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Awesome, I'm glad someone finally made this thread. I've been shooting concerts for about 5 years now. I moved this summer and have since slowed down just because I haven't gotten into the scene down here in Orlando and established myself. I've still only done one promo shoot, but I loved the photo that came out of it and so did the band along with everyone who's seen it. I plan to buy an AB800 this summer and start doing some promo stuff again. There is an awesome young photographer around here by the name of Gage Young who does some amazing band promo photos and somehow he's only 18. I want to do some assisting for him to get a good idea of how to best use my lighting options and get a grasp on the whole posing groups. As for my background, I started when I was 17 shooting some local shows until I got lucky and scored a photo pass to shoot AFI. That was the show that got me addicted. I worked by butt off after that and got a job working with the Michigan Daily at U of M and that got me into pretty much any show I ever wanted to cover, from little 100 person shows at dive bars to shooting Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, Aerosmith, you name it. I've always had my own website, Rock City Photography, it sucks and I haven't updated it in ages with new photos. I graduated a year ago so since then I've only shot for my site or a metal web-show/zine called Metal Injection I can honestly say this is the best hobby I could ever imagine. I make very little money off of any of it, but free shows more than makes up for it to me. I haven't paid to go to a concert in about 4 years and for a while there I was doing at least one a week. It's led me to meet a lot of awesome people in the music industry be it bands, managers or just employees at the venues. The more you become close with those people, the better your photos get. It helps to be friendly to all of them. Getting to know the staff will get you good tips about the venue and maybe get the lighting guy to not suck so much. Getting to know band managers can get you on the side stage or even sitting next to the drummer (I like that spot) and getting to know the bands can lead to awesome posed photos mid-song. This is getting me excited for my boy Craig to make it down here for his shows on Thursday and Friday so I can do some shooting again, even though it's just acoustic stuff. Edit: I will leave you with probably my favorite concert photo I've ever taken from a few years back. 
rockcity fucked around with this message at 22:20 on Mar 10, 2009 |
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Mar 10, 2009 22:13
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| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 04:37 |
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Yeah, Gage is awesome. I talked to him a few weeks ago and he's supposed to let me know when he needs an assistant next. I actually just moved to a few miles away from him now too.
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Mar 11, 2009 01:56
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Bottom Liner posted:drat straight it is. That is the kind of concert photo I dream about catching. Thanks guys. It's easily my favorite shot that I've ever taken. It's Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. The lighting on that tour was insanely hard to shoot and it dawned on me to try a silhouette because the stage rig was so cool looking that it would shadow out like that. It was THIS close to running full page in Spin magazine too. That would have been awesome.
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Mar 11, 2009 13:45
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Haggins posted:I still have a bit to learn as far as concert photography goes, but I think I'm probably one of the better photographers in my scene (FL metal). My problem is, I've got no loving clue what to do for promo shots. I've been asked a few times but I've turned it down work because I don't feel comfortable. To me they're two totally different types of photography. Where in the FL area are you? I just moved to Orlando this past summer and metal is mostly what I shoot too. I've only shot in Tampa, St. Pete, Orlando and Jacksonville so far.
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Mar 11, 2009 14:23
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AIIAZNSK8ER posted:Reading this thread really makes me think 2 things: I need a DSLR, so I don't have to mess with high speed film and I want to take concert photos for side profit, or free shows at least. Just slap a copyright with your name in the corner so the credit is already there. I do that with all my web photos. I don't like watermarking and it's not going to get used for anything I wouldn't want it to at only 600px.
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Mar 11, 2009 14:27
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Bottom Liner posted:dude, where have you been hiding? Excellent stuff, do you have any insight to share about the business side of things? Nicole rocks and can teach you lots, however, I yell at her constantly for doing people favors. YOU ARE TOO GOOD TO BE DOING THINGS FOR FREE! Stop that!
