Photocall / press wall

Photocall and press wall: the backdrop that travels in every photo

A press wall, also called a photocall or step and repeat, is the wall with a repeating logo pattern that guests, speakers and winners pose in front of. The reason for putting one up is simple: every photo taken that evening carries your name with it, on social media, in the press, in the internal magazine. Of all event materials, this is the element with the longest reach afterwards.

We design, print and supply photocalls and press walls for companies, municipalities, sports clubs, exhibitors and event agencies, from a one-off set-up to a wall that lasts several years and several editions.

The versions

Fabric frame with tensioned graphic

An aluminium frame in which a fabric with a sewn-in silicone edge is pulled taut. Gives the crispest, seamless image and looks the most refined. The fabric is separately replaceable, so with a new edition or a new sponsor the frame stays. This is the version we recommend as soon as you use it more than once.

Pop-up wall

A folding frame with magnetic panels, set up in a few minutes by one person. Compact to transport in a case. Slightly less seamless than a fabric frame, but practically unbeatable on the road.

Banner on a frame or on truss

A fabric tensioned between poles or on a truss. Economical and suitable for outdoors, but more prone to creases and wind.

Inflatable wall

Quick to set up, light and strong outdoors. Requires continuous or periodic air supply.

Designing for the camera

This is where it goes wrong in practice, and it is rarely a printing issue.

• Repeat the logo across the whole wall, in a regular pattern. Put one large logo in the middle and it will disappear behind the person in nine out of ten photos.
• Allow for people's height. The pattern must continue well above and beside the head.
• Avoid a reflective fabric. A glossy surface catches the flash and produces a white patch exactly where your logo sits. Choose a matt fabric.
• Limit the number of brands. Four sponsors in a calm pattern work; twelve logos produce an unreadable patchwork.
• Think about the crop. Photographers usually frame from hip to above the head; anything lower rarely makes it in.

We draw out the pattern and show a simulation with a silhouette on it, so that you can see before production what will end up in shot.

Practical points on the day

Do not put the wall flat against a wall but leave some space in front, so the photographer can step back. Provide enough light from the front; backlight turns every portrait into a silhouette. And keep the zone in front free of cables, poseur tables and drinks, because a photocall nobody can reach does not get used.

Outdoors the same rule applies as for marquees: add ballast. A large wall catches wind like a sail.

Making it reusable

The biggest saving lies not in the purchase but in the reuse. Choose a frame that stays and a fabric that changes. When a sponsor changes or a new year starts, you replace only the fabric. We keep the frame dimensions and the fabric type on file, so that a repeat order still fits years later.

What determines the price?

Photocalls and press walls have no fixed price. The cost follows from the version, whether that is a fabric frame, pop-up, banner or inflatable, from the dimensions, the fabric material and the finish, from whether the frame and fabric are separately replaceable, from the ballast for outdoor use, from whether we produce the design, and from whether you also want set-up and dismantling.

Let us know the width you want, the location and the number of times you expect to use the wall, and you will receive a quotation per version.

Requesting a proposal

Send us the logos that need to go on the wall and the dimensions of the zone. We will produce a pattern proposal with a simulation before anything goes into production.