Since the early 20th century, the entire world has greeted the New Year with Rose Bowl festivities. And thanks to a Pasadena event photographer, it continues to be recorded for posterity.
Football fans, parade lovers, and others have their eyes on the “Granddaddy of Them All,” but you don’t need millions of TV viewers to recognize the value of professional event photography for your party, conference or other types of function.

Rose Bowl events require professional parties and celebrations photography.
One of the secrets to a successful convention is the visuals that come out of it. Conferences and meetings photography can have the quality that gives it wings … or it can be a death blow to its future success.
And the nature of your industry doesn’t have to be visual. It can be a conference for young moms sponsored by baby products or a medical symposium for heart specialists. An Oceanside event photographer who knows the business can create images that enable outsiders to enjoy it – which comes in handy when your conference becomes sold out and tickets are nearly impossible to obtain.
Some of the best events end up in a Flickr vs. Instagram showdown. Photo sharing before you’ve sold all of your booth space can get you the vendors you need, and posting pictures during a multi-day event gets more tickets sold and beefs up your crowds.
What you need is conventions and trade shows photography that gets you traction and attraction.
Human nature is a great motivator – it fuels your PR needs, at least. Fear of Missing Out can lead to some tragic ends, to be sure, but FOMO can also inspire people into participation, which is what happens when attendees post their selfies and other positive experiences.
Social platforms such as Instagram enable people to “like” or comment on posts, and hashtags target the message to the most appropriate subgroups of its more than 500 million users.
If you’re renting the indoor/outdoor Blue Moon Club at the Rose Bowl, your event probably has a lot of moving parts. With access to bars, concessions, and flat screens, and with atmosphere from views of the Arroyo and Brookside Golf Club, you can make up to 1,000 guests very comfortable.
The Wine Garden is another way to make the most of Southern California’s perfect weather, and you can follow that up by moving it indoors using one of the Rose Bowl Stadium Suites.
It’s a good idea to line up a skilled Pasadena event photographer to cover any of the various functions held in the Rose Bowl facility:
- Conferences
- Tradeshows
- Birthdays
- Bar/Bat Mitzvahs
- Fantasy Football Groups
- Award Banquets
- Product Launches
- Fundraisers
- Seminars
- Viewing Parties

Conventions and events photography brings your function to those who can’t attend in person.
Not everyone can fly in for conferences and meetings, but corporate events photography can – when you and your clients launch professional photos on social media sites. When you’ve gone to the time and expense to produce a show, whether it involves meetings, sporting events, concerts or “red carpet” moments – you want it to live on after you wrap.
That’s why a Pasadena event photographer with experience is your best bet.
The Pasadena Convention Center is an expansive and flexible venue. Exhibit halls A & B make up a state-of-the-art facility that can be divided into two sections. Together they total 55,000 square feet and can be joined with the adjacent Grand Ballroom, which is 25,000 square feet.
An event of this magnitude is a challenge to capture on film because you need more than just standard company events photography. At the same time there could be live music, award ceremonies and exhibitors who need conventions and trade shows photography for promotional purposes. You need to find a photo professional with a wide range of experience.
IMATS, the International Makeup Artist Trade Show, hosts thousands of make-up artists, exhibitors, and professionals from the film and the fashion industry at the Pasadena Convention Center. It’s a good example of the kind of range you’re looking for in conventions exhibits photography because there’s everything from speakers and book signings to demos and makeup competitions. For events like these, you often need a Pasadena event photographer who has the skills to shoot runway shows and awards photography.
Sold out and highly successful, the Los Angeles County Women’s Leadership Conference is, perhaps, more conventional overall. Of course, the subject matter dictates some of the equipment, style, and tone you look for in conferences and meetings photography.
The LACWLC is open to anyone interested in improving their leadership skills, but their corporate sponsors are industry powerhouses such as Cisco, Adobe and JP Morgan. You even find heavy-hitters contributing to the swag bag, with merchandise from the L.A. Lakers, Blue Shield and Clif Bar & Company.
The Pasadena Convention Center’s 28,000-square-foot Conference Center has 18 meeting rooms on two levels, which is useful for such gatherings as The Yoga Expo L.A.
A one-day event open to the public, The Yoga Expo holds 50-minute classes for all levels headed up by local and nationally known teachers. There’s also a marketplace with vegan food and yoga apparel, accessories, etc. The true test for a Pasadena event photographer is the ability to translate the spiritual vibe and natural energy of this type of experience. You need a discreet, open-minded individual who’s rolled out a mat before and understands the healing power of vinyasa.
The best concerts and live performances photography captures the essence of sight and sound.
Shooting live shows isn’t as easy as it may seem. If you’re interviewing Pasadena event photographers for a play, musical, ballet or other dance show, you can make some special requests to improve the final product.