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Mar 11, 2009 17:06
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Cyberbob posted:I've got my first major festival this weekend. I've done gigs and the odd day concert before, but never something this big. It's from noon till midnight, so the levels of lighting via natural night will change throughout the day. Bring either a crapload of CF cards or a laptop to dump your photos into. I usually bring a laptop when I shoot an all day festival or I'd easily run out of space. Your photo pass should get your right in front of the stage provided there is a barricade. At most festivals there are, so you won't need any crazy lenses. When you're outdoors and the sun is still up, use the lowest ISO you can. However, when that sun goes down, you pretty much have to shoot higher ISO. I rarely shoot anything below ISO 800 at concerts, a lot of times 1600. If you look at Nicole's shots a lot of them have direct light on the subject in which case your blacks will be really black and low noise when the subject is exposed properly, even at higher ISOs. Plus most newer digital SLRs do a pretty good job at in camera noise reduction. Not sure how good the D60 is, but my 20D and 40D look good at 1600 if the exposure is good. She shoots with a 30D for reference.
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Mar 11, 2009 21:13
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Oh and another person you should get to know in the business. PR reps. Generally this is who you are going to be going to when you want to shoot a band. The more these people get to know you, the easier it is to get approved. My emails used to go really formal and professional emails describing who I was, who I've shot in the past and why I wanted to cover the show. Now most of my emails look like this. Hey Mike, Can you set me up for photo for the Taste of Chaos tour in Orlando? That's it. The more these people know your name, the easier everything becomes. All you really need is a basic website, some content and you can get approved for most smaller shows. Hell my website still sucks and is ugly, but between that, and having content, and knowing the publicist, it'll get me approved for bands as big as Aerosmith. Every now and then you come across some really lovely publicists though who have an elitist outlook on everything and will basically only approve daily newspapers. That was fine when I still worked for my college paper, but every now and then you do come across those people.
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Mar 12, 2009 14:46
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Fixed lenses are your friend. I use my 50 1.8 and my 20 1.8 almost exclusively. It all depends on the situation though. Lots of small clubs the 1.8 is almost a necessity. Don't think that because you have a 1.8 that you should shoot at 1.8 though. It gets to be really hard to keep a moving person in focus at that aperture. The slightest lean to or from the mic and all of the sudden the face is out of focus.
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Mar 13, 2009 18:45
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jackpot posted:Ha, that was the first time I saw them too, with FM. My friends hated them, but goddamn do they put on a good show. The guy is completely unintelligible and looks like he's from 1800's Appalachia, but he's entertaining as hell. I'll be seeing them at a real small venue and just got word that photography is allowed, so I'm hoping to get some real good stuff. Yeah, your lens size will depend greatly on where you shoot from. I do almost all my shooting from the photo barricade, so 50 is about as tight as I want to get shooting up front, excluding drummers.
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Mar 13, 2009 20:02
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Shot 3 shows this past week, two of Craig Owens and then the Taste of Chaos tour. I'll toss up some of the better shots from the shows later tonight.
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Mar 23, 2009 13:57
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HPL posted:How were the lights for TOC? I'm shooting that next week. Bring a flash if the venue will let you use it. I shot Pierce the Veil without it and it was fine, but both Bring Me the Horizon and Thursday had ZERO front light. There's tons of rear lighting, but none on their faces. And of course my flash batteries died like one song into BMTH. Son of a whore.
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Mar 23, 2009 19:41
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HPL posted:Yeah, I saw Todd Owyoung's photos from TOC and I wasn't too impressed with the lights and he's using a D3 with good lenses. I'm hoping they'll let us use flash but it's Live Nation so I'm pretty sure they won't. With flash it all depends on the venue really. The venue I was at doesn't care, but again, mine died. Looks like I just got approved for The Devil Wears Prada for Wednesday, hopefully that'll be decent. The stage at the venue it's at is like 6 feet tall though, bleh.
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Mar 23, 2009 21:29
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A quick update of those shows I mentioned. Only had time to get into Pierce the Veil from TOC though. Just got approved for The Devil Wears Prada tomorrow, so more to come. Here's a shot from the Craig Owens show in Tampa.  Mike from Pierce the Veil   PARTY MOTHER FUCKERS 
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Mar 24, 2009 12:59
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Bottom Liner posted:drat you guys and your living in places with big venues and acts! Great shots though guys, very inspiring stuff. First off, you'll get approved, don't worry about that. You could probably get approved with a magazine you printed for distribution in your house. I have heard of no one getting denied for it. Second, get ready for typically bland lighting. Outdoor shows are fun because it's a crapload easier to get a decent exposure, however, it's also a crapload easier to come away with REALLY generic photos. Take you time and look for good angles and good poses, this is easily the best tip I can give you. Third, as mentioned above, storage, storage, storage. Back when it was pricey I used to bring my laptop and dump all my stuff a few times a day. Now I have enough to where it doesn't matter. Though it's still nice to bring a laptop if you have some down time to take a look at the shots. Fourth, if you can, do interviews. Bands tend to be really nice on the warped tour as it's a fun, relaxed vibe. Find fun questions that the band probably hasn't heard before and they'll like you. If you can, interview them before they go on and then see if they'll let you shoot side stage. Good drummer photos from there. Fifth, check in with the press tent, they often have free water/drinks there and the PR reps are usually pretty cool.
