Industrial photography in Barcelona: a guide for marketing and communications managers

Industrial photography documents what goes on inside a factory. So far, so good.

Photographs are taken of production processes, machinery, facilities and staff. It is not product photography. It is not corporate office photography. Its purpose is to demonstrate that your company manufactures what it claims to manufacture, with the quality and volume it promises.

It is important to bear in mind that Catalonia’s industrial heartland is not in the centre of Barcelona. It is in Sabadell, Terrassa, Rubí, Mataró, Granollers, Badalona, Lleida, Girona or the Camp de Tarragona. We work wherever your plant is located. The photographic material resulting from the session serves many purposes at once.

• Annual report and board presentations.
• Corporate website.
• LinkedIn profiles for the management team.
• Technical catalogues and trade fair dossiers.
• Press releases and internal communications.

A single photo shoot feeds all these channels, and can do so for months. And sometimes, for years. It is a bank of visual assets that works for you, without you having to do anything else.

Every factory is different. But there are four types of content that feature in almost every industrial report, and together they tell the full story of a manufacturing company. This is what we cover.

Production processes and machinery in operation

The heart of the feature. Not a machine standing still and posing. It’s about showing the process in action, the part in motion, the robot going about its routine, and the production line running at its actual pace.

This requires specific industrial photography techniques. An industrial hall combines very different light sources, none of which are designed for a camera. You have to work with calculated exposure times and additional lighting. The result, when done well, conveys something that no rendering can: that this is actually happening, every day.

Team portraits on the shop floor

The operator wearing their PPE. The quality manager checking a batch. The engineer standing next to the machine they designed…

These images convey the message that behind the process there are real people with expertise and judgement. They are also the ones that work best on LinkedIn and in employer branding strategies.

Corporate premises, industrial units and outdoor spaces

Our photographers take a panoramic shot of the interior, a photograph of the view from the complex, and a shot of the façade in natural light. Their aim is to convey a sense of scale.

For Catalan companies competing with international groups, showcasing real, local infrastructure is not merely an aesthetic detail. It is a selling point.

Technical product shots and close-ups (industrial packshots)

Parts, components, finished products. Not your typical advertising packshot. Rather, technical photography that maintains visual consistency with the rest of the shoot. This material is used in product sheets, catalogues and presentations where detail is the best selling point.

Would you like to see how all this translates into real projects? Take a look at our industrial photography portfolio or tell us what kind of coverage suits your facility.

Photographing an office and photographing a factory are two completely different matters. Industrial environments present technical, logistical and legal challenges that a photographer with no experience in the sector has never had to deal with before. These are the most common issues, and this is how we tackle them.

Health and safety and production continuity

The first thing to do on arrival: put on the PPE specified by your health and safety department. Boots, helmet, goggles, high-visibility vest, ear protection. No exceptions.

And secondly, which is what matters most to production, is that we don’t stop the line. Our photographers in Barcelona adapt to your shifts, make use of maintenance windows and respect confidential areas. We plan the session very carefully so that it doesn’t affect your production process for even a minute.

Lighting in industrial warehouses

This is the most demanding technical challenge in this type of project. Skylights, old fluorescent lights, new LEDs, and halogen lights in technical areas. They all coexist in the same space, and none of them work in the camera’s favour by default.

We work with lighting tailored to each space. An industrial warehouse brings together very different light sources in the same environment, and managing this effectively is what allows us to deliver a report with visual consistency from start to finish.

Image rights, consents and NDAs

We obtain informed consent in accordance with the GDPR for every identifiable individual. And if your sector requires it – such as the pharmaceutical, defence, automotive or confidential R&D sectors – we will sign the NDA sent to us by your legal team before entering the premises.

Before the shoot, we can carry out a site visit to the plant. This helps us identify the most striking visual angles and finalise a shot list with you. With that document in place, there’s no need for improvisation on the day of the shoot, and the photographic material we deliver to you is tailored to specific purposes (rather than a generic ‘industrial photos’ approach).

For your part, there are three factors that determine the outcome. The first is to define the final purpose of the images. Preparing material for an annual report is not the same as doing so for a LinkedIn campaign or an international technical catalogue. The second is to notify production and health and safety in advance of the shoot date. The third is to check the order, cleanliness and uniforms in the areas we will be covering. Anything the camera cannot resolve in post-production must be resolved before we arrive.

If you’d like to plan ahead, we can arrange a site visit to your facility before finalising anything. We’ll identify the most striking visual angles, help you define the shot list and prepare a quote. Drop us a line to arrange it.

It depends on the scope of the project: the duration of the session, the number of areas or processes to be photographed, the technical complexity of the environment, and the intended use of the images.

Spending half a day on a specific production line is not the same as covering an entire factory floor with process shots, portraits and overviews. Nor is it the same to work at a single site or to travel to several locations across Catalonia. And the intended use of the images also makes a difference: a photo report designed for your website is not the same as a comprehensive image bank with rights for international campaigns.

We do not work with fixed rates because every industrial project is different. Tell us about your project and we will prepare a bespoke quote with no obligation. We will get back to you within 24 hours.

How long does an industrial photography session last?
It depends on the scope. A session focusing on specific machinery or products can be completed in a few hours. Full coverage of a plant or a manufacturing process usually requires a full day, and projects with multiple sites or a broader documentary approach are spread over two or three days across several weeks. We finalise this during the preliminary planning to fit in with your schedule without disrupting your operations.

Can machinery be photographed without stopping production?
Yes, and that is what we recommend. Production in progress brings a sense of movement and realism that no recreation can match. Before the session, we coordinate with your team regarding access, required PPE, time slots and any specific restrictions, and we work in accordance with safety protocols without interfering with your operations. The aim is for you to barely notice we’re there, but for the images to be there.

What permissions do I need to photograph my team?
Where identifiable individuals appear, their informed written consent is required, as stipulated by the GDPR. It is advisable to discuss this in advance with your HR or legal department, and we will coordinate with them before the session to ensure everything is in order on the day of the shoot. If your company operates under confidentiality agreements, we can also sign any NDA you provide.

How long does it take to deliver the photographs?
The turnaround time depends on the volume of material and the level of editing required by the project, and we’ll agree this with you before the shoot so it’s included in the quote. If you have a specific deadline—a presentation, a trade fair, or a catalogue deadline—let us know from the outset and we’ll plan the shoot and delivery around that milestone.

Your manufacturing plant is likely to be your company’s most valuable physical asset. And yet, it may also be the least well-documented to date.

A well-planned report provides content for your website, social media, catalogue, annual report and internal communications for the coming months—and even years. And it ensures that your company’s public image truly reflects what you are already achieving behind closed doors.

Barcelona Photographer is a team of photographers based in Barcelona with over 25 years’ experience, led by the internationally renowned photographer Katherin Wermke. We speak Spanish, Catalan, English and German, and we work anywhere in the world.