First go at gig photography...

[PVO_Dave]

A lot harder than it looks!

Went to an open mic night last night to watch a friend play, and these were the ones I kept out of 49 that I took!!

1

2

3

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5

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7

8

9

 

[PVO_Dave]

10

11

12

13

Any tips from anyone who's done this before?

If you can't tell from the EXIF, they were all taken with a nifty fifty, and no flash.

I did try three shots at the end with my 24-105, and 430 EX II, but they were awful! lol

I want to improve at this, so obviously C&C welcome

Dave.

 

[Kieron Nevison]

If you are taking the photos in a small venue and in black and white the don't be worried about using flash. If you do use flash bounce it or use it off camera. I try to make it look like it could be a spot light that is part of the venue. This way you can get the extra needed light in and it not look out of place. You could also drag the shutter to get a bit of the available light in too.

Here is an example taken in a pub with off camera flash.

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=93224

 

[PVO_Dave]

If you are taking the photos in a small venue and in black and white the don't be worried about using flash. If you do use flash bounce it or use it off camera. I try to make it look like it could be a spot light that is part of the venue. This way you can get the extra needed light in and it not look out of place. You could also drag the shutter to get a bit of the available light in too.

Here is an example taken in a pub with off camera flash.

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=93224

Thanks Kieron, I need to practice with my flash really, and learn about 'dragging the shutter'

I like the atmosphere of the non flash photos, but it just seems to be luck of the drawer, how many of them turn out half decent!

Dave.

P.S Love the shots you posted!

 

[oli]

Having just returned from my first gig shots I would say I like the shots.

only criticism is the majority have the same angle. I think moving around and more variety as some of them posted look very similar.

That said my fave is no1. I like the mono and the angle and composition. also did you try different aperture? i think all have been wide open?

thanks for sharing!

 

[lukewoodford]

They are ok but they are mostly the same shot. Im not sure what the venue was like but maybe try some creative angles like get on the floor and shoot from underneath or climb on top of something (less likely) and shoot from above.

 

[PVO_Dave]

Having just returned from my first gig shots I would say I like the shots.

only criticism is the majority have the same angle. I think moving around and more variety as some of them posted look very similar.

That said my fave is no1. I like the mono and the angle and composition. also did you try different aperture? i think all have been wide open?

thanks for sharing!

They are ok but they are mostly the same shot. Im not sure what the venue was like but maybe try some creative angles like get on the floor and shoot from underneath or climb on top of something (less likely) and shoot from above.

Thanks for the feedback, they are all a little samey, the venue is a bit of a hole tbh , not too big either, and suprisingly busy for an open mic night (well I was suprised anyway! )

I'll try some more angles next time etc... and maybe some different heights etc...

All were taken at 1.8, too blurry otherwise with the lack of light available! I'll experiment more next time!

Thanks for taking the time to comment

Dave.

 

[Les McLean]

Good set, difficult circumstances, but they work well enough.

One or two, the singer is a bit soft, at first I thought it was camera shake (slowish shutter speeds), but I think it's more to do with the focus locking onto the mike/mike stand than the singers face, and with the narrow DOF it's knocked him slightly OOF.

 

[theMusicMan]

They are good, but as Luke pointed out, they are all very similar in composition. Perhaps try walking around to get a few different vantage points and different angles, this can be put to good effect and will help generate a wide and varied gig set.

I might also add here that you don't really need flash to get decent gig shots. Yes of course, using flash will allow you to get different shots, but there's something wonderful about capturing the effects of the coloured lighting on a performer actually in a venue. Having a camera that can perform well using high ISO is a godsend too!

I always enjoy doing gig shots, here's a session from one I did last year.