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Apr 6, 2009 18:31
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HPL posted:This is where wide-angle lenses come into play. You can get some really dramatic photos with wide-angles if you can get right up close to the stage what with the skewed perspective and all that come with using lenses like that. Yep, I pretty much ride my fixed 20mm lens at outdoor shows. I throw on the 50 to get close up singer shots too.
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Apr 7, 2009 01:31
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Haggins posted:Sorry, took a break from CC for a couple weeks. Ahhh nice. I've been really slow to shoot shows since I moved, but I'm picking the pace back up again. I just show the Music as a Weapon tour the other night at Amway. Some decent lighting. I'll post a few of the better pics when I get home. I'm still so bogged down with editing I've yet to do. drat moving.
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Apr 13, 2009 14:03
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A few quick edits from Music as a Weapon here in Orlando Lacuna Coil  Disturbed  Killswitch Engage  Chimaira  And one more Chimaira because that hair is looking extra metal  Yes, I am aware it still says 2008...I'm just too lazy to fix it tonight, haha.
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Apr 14, 2009 04:24
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I set my focus to a separate button on all my cameras. So what I do is I center the frame to what I want in focus (typically the musician's face) press down the focus button, release so that it stays focused where I want it and then move the camera to the frame in which I want the subject. Works just fine for me.
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Apr 16, 2009 14:08
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evil_bunnY posted:That doesn't work when people move around. Just takes practice, you can get fast enough with it. I've shot that way ever since I started using an SLR about 8 years ago and I've shot shows using that way for 6 years now. I do this shooting everything including sports which move WAY faster than any musician ever will.
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Apr 16, 2009 18:16
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Bottom Liner posted:how do you set focus to another button anyways, never did find that option on my xtis menus. On the 20D and 40D I believe it's a custom function. It might be something similar on the xtis. I can't even deal with the shutter button focus. Every time someone changed one of the cameras at the newspaper I worked for to that setting I wanted to kill them. Having it set to the shutter button makes focusing on anything not in the center of the frame a bitch. It's ridiculously hard to shoot sports on that setting when someone is moving side to side quickly. Seriously once you try it for a while, you will never go back.
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Apr 16, 2009 20:13
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HPL posted:I think the thing is that at a concert, you're more capturing and documenting something instead of creating something from the ground up. A lot of the creativity comes from interpretation, like which lens you use, which angle you shoot and which moment you choose to freeze since there's not much else you can control. I agree with this. If you're a person who's used to promo shoots and control, concerts aren't going to be for you typically, especially not doing them regularly where you don't know the band or their music. I like to think of it more as photojournalism. You're there to try to re-create visually that show for people who weren't there, or for people who were to re-live it, so you're looking to capture the moment. It honestly takes a lot of getting used to a crapload of practice before you're really happy with your work. I don't think I was really content with my shots for about a year. It helps when you like the band you're shooting too. If you know the music you tend to get in a groove and can predict where you need to be during a certain song to get the best photos. It also helps when the band likes to ham it up for the photographers. I love this. It's great to get those solid action shots and sweet poses and moments, but some of my favorite photos come from guys I know doing particular things around me when I'm shooting. My friend Sonny used to do this all the time. It's even cooler if they're not looking right at you. Because then they do goofy poo poo like this. 
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Apr 17, 2009 18:41
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If the post processing weren't so intense, I'd really like the third one. Nice contrast between the sky, band, and trees.
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May 1, 2009 13:55
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Life Is War posted:I just started trying my camera out at concerts and I have a similar setup, I'm using a Sigma 50mm 1.4 with my XSI and no flash. These are a couple of my faves from my 2 whole attempts so far. Protest the Hero are the poo poo. I'm sad I missed their show this week. drat YOU COMPANY BEING IN TOWN!
