferences and meetings photography from inside the Convention Center. For entertainment, there’s a rental for the full facility seating 4,890 people or you can rent two-thirds of the space to seat 2,990 individuals. For a reception, the full Pacific Room rental seats 5,000 guests and two-thirds of the facility seats 3,300. Events needing banquet capacity can rent the full room for 3,288 people or 1,550 using two-thirds of the facility. If you’re hosting a convention or an event involving seminars, you can rent classroom space at the Pacific Room.
The ceiling height can be customized as well. Considered one of the world’s largest flying steel truss systems suspended above the floor, it can be adjusted to provide the ceiling height that’s appropriate for the occasion. This feature masters the atmosphere for your event guests, but also can improve the promotional material you create in real time.
If it’s set up for a trade show, your conventions and exhibits photography will reflect an image of openness with higher ceiling height. But in the case of concerts and live performances photography, for instance, a lower ceiling contributes to a more intimate atmosphere, even in a sizable space with thousands of guests. In the Pacific Room, the ceiling level can be placed anywhere from 30-60 feet high.
The Grand Ballroom has 20,456 square feet, making it the largest ballroom space in Long Beach. It’s got more versatility because there are almost no columns, which means more options for setup and décor. There are floor-to-ceiling windows on one wall with a view of Rainbow Harbor and the Queen Mary. There’s also additional space on the second floor that can be used for a cocktail party or other function before the main event.
The Promenade Ballroom is also a flexible space, with 13,200 square feet on the Promenade Level. It also has a pre-function space for receptions or other needs, which is open to the Promenade Concourse.
Promenade Atrium & Plaza is a combination of adjacent areas on the waterfront. There’s a walkway that’s lined with palm trees and lit for visibility, plus there are high, floor-to-ceiling glass windows with notable views. The lobby and the Promenade Plaza, which has an expandable space, can combine to enable you to host an indoor-outdoor event. The Promenade Lobby has a contemporary design and is often useful for pre-event functions, networking receptions or formal dinners. The Promenade has been the site of classic car shows and music performances as well.
The Seaside Ballroom is on the north side, on the street level with convenient parking and the entrance on Seaside Way. You have easier entry to the Terrace Theater and exhibit halls from this space, which has a wide entry hallway and also has a separate pre-function space, like the others. You can get a clear idea if it’s most appropriate for your function by viewing both Long Beach Convention Center event photography and the floor plans and seating charts available on the website.
Some of the most compelling images from a Long Beach Convention Center event photographer are shots taken during theater performances. These full-production theater spaces are host to high-profile performances including Shen Yun, Tango Caliente, Long Beach Symphony, Paw Patrol Live and the Long Beach Opera.
Terrace Theater & Plaza areas are flexible rental spaces, where features include views of downtown Long Beach, illuminated fountains, a reflecting pool and modular seating. There are outdoor fire pits and customized sound and lighting there also.
In addition to professional house sound engineers in the 3,000-seat theater, ticketing services, and a Long Beach Convention Center photographer, clients have access to numerous exclusive options. The LBCC can offer crowd control and security agents and medical/safety technicians. The lobby measures 10,090 square feet and there’s a capacity for 600 for a banquet reception.
The Beverly O’Neill Theater has an elegant design featuring chandeliers in a small setting. There are 825 seats circling the three-quarter thrust stage with a window overlooking the Rainbow Lagoon.
If your event doesn’t involve artistic entertainment and it’s not a business-focused conference or convention, you may need an expert in sporting events photography. The Long Beach Convention Center has hosted everything from hockey to basketball in its 13,000-seat facility. For athletic competitions in a place of the Arena’s size, getting quality images is a challenge unless your event photographer has experience shooting fast-moving gameplay.
But nearly any event hosted at such a large theater and convention space is better documented by a professional Long Beach Convention Center event photographer who can provide you with quality images. It’s important for immediate commercial advantages, but also to record your event for history.
