On-Site Headshot Studios for New York Corporate Events
We bring the studio to your venue — lights, backdrop, photographer, and a line that keeps moving. Conferences, benefits fairs, sales kickoffs, client receptions and holiday parties across Manhattan, Brooklyn and the NYC metro.
The best-attended thing at your event is a good photo of the person attending it
Most of what you put on an event floor competes for attention. A headshot studio doesn't — people queue for it. It's the one activation where the value is obvious in three seconds, where the line itself is the advertising, and where everyone who steps out of it leaves carrying something they'll use for years.
It solves a second problem at the same time. Somewhere on your roster are people whose LinkedIn photo is a cropped wedding shot from 2017. Asking them to book a session never works. Getting them to step into a studio that's already lit, thirty feet from the coffee, takes no persuasion at all.
We've photographed teams at Tishman Speyer, UBS, MetLife, CBRE, Deloitte and BNY Mellon, and last year we ran headshot studios at employee health fairs for AppLovin and xAI — including xAI in both New York and California.
Three kinds of event
Conference or trade show
A room you don't control, in business dress, full of people you've never met. Success is throughput — how many badges got through the line before the keynote. The studio is a reason to stop at your booth.
On-site headshot studio for NYC conferences →Reception, gala or holiday party
Your guest list, cocktail attire, a dark room and a party with its own schedule. Success is the guest experience and a photo they'll actually use. The studio is what they remember about the night.
Mobile headshot studio for corporate events →Employee health and benefits fair
Your own people, in your own building, moving between tables on a schedule HR already built. Success is coverage — the share of the company that finally has a current portrait. It runs annually, so this year's photos have to match next year's.
Plan a benefits fair studio →
What we need from your venue
What we need from your venue
- Footprint
- 10 × 10 ft minimum, 12 × 12 is comfortable. A corner beats the middle of the floor — the line needs somewhere to form.
- Ceiling
- 9 ft or higher. Under that we switch to a low-clearance lighting setup — just tell us in advance.
- Power
- One standard 20-amp circuit, two outlets within 25 ft. No generator, no distro, no special drop.
- Setup
- 60–90 minutes before doors, 45 minutes to strike. We work around your load-in window, not the other way round.
- Load-in
- Freight or passenger elevator both fine. Six cases on one cart, one trip.
- Lighting
- We bring all of it and never depend on house light. A dark ballroom is the normal condition, not a complication.
- Staffing
- One photographer runs the camera. Above roughly 150 expected guests we add a second station or an assistant to keep the line moving.
- Wi-Fi
- Helpful for on-site previews. Not required.
Run of show
How the day runs
- 3 weeks outConfirm the space. We talk to your venue contact directly about footprint, power and a load-in window. You send us headcount and dress code.
- 2 weeks outLock the look. Backdrop color, crop and retouching style set against your brand. If you have a photography style guide, we shoot to it.
- 1 week outPlace the studio. We mark the position on your floor plan, near traffic but out of the flow, and agree who points guests toward it.
- 90 min beforeLoad in and build. Lights up, backdrop tensioned, exposure tested. We are finished and out of the way before your first guest walks in.
- DuringRun the line. Sixty to ninety seconds a person — we coach the expression, shoot three to five frames, and they choose their favorite on a monitor before they step away.
- 3–5 days afterDeliver. Retouched, color-matched files in web and print sizes, named to your convention and ready to drop straight into your directory.
Where we work
Venues across New York
We work in whatever room you've booked. These are the five we're in most often.
- Convention centers and exhibit hallsHigh ceilings, hard light, heavy foot traffic. We build a controlled pocket inside the noise.
- Midtown hotel ballroomsChandeliers, patterned carpet and a room that changes color hourly. All of it lit out.
- Corporate offices and rooftopsBenefits fairs, all-hands and summer parties, in a conference room or on a terrace.
- Brooklyn lofts and event spacesBrick, beams and almost no power. We plan for one outlet and bring the rest.
- Members' clubs and galleriesTight footprints and strict rules about what touches the walls. Nothing of ours does.
Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, plus the wider metro — Westchester, Long Island and northern New Jersey. Travel within Manhattan is included in every quote.
Pricing
Up to four hours on site, one photographer, the complete studio, previews on site, and retouched files in 3–5 business days.
Eight hours, higher volume, or a second station for events above 150 guests. Quoted on headcount and hours.
Every quote includes travel within Manhattan, on-site previews, and retouching on every delivered file. Add extra retouching passes, rush 24-hour delivery, a printed branded backdrop, or a second photographer.
Request a Plan and PricingFrequently asked questions about event headshot studios
How many people can you photograph in an hour?
Twenty to thirty per hour, per photographer, at a steady line. Across a four-hour evening that's 80 to 120 guests. If you expect most of the room to come through, we add a second station rather than let the line become the reason people don't bother.
How much space do you need?
Ten by ten feet and one standard outlet. Twelve by twelve is more comfortable. A corner works better than the middle of the floor, because the line needs somewhere to form that isn't across your traffic.
How long does setup take?
Sixty to ninety minutes before doors, and forty-five minutes to strike afterwards. We schedule around your load-in window. You will not see us building while guests are arriving.
The ballroom is dark. Is that a problem?
No. We bring all our own lighting and never depend on house light, so the room can be as dark as your production designer wants it. Low light is the normal condition at an evening event, not an exception we work around.
Can you run a studio at our employee health or benefits fair?
Yes, and it's one of the best settings for it. Your people are already circulating between tables on a schedule HR built, the studio slots in as one more stop, and you finish the day with current portraits for a large share of the company. We ran exactly this at health fairs for AppLovin and xAI last year, including for xAI in both New York and California. Because benefits fairs recur annually, we keep your lighting and backdrop spec on file so next year's photos match this year's.
When do guests get their photos?
They see their frames on a monitor and choose a favorite before they leave the studio, so nobody walks away wondering how it went. Retouched files are delivered three to five business days after the event.
Can you match our brand?
Yes. Backdrop color, crop and retouching style are agreed before the event, and if you have a photography style guide we shoot to it. We keep your specification on file, which is what lets a portrait taken at this year's event sit next to one from next year's without looking like a different company.
What if people are in cocktail attire rather than business dress?
That's most evening events, and we frame and light for it. A portrait taken at a party should look like a portrait — not like someone was pulled off a dance floor and put in front of a backdrop.
Do you also cover the event itself?
Our focus at an event is the headshot studio. If you also want candid coverage of the room — the keynote, the awards, the crowd — tell us at planning and we'll scope it alongside the studio rather than instead of it.
What does it cost?
Half days start at $2,999, which covers up to four hours on site with one photographer and the complete studio. Full days and multi-station setups are quoted on headcount and hours. Send us the date, the venue and a rough headcount and we'll come back with a number.
Events outside New York
Events outside New York?
This page covers the studio we bring to events in New York City. If your company runs events in more than one city — a roadshow, a national sales kickoff, a benefits fair at every office — that's a different kind of program, and we run those too.
We photographed xAI's health fairs in both New York and California, working to one specification, so the portraits match across offices. We keep your company's lighting and posing spec on file for exactly that reason.
See our nationwide headshot programs →Tell us about your event
Send the date, the venue and roughly how many people you expect. We'll come back with a plan, a footprint and a number — usually the same day.
Request a Plan and Pricing