How do you take Gig photos?

I may bring it along to the meet if ive not fixed it, sure we can find a shot to incorporate it into
 
CraigAHodge said:
21 :)

Get I.D'd for everything... haha

Anyhow back on the matter at hand.

Is it worth me getting an Omni Bounce diffuser, because I'm not really sure the Jessops one is much good :/

Doesn't help that this particular local venue is all matt black, so no chance of bouncing the flash!
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Only just turned 23 myself.

In all honesty i used to just use the bounce card and get great results but the answer to your question is yes.
 
duttytd said:
Its a little wide. Unless you can get right up to the stage.

Its not really a lens i would think about using unless i know i could get to the front for a nice wide shot of the whole stage without any of the crowd in.
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Well not even stage too much more of party go-ers and things it'd be nice to have a lens that would facilitate both stage and most close up 'group' shots.

Or are there better alternatives you would suggest? It's just I don't think I'd do it all that often, so I would like a lens that's allows me to use it outside of these types of circumstances as well. :thinking:
 
chuck said:
Well not even stage too much more of party go-ers and things it'd be nice to have a lens that would facilitate both stage and most close up 'group' shots.

Or are there better alternatives you would suggest? It's just I don't think I'd do it all that often, so I would like a lens that's allows me to use it outside of these types of circumstances as well. :thinking:
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As i mentioned to Craig earlier id suggest a sharp copy of the sigma 24-70 2.8. Its perfect for gig stuff and perfect for portraits, street, cars ect... Plus rather cheap
 
what iso were you using?

what I dont get is if you shot these with a 50mm at f2, youre focused on someone close to you judging by the pictures, yet theres not a lot of bokeh (i.e. deep DoF)? or are these crops? if theyve had to be heavily cropped because you cant get close then perhaps part of your problem is that?

I shot some good (for me and my first try at a concert) sharp shots using a long zoom (70-300 EF) at about F5.6 and no flash. http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=366658, I know theyre perhaps different from what youre looking for, but if I can get those in the situation I was in with no flash then you must be able to get what you want from the 50mm, unless theres something we're missing, e.g. your technique? was camera moving? (perhaps try a lens with good IS?) maybe focus on perfecting getting the images you want crystal sharp without the movement first then add in the movement so at least you know what youre building on? :shrug:
 
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arwesa said:
what iso were you using?

what I dont get is if you shot these with a 50mm at f2, youre focused on someone close to you judging by the pictures, yet theres not a lot of bokeh (i.e. deep DoF)? or are these crops?

I shot some good (for me and my first try at a concert) sharp shots using a long zoom at about F5.6 and no flash. http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=366658, I know theyre perhaps different from what youre looking for, but if I can get those in the situation I was in with no flash then you must be able to get what you want from the 50mm, unless theres something we're missing, e.g. your technique? was camera moving? (perhaps try a lens with good IS?) maybe focus on perfecting getting the images you want crystal sharp without the movement first then add in the movement so at least you know what youre building on? :shrug:
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Some cracking shots there.
 
duttytd said:
Don't worry I post up loads and get pish all back lol. I keep reminding myself I take photos for myself not for other Haha
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I was hoping they'd be pulled to pieces technically so I could learn something new :shrug: ... as it was the reaction of the kids on facebook was enough. officially being the dad who takes cool pictures is quite rewarding :LOL:
 
arwesa said:
what iso were you using?

what I dont get is if you shot these with a 50mm at f2, youre focused on someone close to you judging by the pictures, yet theres not a lot of bokeh (i.e. deep DoF)? or are these crops? if theyve had to be heavily cropped because you cant get close then perhaps part of your problem is that?

I shot some good (for me and my first try at a concert) sharp shots using a long zoom (70-300 EF) at about F5.6 and no flash. http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=366658, I know theyre perhaps different from what youre looking for, but if I can get those in the situation I was in with no flash then you must be able to get what you want from the 50mm, unless theres something we're missing, e.g. your technique? was camera moving? (perhaps try a lens with good IS?) maybe focus on perfecting getting the images you want crystal sharp without the movement first then add in the movement so at least you know what youre building on? :shrug:
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I just found the files on my computer and they were actually taken with the kit lens at f5.6. 18mm My mistake! I will post a couple more tomorrow at some point that were taken with the 50mm.

The people on stage are literally 1 metre away, and the stage lights are pretty crap tbh, so there is no chance of getting a decent shot without a flash.

