Back in early April of 2026, I had the honour of photographing one of the most famous psychiatrists and authors in the world, speaking here in Calgary at the BMO Centre, with his largest audience to date. About 10,000 people showed up to hear him speak!
The event coordinator, Jennifer Falik-Rains, from Falik Rains Productions, based in New York City, had no idea who to hire for her event coverage, and she made a point of telling me at the end of the evening that she had found me using a tool she never usually uses, ChatGPT, by typing in ‘who are the most reputable event photographers in Calgary’. And apparently our name came up! So thank you ChatGPT for recommending us.
In chatting with Jennifer before the event, while the usual event coverage shots were desired (audience, speaker, space, and not boring or repetitive), it was particularly important to them to capture the scale of the audience – as his biggest speaking gig to date, that is something that was really key to capture.
On the way there, I was thinking ‘ok, park at BMO, get in, set up, shoot’. I did not realize what 10,000 people can do to traffic all going to one place! There was no way I was finding a parking spot at BMO, let alone even getting into it. I quickly had to pivot to an alternative parking arrangement. Local knowledge meant that I knew a side-street very close by that I could use, and I found free parking just across the street. It also must be said that I’ve got a reputation as a lucky parker! If I’m in the car, then usually we’ll find a good spot. 😛
Arriving there, I discovered how hard it was going to be to capture a great shot of the crowd. They left me some time at the beginning before it started to walk up on stage to capture the crowd from there. I managed a panoramic shot, and while that’s alright, I wasn’t really satisfied. Here is that shot.
I realized I had to get higher. I noticed some random stairwalls on the walls, which you can see in the image below. Being someone who’s not afraid to ask for help, I inquired with a security guard if I could somehow get up there. He said ‘oh, probably, let me call someone’, then a minute or two later told me to come back in a bit once the presentation had begin.
I arrived at the appointed time and he had disappeared, and another security guard who’d replaced him assured me that it was absolutely impossible. Not one to give up, I kept an eye on the area, and thankfully the original guy came back, and I checked in with him. He’d forgotten but told me to wait a few minutes and someone would be there to help. An entire team from the BMO centre showed up, and to my surprise and delight they said ‘we’re taking you to the catwalk’! Which was far far better than the stairs on the side. Luckily I’m NOT afraid of heights, and I’m pretty comfortable in most situations, so walking over all those people was not a problem for me. But it is not for the faint of heart. Most of the BMO team had to get out of there.
In the second half of the presentation, there was a Q&A with members of the audience. I was moved by how open and vulnerable the people were, in front of 10,000 people. Such moving stories and questions were asked, and Dr. Maté listened carefully, even walking down into the crowd so he could hear better.
His answers were kind, and empathetic, but also he was not afraid to be a bit tough if the situation called for it…but tough with the best intentions. It was really quite impressive.
The final thing that amused me the most was that as I was shooting the questioners, Dr. Maté actually used me as a prop to make a point during one of his answer! He looked over at me and said something like ‘Mr. Photographer, come here, and put your hand up in the air towards me with your palm up.’ Then he pushed down on my hand with his, and asked me what I did – push back. The point he was making was that if you push people to do something you want but that they don’t, they are going to push back. A good lesson for all of us with kids we want to do have do stuff. And I wish someone’d been taking pictures of ME while it happened!
Anyway, I thought I’d finish up here with a few observations on what it took for me to be successful at this shoot.
- Know the area: I’m very lucky with parking, but only because I knew the area, and I can park really well. If you cannot scope the area ahead of time, make sure you have time to adjust and adapt – see the next point.
- Build in some buffer time: a professional photographer will be there on time no matter what happens. I had not foreseen the parking issue. I couldn’t get into the space ahead of time to scope out the room and find the best vantage points. There are often things that come up that you cannot predict or simply did not. With enough buffer time, you can still make it.
- Be prepared with what the client is looking for and what’s important to them: having that conversation with the planner prepared me to look for ways to capture the scale of the event.
- Look for ways to do your job better: there is always something to shoot at an event, and different ways to shoot it. Perspective, focal length, location, moment, etc. It is our job as event photographers not only to capture the most important moments, but also do so in a way that is interesting, tells the whole story from your client’s perspective, and is not repetitive and boring
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help: there are always things that you cannot predict at an event. There are so many variables to consdier that it is impossible to predict them all. It’s what makes our job interesting! But if there’s something that comes up, or something that can help you do number 4 (take better photos to tell the story and succeed for your client), ask for help! Without asking that security guard, I never would have got up top to capture those amazing shots of the crowd.
- Don’t give up: I could’ve just given up when I spoke to the 2nd security guard about getting higher. Without being persistent and following up, I never would have had the incredible opportunity to get way up high above the crowds.
- Get comfortable anywhere: walking over the heads of 10,000 people was pretty unique, and also, not for everyone. A photographer that can adapt and adjust to an infinite number of possible situations is helpful.
- Have experience and the right gear: it is HARD to get a great shot of someone speaking. The lighting can be bad, someone talking makes for bad facial expressions, people do unexpected things, and knowing how to handle all that takes experience and skill. It’s why this kind of photography won’t be done on smartphones, at least for the foreseeable future, and why someone with dedicated experience to this kind of event coverage is important to people putting them on.