Client appreciation nights are some of the hardest events to photograph well and some of the most useful photos a company will get all year. The room is dark, loud and packed, the best moments last a few seconds, and the people who matter most are the company's own clients. Here's how XDI's client appreciation night at Howl at the Moon in Kansas City was covered, from the brief to the delivery.
Event: XDI client appreciation night, Howl at the Moon, Kansas City. October 20, 2026, evening.
The brief
XDI's Director of Client Relations sent a clear shot list before the night: the hosts in their company shirts, the guests and clients enjoying the show, the giveaways, the branded details, and the team together. With that list, the gallery could be organized into the same sections afterwards, so the marketing team could find what they needed without scrolling through hundreds of frames.
The corporate event photography checklist has the full version of that brief, for any planner to copy.
Shooting a dark, loud piano bar
Howl at the Moon is a dueling piano bar: colored stage lights, neon signs, and a crowd that moves. That's great for atmosphere and hard for photos. What worked:
- Fast lenses instead of room light. A Sony a7 IV with a 28–75mm f/2.8 zoom for wide room shots and the stage, and an 85mm f/1.4 for faces across the floor, where walking up would have broken the moment.
- Working with the stage light. The pianists and the stage are the brightest part of the room, so the crowd photographs best where the stage light falls on faces.
- Branded details get their own frames. The light-up cups for the specialty drinks and the company's welcome banner on the piano stage are easy to lose in a packed room, so they're photographed on their own.
The moments that mattered
- The hosts. The XDI team in matching shirts under the neon sign.
- The giveaways. Gift-card frisbees tossed from the stage into the crowd. The best frames are the ones with hands in the air and a frisbee mid-flight, and they come in short bursts, so the camera needs to be ready before the host throws.
- The crowd. Clients laughing and cheering during the piano show. This is what proves the event worked, and it's what clients share themselves.
- The full room. A wide shot of the packed room for the recap post and next year's invitation.
Delivery in three days
The client received 254 edited photos three days after the event, in a private online gallery branded with the company's colors, sorted into the sections from the shot list. Ten social media graphics in XDI's own brand style came with them, along with a story version and a LinkedIn banner, ready to post.
In the client's words: "Eddie did an excellent job capturing the energy and excitement of the evening. The photos and social media graphics turned out great, and his turnaround time was impressive!" (Kelly Hoog, Director, Client Relations, XDI)
Planning your own event in Kansas City
Event coverage starts at $250 for one hour, with two hours at $450 (75+ edited images), a half day at $750 and a full day at $1,450, each with a commercial use license. Companies get a same-day certificate of insurance, a W-9, and net-30 invoicing. See event photography in Kansas City, or holiday party photography for December dates.