Geoff wrote:Marty, they are awesome! Think I'll pack it in now! Do you have these on flickr or somewhere I can check out the details of each shot? Some lovely ideas there. Any hints or tips - for an amateur? What kit are you using and did you get a special press pass or did you use the pass Rachael arranged?
Thanks for your comments. The photo pass was arranged via Rachael. When I arrived at the venue the security specified it was first three songs only, after which I wasn't allowed to use the camera at all. I know that's standard photo pass policy, but I've been spoilt lately because I've been working directly with a lot of bands who have allowed me unrestruicted access throughout the whole shows.
Unfortunately, the restrictions imposed in the contract I had to sign to get the pass effectively prevent me from publishing any higher res versions on Flickr etc. The photos were taken with a 12 Mpix camera (Canon 5D) so as you can imagine there is a lot more detail than you can see in the slideshow images. All the full size jpegs will shortly be sent to Joe’s management team, in accordance with the contract.
You can view the images individually, if you click the gallery icon in the bottom right corner of the slideshow. Then you can step forward or backward through the images. It won’t make them any bigger, but at least you can look at each one for longer.
As far as advice is concerned, it’s difficult to give a definitive answer because every concert setting is different and camera settings are always a compromise. As a general rule, I tend to set the camera to shutter priority and choose a speed of between 1/60 and 1/125 (whatever I can get away with, the faster the better). I also set the ISO depending on how much light is available. Lower ISO is better for capturing detail but results in very underexposed images unless the lights are very bright. Higher is better in low light but (depending on the camera) also results in very grainy pictures. You pays yer money and you takes yer choice! Fortunately, the Canon 5D is very good at high ISO, and the majority of images in this slideshow were taken at 1600ISO. I wouldn’t recommend going that high on a point and shoot camera as (for technical reasons I won’t go into here) the noise will be so pronounced it will render the image virtually useless.
I know a lot of other pro photographers who swear by aperture priority settings or manual settings. There is no perfect solution. However, one thing you don’t want to use is a fully automatic setting. Then the camera chooses shutter speed and aperture for you, and will inevitably choose one that is the worst of both worlds, resulting in too slow a shutter and very blurred pics.
Also, it goes without saying, never use flash. It’s distracting for the artist, it attracts the unwelcome attention of security and, if you’re more than 10-15 feet from the stage it is totally ineffective anyway.
Hope this helps.
Marty
