The Royal Society of Medicine, based at 1 Wimpole Street, in Central London, have a special, hand engraved, Wall of Honour, in their Atrium, where many meetings and events (internal and external) are held. People are invited to use the wall to honour someone important to them from the world of medicine and healthcare, or as a tribute to someone who has recently retired or passed away. A fee is charged, which goes towards the Society’s provision of medical education.

The Society needs to promote the Wall of Honour and show those who are buying into it what they will be getting. Therefore, in order for them to produce some marketing material, they needed to get some better images than they already had. When my client came to me, his main concern was the difficulty in capturing the engraved wall, despite all the reflections bouncing off it. So I went along to take a look at the site and noted the best times of day for shooting and any issues I might have and equipment needed.

We planned the shoot for the whole day, so that I could capture the room as the sun moved across the Atrium’s glass ceiling above. It also meant we could stay there on a day when a few events were planned so I could shoot the room in use as well. As it got darker, the internal ‘event’ lights came on, which gave a whole new look to the room and really added to the atmosphere. Then before I headed off, the last thing to shoot was an evening event happening in the back room, a chance to photography the Atrium, in lower lighting with the silhouettes of guests mingling in the background.

Whilst shooting anything with lots of glass and reflection is always going to be tricky, with the right equipment and know-how, it’s possible to eliminate most of the problem. Where the reflections and light bounces can’t be removed in camera, or post production, the next best thing is to shoot in a way that is artistic and creates a great picture overall. You can see some of the results below:

For more information on the Wall of Honour or hosting an event at The Royal Society of Medicine, please visit their website: RSM Website