A theatre photographer should be willing to learn the show in advance because he/she will know more about placement, says an article on website TheatreActLife. Travel and portrait photographer Tom Fairchild describes the benefit of being in the right spot by sharing the words of photography pioneer Henri Cartier-Bresson, who “coined the term ‘The Decisive Moment’ to describe that one precise sliver of an instance in time that captures a larger feeling.”
Some of the features you can figure out in advance are:
- Framing
- Composition
- Exposure
- Settings
Those priorities are equally important whether you’re shooting a concert, play or graduation at the 3,000-seat Pasadena Civic Auditorium or a production at the century-old landmark, the Pasadena Playhouse.
Numerous notable actors got their start at the Pasadena Playhouse. It was the home of a school of acting for about 50 years, where big names took the stage and honed their chops, including William Holden, Eve Arden, and Dustin Hoffman.
More current productions include Broadway musicals such as “Ragtime” and off-beat entertainment from Bob Baker’s Marionette Theatre.

An expert in galas, awards and fundraising photography needs to have vision.
Atlas Obscura singled out The Gamble House as one of the top 39 cool and unusual things to do in Pasadena. For starters, it’s one of the best examples of Arts & Crafts architecture in Southern California. And that makes it a great place for photography.
Whether or not you use it for an event, you can get some great corporate photography with The Gamble House as a backdrop. And you don’t have to be a designer, architect, realtor or furniture craftsman for it to be relevant.
Find a Pasadena event photographer with imagination – there’s plenty of subliminal messaging from a venue of this kind, which he/she should be able to help you with.
Aside from the obvious association with success (built by David Gamble of Proctor & Gamble), it defines the word “grandeur,” sitting atop a grassy knoll in an elegant neighborhood. The Gamble House is a time-honored landmark – like your well-established law firm, accounting corporation or medical practice.
And don’t forget, it’s also Doc Brown’s home in “Back to the Future.”
If you do decide your event would benefit from the Greene & Greene style for your celebration or meetings, you can rent it for retreats, luncheons, dinners or even corporate picnics. It is setting really requires professional staffing, which means hiring a high-profile Pasadena event photographer for the function you’re planning.
If you’re putting together your club’s fundraiser, you have to be selective, to be sure the non-profit events photography speaks to the occasion. Keep in mind, the press that goes out about Black Tie & Burgers for the Boys & Girls Club is one thing, while the optics from “The A Gala” is another.
If you typically hold events at historically significant locations, you can connect with Pasadena Heritage, a non-profit group that’s responsible for much of the town’s preservation. It hosts guided walking tours, lectures and Craftsman Weekend.
Your event doesn’t have to involve ball gowns and bodyguards to benefit from an event photographer. You can focus on other important matters, regardless of what you’re spearheading. Sporting event photography for a Maple Leaf game at the Pasadena Ice Skating Center means you can keep your eye on the puck, and hiring a Pasadena event photographer for a holiday party or anniversary gives you the freedom to socialize.
And besides, you’re more likely to be ready when all eyes are on you.