# Band/Live Concert Photography



## Photos by Barbi (Jun 25, 2009)

Is there anyone around here with plenty of experience who has shot live concerts?

I'm looking for tips, tricks as I'll be shooting an outdoor show in a few weeks.

The show will start around 4 and end prob around midnight or so. 

I've requested permission to be the official photographer for the park holding this concert and want to capture the best shots possible of both the concert goers and the bands during performance.

I'm going for the whole weekend, the shots will be used on the website for the park.

Looking to chat with anyone who has experience in this area.


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## bigtwinky (Jun 25, 2009)

How will the lithging be?
Will you be allowed flash?
What type of equipment do you have?  Shooting in low light often requires fast glass (f/2.8 and under) and a camera able to go to higher ISO.


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## Photos by Barbi (Jun 25, 2009)

bigtwinky said:


> How will the lithging be?
> Will you be allowed flash?
> What type of equipment do you have? Shooting in low light often requires fast glass (f/2.8 and under) and a camera able to go to higher ISO.


 
Yes, at this time I do believe that flash will be fine.

The lighting will be good obviously until the sun goes down at which time I have a the Nikon Speedlight SB600 and will be shooting with my Nikon D90 as well as a tripod if required.

Lenses Available are;

*Nikon* AF-S 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G IF ED VR Telephoto Zoom Lens 

*Nikon* AF 50mm f/1.8 D Lens

Nikon AF-S 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED EX VR Zoom Lens


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## mcoppadge (Jun 25, 2009)

Just my 2 cents...

I've shot a few concerts for my university. I've used the equipment I've got listed below and was able to get several decent shots. Depending on the lighting they have at the concert, you may or may not need to use your speedlight. I never have, since the lighting at concerts usually adds to the quality of the photo.

Will you be able to get close to the stage? As far as your 70-200, unless there is a lot of light you probably will have difficulty getting some good shots after dark. I would say your best bet is probably with the 50mm, especially after the sun goes down. I'm sure you can pull off some good shots with the 18-105 too.

Here are some shots I've taken with the equipment I have. Like I said, decent shots but not spectacular. These were shot in an auditorium with no light except the concert lights. I shot mostly with my 18-55 3.5.

I'm really looking forward to seeing how my new 50mm 1.8 will work for next years concerts.


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## Photos by Barbi (Jun 25, 2009)

mcoppadge said:


> Just my 2 cents...
> 
> I've shot a few concerts for my university. I've used the equipment I've got listed below and was able to get several decent shots. Depending on the lighting they have at the concert, you may or may not need to use your speedlight. I never have, since the lighting at concerts usually adds to the quality of the photo.
> 
> ...


 
I'm impressed with the photos by far. If you click on my link to my facebook fanpage you will see that I have shot other live performances and had fairly good results. 

As I'm used to my ISO defaulting to that of whatever 35mm film I've put in my camera, I am still learning and playing with having control of this on my DSLR now.

I've shot w/ and w/o the Speedlight, with the 15-105 most of the time and then quite a few with the 70-300...I was rather impressed with this lens when using it with the speedlight to be honest.

The 50mm I bought specifically for the lowlighting situations...but haven't really had a chance to put it to great use. 

Thank you for your suggestions, I will surely take them into consideration!


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## mcoppadge (Jun 25, 2009)

Nice shots! Guess I'll have to play around with my speedlight a little more. Mine were always too blown out but you got great results.


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## Photos by Barbi (Jun 25, 2009)

mcoppadge said:


> Nice shots! Guess I'll have to play around with my speedlight a little more. Mine were always too blown out but you got great results.


 
Thanks!

Funny thing is, this is the first time I've used a flash like this, I haven't read the manuel and really...am just winging it! LOL

I know 2 things when using this sucker - bounce the flash and play with it to find the settings that get the results I'm looking for.


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## mcoppadge (Jun 25, 2009)

Are you shooting manual or TTL?


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## Photos by Barbi (Jun 25, 2009)

mcoppadge said:


> Are you shooting manual or TTL?


 
I played with both but still haven't taken the time to learn the difference. And which was used specifically for any of these photos, I have no clue. I literally winged it! LOL


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## mcoppadge (Jun 25, 2009)

Photos by Barbi said:


> mcoppadge said:
> 
> 
> > Are you shooting manual or TTL?
> ...


 
Haha! Well great shots either way.


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## kajiki (Oct 5, 2009)

I used to shoot for Kerrang! and agencies, for a show like this you MUST have Access All Areas, which allows you to shoot from the mixing desk, pit (if there is one), and from backstage, which also gives those 'sea of smiling faces' pix you see from festivals. I would assume that the lighting will be reasonable, what kind of attendance is expected? - and therefore flash could be used but best not to rely on it - works nicely as fill-in on the occasions that demand it.


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## RyanLilly (Oct 5, 2009)

I usually shoot at 1600, and use 2.8 lenses. Really a lot depends on the stage lighting and the lighting designer( or lack there of).

In a park festival, if its fairly small scale, there is not room on the stage for a lot of lighting. Usually when I light these types of events I don't change the front light too much throughout the show, because there are not many lights to change, so illumination takes precedence. The good news is, Usually you exposures will be fairly consistent. In this type of setup, you should probably do ok with your showish glass. 

On a bigger stage there may more light, but the flip side is that there will be more dramatic changes during the show, which is good but more difficult to shoot, and you may struggle a little more with show glass.

I would avoid flash if you can, but if you do use flash make sure you use rear sync, or second curtain.

A mono-pod might be nice if you have one.


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