Photography Guide for Art Fair on the Square
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art
One of the Midwest's most popular and highly regarded outdoor celebrations of the arts returns to the Capitol
Square the second full weekend July each year. With its mix of music, entertainment, and outdoor dining, as
well as nearly 500 artists exhibiting paintings, prints, photographs, sculpture, jewelry, handmade clothing and
accessories, and fine craft, the fair draws some 200,000 visitors to Madison's Capitol Square. The 2015 fair will
take place on Saturday, July 11 (9 am–6 pm) and Sunday, July 12 (10 am–5 pm).
MMoCA engages three or more photographers to capture the Art Fair on the Square. The photographs will be
used (1) to document the event, (2) to promote future Art Fairs to potential attendees, (3) to show potential
sponsors the highlights of this event, and (4) to illustrate the event for potential volunteers/artists. Images will
be used both in print and online. A shot list follows:
○ Patron(s) looking at artwork, with expressive faces, smiling or gesturing
○ Large numbers of patrons together, with expressive faces, smiling or gesturing
○ Artist with large numbers of patrons together, engaged expressions, art in foreground/background
○ Patrons enjoying food samples in groups, smiling, animated
○ Patrons enjoying live music or dance performances in groups
○ Patrons holding or reviewing a printed program
○ Visually interesting entertainment/performances
○ Volunteers smiling and helping people (Silent Auction, Member Oasis, Info Booths)
○ The Silent Auction (photos often look cluttered, see below shot ideas to avoid this):
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Close-up of quality item with other pieces or crowd in background
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Individual having fun with items in the background
Tips: The most useful photographs are more commercial than arty. Showing booths with high quality art that
reads well (large, colorful, well-displayed) is important, but we don’t want to only showcase photography. The
most useful shots show an artist smiling and talking with a patron, with artwork visible in the booth. You may
want to station yourself at a booth that meets these criteria and take photos as patrons come and go.
Hours: A photographer’s best chance to capture peak attendance would be the Saturday of the event from
11:00am-5:00pm. Photographers are also needed on Friday from 12:00-2:30pm and 4:30-6:30pm; and Sunday
from12:00-2:00pm.
Deliverables: Hi-resolution digital files (.jpg) should be delivered to MMoCA on jump drive (for upload) or
on CD no later than 14 days following the event. When possible, photographers will email 3-5 of the best
images within 24 hours to Erika Monroe-Kane, Communications Director, at erika@mmoca.org for social
media posting. Final JPEG files should be between 1MB (min) to 5MB (max) each. A quantity of roughly 75-100
images is preferred. Images can either be edited by the photographer or by MMoCA.
File Naming Convention: Name your files as follows “Your Full Name + event date” (e.g., JohnSmith10-12015.jpg)
Rights: The photographer retains copyright in the photographs. Both the photographer and MMoCA will
have unlimited, non-exclusive rights to use, modify, crop or reproduce the photographs. Unless otherwise
directed, photographers will be credited in the following format: Photo © First Name Last Name.
Questions?
Contact:
Erika Monroe-Kane, Director of Communications, erika@mmoca.org or 608.257.0158 x 237
Annik Dupaty, Director of Events, annik@mmoca.org or 608.257.0158 x 229