Event video planning guide
We Stream is a London video and photo production company that films conferences, launches and public events. This guide is the order we plan in with our own clients: purpose first, then crew, formats and timings.
Step one
The first question an experienced event videographer asks is what the footage has to do after the event. The answer decides the style, the crew size and the delivery date, so settle it before you ask for a quote. Most events need two or three of these at once.
A 2 to 3 minute highlight film of the room, the speakers and the guests, for your website and next year's invitations.
One operator and a highlight editA tighter film with strong opening shots, guest reactions and on-screen titles, cut for ads and the ticket page.
Highlight film plus vertical cutdownsLogos on stage, sponsor sessions and stands, cut into short clips each sponsor can post under their own name.
Second operator and an edit packEvery panel recorded from start to finish with clean sound from the venue desk, for members, on-demand viewers or a paywall.
Two or three cameras on the stageLeadership speeches and staff moments for an internal recap, a board update or the intranet, often with subtitles.
One operator and speaker clipsPhotos and vertical clips out during the event, so press and your own channels publish within hours.
On-site editor or same-day deliveryReal examples
Each of these London events started from a different purpose, and the crew, the deliverables and the timing followed from it.
Three events with three purposes: one archive, one brand film, one news story. If we had planned all three the same way, at least two would have failed their brief.
Planning timeline
For a conference or a launch, four to six weeks gives everyone time to plan without rushing. If your date is sooner, ask anyway; the steps are the same, only closer together.
Agree what the video is for, pick a package and hold the date with the crew.
Send the run of show, the speaker list and the sessions that matter most, plus your logo and brand fonts.
Your producer sends a shot list and a call sheet. Confirm formats, passes and the venue's AV contact.
Dark, historic or outdoor venues get a recce, so lighting and positions are fixed before guests arrive.
Sound check with the AV desk, test shots for colour, then the shot list runs and same-day edits go out.
Edited video arrives inside 7 working days, with two rounds of revisions included.
Copy this list into your brief. Every line saves a question on the day.
No brief yet? We help clients shape one. See how to brief a conference video.
Formats
You do not film for TikTok the way you film for LinkedIn or a press release. Tell your videographer every format up front, because vertical clips and clean soundbites have to be framed and recorded on the day; the edit cannot invent them later.
The highlight film for your website, YouTube, LinkedIn and presentations.
Cutdowns for Instagram Reels, TikTok and YouTube Shorts, £150 each.
One to three minutes per speaker, clean cut with captions, £150 each.
Short quotes from panels and guests, recorded with clean audio from the start.
Burned in for silent autoplay, or SRT files for international teams.
Your logo, fonts and lower thirds, built from the brand files you send.
Crew size
One operator covers a single stage well. They cannot film a panel, the backstage and a sponsor's reaction at the same time, so anything with parallel rooms, interviews or same-day edits needs more people. A producer works on every project, on set for larger shoots, remotely for smaller ones.
| Crew | Covers | Best for | Filming from |
|---|---|---|---|
| One operator | One stage, one angle at a time, plus b-roll between sessions | A single panel, a short launch, an internal talk | £900 half day, £1,500 full day |
| Two operators | Stage on a fixed camera plus a roaming camera for guests and sponsors | Conferences with panels, networking and stands | second operator +£800 a day, +£1,000 with own camera |
| One person, photo and video | Video and photos from the same operator, switching between them | Smaller events that need both on a tight budget | £1,100 half day, £1,900 full day |
| Photographer and videographer | Two specialists working at the same time | Events where photos and video both have to be strong | £3,000 full day |
| Add an on-site editor | A recap, vertical clips and edited photos cut during the event | Press days, trade shows, anything posted live | from £1,200 a day |
Not sure which line fits? Read how we film events or what a conference shoot looks like.
What it costs
The filming rates above cover the camera time only. These packages include the edit, and they are where most event budgets start.
£1,400
A single session, a launch or a short evening
£2,400
A one-stage conference day
£3,900
Conferences with panels, sponsors and social
£4,100
Events that need both, from one crew
Travel outside London is calculated by us and included in your quote, so there is nothing to add later. £5 million public liability insurance, held separately by each of our lead operators. VAT will be added where applicable. Full rates are on event video prices and our prices page.
Editing timelines
Same-day edits are possible, but they are planned and budgeted before the event, because they change how the crew works on the day. Talk about deadlines before the shoot; rushing an edit afterwards rarely makes it better.
From £1,200 a day: a 45 to 60 second recap, three vertical clips and 40 to 60 edited photos per show day.
A recap of up to 60 seconds the same evening, cut off site. Several same-day pieces need the on-site editor.
A rush edit of the highlight film, delivered two days after the event.
Edited video with two rounds of revisions included. Photos arrive inside 5 working days.
Photo and video together
Most events need photos as well as video, and booking both through one crew means one brief, one producer and one look across everything you publish. The photographer and the video team plan their positions together, so nobody waits for the other at the key moments.
At the Usyk x Branson unveiling our photographer sent the first edited photos within 20 minutes, while the camera operators kept filming. Same-day photos are +£150 for a selection of 10 to 15, or +£400 for the full gallery.
From the events above
Photos from the Boryviter unveiling, Mazepa's Sabre at the Tower of London and the Mira Developments evening at Elie Saab in London.
FAQ
Start with what the video is for, then choose the crew, list every format, agree the deadlines and send a brief with the agenda and must-have moments. For a conference or launch, four to six weeks gives enough time to plan without rushing.
At We Stream a filmed and edited half day with a highlight film is £1,400. A full day with a highlight and four clips is £2,400, two operators with an edit pack is £3,900, and photo and video with 300+ edited photos is £4,100. VAT will be added where applicable.
One videographer covers a single stage well. If you need parallel rooms, interviews, sponsor coverage or same-day edits, book a second operator from £800 a day or an on-site editor from £1,200 a day.
The date, venue and timings, the purpose of the video, the must-have moments, the people to film, every format you need, your deadlines, your brand files, the venue's AV contact and who signs off the edit.
Edited video arrives inside 7 working days with two rounds of revisions included. A rush edit within 48 hours is £400 extra, and photos arrive inside 5 working days.
Yes, if it is planned before the shoot. A same-day recap of up to 60 seconds is £400, and an on-site editor from £1,200 a day cuts a recap and vertical clips during the event.
Yes. One person shooting both is £1,900 for a full day, a photographer and a videographer together are £3,000, and the photo and video package with a highlight film, four clips and 300+ photos is £4,100.
Yes. Our producer helps shape the shot list, the priority deliverables and how the content will be used after the event, whether for press, marketing or internal use.
Next
Send us the date, the venue and what the video has to do afterwards. A quote and a suggested crew come back within 24 hours, and if a smaller setup would do the job we will tell you.
Written by Violetta Coretnic, producer and co-founder at We Stream. Published , updated .
We Stream Ltd · London · No. 17207516
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