Hinterland of Things contracted me to document their fifth anniversary conference at Lokschuppen in Bielefeld, Germany. The event brought together founders, investors, and tech professionals from across Germany's startup ecosystem for a full day of keynotes, panels, and networking.

The brief required complete coverage from morning registration through evening networking sessions. Hinterland needed images for social media, sponsor reporting, speaker relationship management, and marketing material for future events. The production featured a main stage programme with multiple speakers and panel discussions, plus breakout networking spaces throughout the industrial venue.

Stage lighting presented the primary technical challenge. The production used dramatic pink and blue lighting, moving beams, and large LED screens displaying live content. This created extreme contrast ratios between the brightly lit screens and the darker audience areas. Balancing exposure for both stage action and audience reaction required constant adjustment as lighting cues changed throughout presentations.

The LED screens added another complexity. Photographing speakers against bright display content risks either blown-out screens or underexposed subjects. Managing this meant positioning carefully to minimize screen wash on faces while maintaining fast enough shutter speeds to freeze gesture and expression. Moving between stage closeups and wide venue shots meant rapid exposure changes to accommodate different lighting zones.

Lokschuppen's industrial architecture provided a strong visual context. The venue's exposed ceiling structure, brick walls, and large windows created distinct shooting environments, from the theatrical main hall to the naturally lit breakout spaces. Capturing both settings required switching between stage lighting techniques and natural light work as coverage moved between programme elements.

Networking documentation, balanced scale, and intimacy. Wide shots of the full team photo and audience engagement demonstrated the event's size and energy. Tighter frames of attendee conversations captured the authentic connections happening throughout the day. These candid networking moments yielded material that showed community value beyond just keynote content.

The outdoor venue shots and daytime breakout coverage provided visual contrast to the dramatic stage production. Natural afternoon light produced clean images of attendees networking and of the Lokschuppen exterior, creating Hinterland promotional material that worked across different marketing contexts.

The delivered gallery provided Hinterland assets for multiple channels: social proof of attendance and engagement, speaker recruitment for future events, sponsor value demonstration, and evergreen marketing content showcasing their position in the German startup ecosystem.

The combination of production-scale stage coverage and authentic networking documentation gave them flexible material that demonstrates both the professional quality of their event and the genuine community connections it facilitates.