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May 10, 2009 03:56
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I honestly recommend sticking to prime lenses for concert photography, especially in dark clubs. I shoot almost exclusively with a sigma 20mm f1.8 and my canon 50mm 1.8 lens. I have a sigma 24-60mm f2.8 that I like, but it's just not as sharp as prime lenses at low apertures. It's great outdoors though.
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May 15, 2009 13:45
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evil_bunnY posted:I really like my Sig 30mm f/1.4 What? I love my sigma 20mm. I use that thing all the time. Might be too wide for most people's normal uses though.
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May 15, 2009 15:04
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The Nikon 35mm f/1.8 is a cheaper alternative, but you seem to be on Canon, who makes a 24mm and a 35mm f/1.4 primes (expensive L glass), and cheaper 28mm f/1.8 and 35mm f/2, but I have no idea of the optical quality. Those will result in a "standard" length on a crop body or a bit shorter.
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If motion is minimal you can get away with 1/60th or even slower at times, if there is any real motion that usually jumps up to 1/160th. Even higher if there is jumping involved.
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May 18, 2009 13:39
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Doing web-sized photos for their myspace for free is fine, just make sure they credit you in the caption too. If they want to use them for their actual website I'd charge them a small fee, and give them slightly higher-res photos without your name. If they want to use it for anything big, then draft up a contract and have all of them sign it, providing they don't have management of any kind.
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May 19, 2009 15:21
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Nihiliste posted:So how do you people address colour metering at concerts? You'd think this would come up in most guides, but it doesn't. For the most part I set my WB to sunny. I find it does the best job with stage lighting. I shoot everything raw though so I can tweak what I need to in post processing to get a more accurate color tone.
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May 19, 2009 19:43
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I'll be honest. It looks like you're trying to sell clothes with those shots, not the artist. Nothing really draws the eye in to the person. 2,3 and 4 are basically shots for American Apparel. 5 looks like a candid shot of a friend at the park. The first photo is really the only photo that looks like it would be a promo shot, though I'm really not liking that crop.
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May 20, 2009 02:25
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shudder posted:Now that you say that I agree. How can you do singular artists promo shots? Try to get some more personal shots, do a few tight photos, maybe not even the whole face. Try something like a horizontal shot that cuts off somewhere in the chin region and just below the top of his head. Make the lighting dramatic if you can. I find with single people finding interesting backgrounds can really add dimension to a photos. Here's a big key to that. Remember, a background doesn't need to be vertical (it can be the ground, or what's on the ground). You'd be surprised the cool photos you can get by having someone lay on the floor or a rug and shooting down at them. It plays tricks on the mind.
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May 20, 2009 16:21
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Scream Machine posted:No doubt. But 95% of all shows have the same rules going on to the point where if there is something going on that a photog needs to stop doing (per the request of the performers) you should probably explain that instead of just telling him to put his camera away. Yeah it's your job, you're in the zone, but that's also how your security company has gotten a bad name over the years because you guys don't know how to handle people. You're not keeping watch at a frat party, talk to me like I'm sober. Pretty much every concert for larger bands is 3 songs only. I can't tell you how many times I have heard the phrase "3 songs, no flash". It's just a given. The only times I've been able to shoot more than 3 songs are if I personally know the band and they've given security permission to let me stay in the barricade.
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May 22, 2009 17:40
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Scream Machine posted:Didn't sign a waiver, just showed my ID at the box office to get my pass and ticket and I was good to go. So whatever, I guess. I've done shows there with a camera in hand the whole night without security saying anything. Maybe it was because I shoot Sony and with my prime lens it looks like I just have some weird P&S? Yeah, shooting outside of the barricade really comes down to the security at the venue. Some places it's 3 songs in the barricade and then you're done, doesn't matter if it's outside or not. I find that's the case at larger venues, specifically arenas, but even some small venues I've shot at are like that. A lot of the time they don't care about the people shooting with small p&s cameras because they know they don't really know what they're doing and that they're not for professional use. Regardless, I find it's best to get to know the security if you're at that venue even just a few times. Say hi, chat with them before the bands go on. It helps. Often it'll score you some free bottles of water too.
