A wellbeing day is photographed best when taking part, and being photographed, are both optional. Agree what the employer wants recorded, tell staff in advance and let anyone step out of frame. Photographs record the event, not people's wellbeing or condition.
A wellbeing day exists to look after people. The way it is photographed should do the same. Staff attend for many reasons, some of them private. Some join every session and others only watch. Photography has to leave room for all of them. This page sits within our guide to employee engagement and retreat photography.
What does the employer want to record?
The honest answer is usually the event: that it happened, who took part and what was on offer. A record might show a stretching session, a healthy meal, a talk by an invited speaker and staff chatting between stations.
Be clear about the purpose. An internal recap, a newsletter and a recruitment page are different uses, and each calls for different permissions. Our guide to images for internal communications and employee recognition explains how they differ.
Optional participation, optional photography
Taking part in a wellbeing session should be optional, and so should appearing in a photograph. Tell employees before the day that our photographer will be present, what the images are for and how to opt out.
An opt-out should be simple and discreet. A coloured sticker, a word to the team lead or a sign at the entrance are all possible. Ask us how our team can recognise it quickly. The ideas in our guide to camera-shy adults at a photographed event apply here too.
What stays outside the brief?
Some parts of a wellbeing day are private by nature. These may include health screening, one-to-one consultations, counselling and treatment areas. Whether any photography is appropriate there is for the provider and the individuals to decide, not our photographer.
The safest approach is to mark them as outside the brief. Then photograph only the public parts of the day, such as the entrance, the signage and the group sessions where people are comfortable. The service providers may also have their own rules, so ask them.
What can captions say?
Captions describe the event. "Staff at a lunchtime yoga session" is accurate. "Staff reducing stress" is a claim the photograph cannot support. Photographs show what happened, and anyone's health stays their own to share.
If you want to report on outcomes, use survey results or provider reports, not images. Our event photograph caption worksheet can hold agreed wording.
A hypothetical example
Imagine a one-day wellbeing event at an office for 120 staff, with a yoga session, a nutrition talk, a mindfulness corner and a health-screening room run by an outside provider. Staff received a note beforehand about photography and a sticker option.
The plan has our team cover the entrance, the yoga session, the talk and the shared lunch. The mindfulness corner is photographed only from a distance and with consent. The screening room is not part of the brief. The organiser approves the selection before it goes in the newsletter.
Respecting differences in comfort
People at a wellbeing day may feel exposed, tired or simply private. Read our guide to comfortable and inclusive event photography and the page on employee events with different levels of photography comfort for further ideas. For employees who would rather not join group activities, see quieter photo opportunities.
Working with providers and speakers
Wellbeing days often bring in outside providers: instructors, nutritionists, counsellors. Each has professional rules about privacy and about their clients. Introduce our photographer to each provider at the start and ask what they are comfortable with. A provider who declines photography at their station is making a reasonable decision, and the organiser should pass it on to the team.
What to tell our team
- The programme, with sessions and stations.
- Areas that are outside the brief.
- The opt-out method and how we recognise it.
- Caption rules.
- How the images will be used and who approves them.
What affects the plan and cost
The length of the day, the number of stations, venue size and the deliverables are the main factors. The photo sharing and privacy plan helps you decide how images are shared. Your quotation sets out the coverage window and the deliverables in writing.
Tell us the stations and the providers involved, and we will propose which parts of the day to record and which to leave out.
Checklist
- List the activities and stations at the wellbeing day.
- Decide which stations or sessions are outside the brief.
- Tell staff in advance that our photographer will be present.
- Give a simple, discreet way to opt out.
- Agree caption rules: describe the activity, not people's wellbeing.
- Check providers' own rules about photography.
- Agree who approves images before wider sharing.
Tell us what the day includes and what you want recorded, and we will propose a respectful plan with clear ways for employees to opt out.
Talk to us about your wellbeing dayCommon questions
Will our photographer need to know about employees' health?
No. Photographs record the event, not health information. If a station is sensitive, such as a health screening or counselling table, the organiser decides whether photography is allowed there at all. Many are best left outside the brief.
Can photographs show that wellbeing improved?
No. Photographs show an event: people attending, taking part and talking. They cannot show anyone's wellbeing, and captions should not suggest it. Describe what happened, such as a yoga session or a talk, and leave outcomes to other evidence.
How can employees opt out?
Tell them in advance that photography is happening and give a simple way to opt out, such as a coloured sticker or a word to the team lead. Ask us how our photographer can recognise it quickly.
Are there areas we should not photograph?
Probably. Screening, consultation, counselling and treatment areas are private by nature. Ask the providers and employees concerned, and mark these areas as outside the brief.
Talk to us about your wellbeing day
Tell us what the day includes and what you want recorded, and we will propose a respectful plan with clear ways for employees to opt out.
What happens next: You send your event details on WhatsApp. Our team reads the brief, asks what is missing, then confirms in writing whether the date, venue and coverage can be booked, with a quotation. Opening WhatsApp does not send anything, and a message is not a booking until both sides confirm.
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