Taking photographs of corporate estates and casinos is a good way for a professional photographer to supplement his/her incomes. The modern casino is a hive of activity, and many of the biggest venues in Las Vegas are working hard to transform themselves into family holiday destinations with rides, pools, and everything else that a family of four could require for an unforgettable week away.
Unfortunately, for many of these operators, selling this idea requires overcoming the stereotypes of Las Vegas and other gambling destinations such as Macau and Reno when that many people have built up in their heads over several decades. One way of doing this is with high quality casino photography.
What kind of environment is a casino for photography?
The casino is a fairly unforgiving environment to the professional photographer, when compared to other estates where they may have lots of natural light and stunning outdoor locations to play with. Most of the big casinos that will be commissioning this type of photography are by their very nature, big and windowless places lit by artificial lighting sources. Photographers will also have to contend with the fact that the very biggest casinos never close down, and that they will have to conduct their photo shoot with hundreds of gamblers and tourists milling around them, and getting in the way.
This is why the very best practitioners of casino photography are worth their weight in gold to the industry. These people have years of experience photographing various estates, and are able to offer the skills that they have built up over the years to the casino industry. Staging a shot is of vital importance at this point. Casino operators are, by their very existence, selling the dream of a life of luxury that comes with big winnings. Any good piece of casino photography has to encapsulate this message and sell exactly that dream to the customer who is looking at the photo.
Attributes of a great casino photographer
That is why a good casino photographer has to be an expert at working with people. It is the individual’s expressions and their hopes and dreams that are written across their faces, that either sell the photos or do not. While some casinos have amazing pieces of internal architecture, or enormous courtyards that make for excellent photographic locations, many are fairly nondescript places that certainly don’t sell themselves to potential patrons based on their looks. That is where a good photographer becomes so important. They need to work with the actors in front of the camera to sell a particular message to the consumer.
Of course, casino photographers also have a new role. They can rove around the casino and take photos of people having the time of their life. People are keener than ever to make special memories when they take a significant trip, and a good casino photographer can help them to do exactly that. For a casino that is selling itself on the quality of the experience that it provides to its guests, little touches like this are of the utmost importance, and can make a huge difference.