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May 25, 2009 00:52
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Wow, this debate has gotten ridiculous, when it's really not a real debate, everyone is arguing different things. JohnnyC, there is a difference between overcharging and better ways to spend money. Just because you can think of other, possibly more beneficial ways to use $250 doesn't mean that it's overcharging. Why should someone who spent their own time learning a skill, buying equipment and practicing their craft not be paid accordingly for it? And yes they could easily "make money" from the photo, even if it doesn't get used in anything commercial. A good promo photo can make or break the chances of a local band getting a gig. Booking agents book a lot of their acts barely even paying attention to their music, but if you can put together a good looking package for them to show them you aren't just a bunch of dudes making noise, they'll book you. More shows = more money. The really lovely thing is that the people who do charge next to nothing for their shots, or constantly do people favors devalue the art as a whole. The more people that do this and undercut the people who do it for a living and it is their day job, the less people are going to be able to do that anymore. So for every person that's undercharging, another one might have to go back to a day job due to no fault of their own. Think of it that way.
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May 27, 2009 13:56
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HPL posted:Out of curiosity, I was wondering what the bare minimum investment would be to get up and running with concert photography. I ended going with film because of the cheap equipment. Here's what I came up with: Honesty I know a lot of people who got a body and a 50mm and rode that for months before investing in any other lenses. The big reason for digital is mostly the shot potential. It's so much easier to fire away and widdle down later on. I started on film shooting shows and hated the hassle of trying to change rolls of film in the pit on limited time. The sad thing is that it sort of gets the young and learning photographers away from understanding the real concept of exposure which is really important for concerts. Seriously though, you could easily get started for the same price of all that film gear. One could certainly find a starter SLR and 50mm for that price. It won't be a 40D in quality, but it's certainly usable. The rebel line and the D40 are no slouches for the price.
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May 28, 2009 03:30
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evil_bunnY posted:The problem with low budget digital is that it's not going to look quite as good at ISO3200. Certainly true, though I never shoot at 3200 with my 40D anyway. 1600 is always the highest I'll go.
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May 28, 2009 13:05
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HPL posted:Plus 50mm on crop digital kind of sucks when you're right next to the performers. 50mm on full-frame/film is sweet though. You can learn to work with it. I use my 50mm on my 40D a lot at concerts. It's great for shooting the singers, admittedly it can be tough for guitarists though. I like to shoot with it from like their side and angle in. Either that or you can get some cool tight shots with just their fingers and faces.
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May 28, 2009 18:25
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Twenties Superstar posted:I'm seriously wondering if you couldn't think of any reason other than equipment upkeep and just threw digital storage and delivery of files in as if they were anything even approaching a comparable expense. Equipment is certainly another factor to it, storage and delivery maybe not so much though. Even if you shot 10 gigs, that amount of hard drive space costs about a dollar and a dvd is what, a quarter now? Gas money would probably factor into it more assuming that they didn't come to your place. It certainly is a lot more than just time though, it all adds up. It's really going to come down to the band and the management as to what one should charge though. I know it can sound manipulative to not have a flat rate, but you have to take into account how much that photo is going to get used and what it'll be used for? I always clarify that before selling anything. I've had shoots that took me no time and little effort that I still made $300 on. Heck I edited the shot on their bus and gave them a copy to show the label about 10 minutes after we were done.
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May 29, 2009 21:04
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Scream Machine posted:Mic Mouth is indeed a problem but sometimes you can't get the angle and you have to work with body language and their eyes. Maybe not something you put on a press kit but it's still usable. Those were shot at 1600 and 1/60 I believe. I was shooting for free drinks and my plan was to shoot the other bands and sell my pics to them but you really can't underestimate how awful the hard rock scene in the Midwest is. Everyone wants to sound like Tantric or Nickleback but also like Dope. I couldn't take it and left. Sometimes they do. I've been overnighted tickets on several occasions. Usually you still get the pass at the venue though.
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Jun 2, 2009 19:28
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| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 04:37 |
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Finally got around to updating my website. Well content-wise. It's still ugly as all hell and will get a makeover this summer. There are about 25 new galleries up spanning back to last year. Shows include Mayhem Fest, a couple bands from Warped Tour, Music as a Weapon, Taste of Chaos and a whole bunch of solo shows. Rock City Photography Edit: Looks like I forgot to change the text under the new tease photo...no that is not Sevendust, it is Chiodos. rockcity fucked around with this message at 22:09 on Jun 3, 2009 |
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Jun 3, 2009 22:07
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