Concert Photography Help?

levelsixtyseven · May 30, 2011

So I've gotten the sudden interest to do concert photography. Thing is I'm not sure I have the right equipment. I'm pretty new to the scene so need a bit of guidance. I've been doing photography for awhile and I use a Nikon D90. I need suggestions on equipment and tips and tricks for people willing to share.

Thanks in advance

catspaw · May 30, 2011

if you don't have a fast lens, you won't get very far. The D90 is great, but the low light ISO isn't as good as the pro bodies (or the newer D7000). If you have the 50 1.8, that's a start. Since you are DX, the 35mm DX lens is another great one -- but only if you can shoot up on the stage with the band. That's going to be the best shots, otherwise you're talking shooting from the back of the bar/room/concert hall which requires the 70-200 2.8 and 2.8 isn't quite fast enough without a high ISO camera.

looking into renting for certain events might be a good idea.

r3t1awr3yd · May 30, 2011

How close will you be to the stage? What kind of concert? Will you be allowed to use flash/additional lighting? What kind of lighting will they have there?

Art Scott · May 30, 2011

2 lenses 24-70 / 70-200 f2.8's....You could get by with either lens, but I would opt for the 70-200 if I had to have only 1 lens for any thing at all......if I needed to save a few bucks I can whole heartedly recommend Sigma (which I shot exclusively for over 28 yrs and never had a problem with any of my lenses).....I did concerts for years with only a Vivatar Series 1 70-210 f2.8-3.5......I learned the lens inside and out but I was shooting iso50 / 100 film and got tons of great images......to pull the most out of what your shooting, do a few shots in aperture priority mode make note of the shutter and aperture then move to manual mode and set the camera wit h the same shutter speed and aperture.......try to keep the iso as low as possible......I have found with my D300 that a lot of times when I set the camera as it was in Aperture Priority, I can lower the ISO one stop (going from iso 1600 down to 8oo) and my exposures look much better, then of course I take 1 or 2 at 400 just to see if they are way to under exposed...if so I go back to 800 and then just concentrate on getting the shots I want.......some times in a small club venue you have to bump to isp 3200 and I really hate that.....as I am trying to make live stage portraits rather than just snaps that are ok for web or really small prints........sometimes it is impossible.......

r3t1awr3yd · May 30, 2011

If you can get close enough and can use flash, you can do some fun stuff with a wider lens:

If you can't get close, I agree with Art, 70-200 is the way to go, VR/IS is amazing in lowlight:

jhefti · May 31, 2011

Depending on the venue, I'll use a 70-200/f2.8, a 135/f2, or a 50/f1.4 (for example in small dark jazz bars). Beyond the lenses, I find it very helpful to meter off the highlights. Stage lighting tends to be very high contrast, and if you meter for any kind of average you'll likely get blown out faces. Generally I stop it down a bit so that the highlights (or at least the faces, if that's the center of my subject) are safely below saturation. If need be, I can bring up the shadows, but I can't save a blown out face. I keep my highlight warning on in my LCD, and watch the histogram carefully.

I also shoot in RAW mode, as colors can get really whacky under theatre lights. It's much easier to get good WB and color correction in RAW than in JPEG during the post processing.

Whitefoot · June 20, 2011

Welcome to the crazy world concert photography. Like everyone says you really need a 2.8 lens or better. Starting out you will mostly do smaller shows when there is less light. The larger shows actually become easier to shoot because of the lighting gear that comes with the tour. You can see from my site below, 95% of what I shoot is in Music Photography. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions!

Matthew

www.MatthewLambPhotography.com

Sorin · June 20, 2011

Also, a word about white balance. Stage lighting can make a good shot really ugly or absolutely amazing. If the light guy is using a lot of red, switch into K mode and dial it to around 3200 to balance it out a bit. I just hate the infared look that solid red gives, it is a pet peve of mine.

I mostly use my 50 f/1.8 for smaller venues. If the stage is higher than midbody or if you won't be able to get right up close, you are going to need one of the zooms.

I am using a D80 (essentially the same as the D90 w/o video). I find that if I have the ISO over 800 it gets really noisy looking. I try to keep it to 500-800. If the lighting is really preventing good shots (in a smaller place) don't be shy about asking the person doing the lights to help out. The worst they can say is no......

Concert Photography Help?

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