I think the problem I may be having is that the stage lights are constantly changing and also the distance of which the proformers are from me :/


Cheers
 
17-50 f2.8 is where you want to be on a crop sensor for smaller club music photography. Second hand would be in the region of £200.

24-105 is f3 and too slow for music photography. Not sure what you are looking to do longer term, but music photography and flash is a major no-no.

with 50 1.8 you should get a reasonable shutter speed at 1600-3200 iso. which would give you a better shot. Flash with trails is a one trick pony really, it has a feel and a use, but this is more for club photography than music photography. Also note any major band and quite a lot of small unsigned bands hate flash at shows!

There is a guide here http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=165114

Well worth a read.

My stuff is on my website if you want to have a look
 
ding76uk said:
17-50 f2.8 is where you want to be on a crop sensor for smaller club music photography. Second hand would be in the region of £200.

24-105 is f3 and too slow for music photography. Not sure what you are looking to do longer term, but music photography and flash is a major no-no.

with 50 1.8 you should get a reasonable shutter speed at 1600-3200 iso. which would give you a better shot. Flash with trails is a one trick pony really, it has a feel and a use, but this is more for club photography than music photography. Also note any major band and quite a lot of small unsigned bands hate flash at shows!

There is a guide here http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=165114

Well worth a read.

My stuff is on my website if you want to have a look
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Cheers for the advice Carl :)

The sort of gigs I go to are very energetic! The typr of music I am photographing is Post-Hardcore, Deathcore etc so the gigs are not very formal :)

So using a flash is fine :) My genereal idea was to use the flash to freeze the motion, to capture the enegy on stage.

Cheers
 
Hello people!

Just a quick update. Went to another show last night at the same venue and using my kit lens with the rear curtain sync on my flash i got MUCH better results!

Here are a couple of examples :)

6725618245_39ea981994_b.jpg


6725625181_3a5807fe69_b.jpg
 
Craig....

I photgraph a local band... I mainly use my 50mm f/1.8....
I tried using the 18-55 kit lens and it wasnt up to scratch...

You can follow :: www.facebook.com/venomandapathy to see the photos.

I much prefer the 50mm and the venues are normally big enough to step back and get a band photo as opposed to portraits...
 
Rosco88 said:
Craig....

I photgraph a local band... I mainly use my 50mm f/1.8....
I tried using the 18-55 kit lens and it wasnt up to scratch...

You can follow :: www.facebook.com/venomandapathy to see the photos.

I much prefer the 50mm and the venues are normally big enough to step back and get a band photo as opposed to portraits...
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Just had a look on the facebook page and It's not clear which photos you have taken. Also I found that alot of them are out of focus and not very clear.

I got some really good results using the Kit lens and whith the venue being really small and me being at the front 50mm is far too close and would only allow me to get face shots.
 
I would suggest the best lens for the job (small venue, up close) would be the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8. Nice and fast and nice and wide on a crop sensor.

Roughly £200 second hand. Flog the kit lens, you don't need that.
 
BarryG said:
I would suggest the best lens for the job (small venue, up close) would be the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8. Nice and fast and nice and wide on a crop sensor.

Roughly £200 second hand. Flog the kit lens, you don't need that.
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Yeah that lens has cropped up a few times in this thread!

I will look into it and try my best to get hold of one. Living on a budget atm though :(

Cheers
 
Flog the kits lens, it's the same range anyway. You could also flog the 50mm if you were short, that would cover most, if not all the cost of the 17-50.
 
If it were me, I would prefer a 2.8 zoom than a 50 1.8 and kit lens. Esp. using a lot of flash. You can always pick up the 50 again later on. Zoom is more more beneficial for music photography than a fixed, apart from the obvious 1.8 vs 2.8. I sold my kit and 50mm to do it and it was a great move for not much cash.
 
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CraigAHodge said:
Just had a look on the facebook page and It's not clear which photos you have taken. Also I found that alot of them are out of focus and not very clear.

I got some really good results using the Kit lens and whith the venue being really small and me being at the front 50mm is far too close and would only allow me to get face shots.
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Ahh.... ok.

There is a second photographer aswell....

Try www.facebook.com/skellingtonphoto

That's my personal page
 
I do a bit of gig stuff and for me there are some basic rules that I work by.

Flash is a big NO NO. There is nothing more off putting for performers than someone poking a camera in their face and then flashing.

Flash also gives a bigger depth of field, which your photos suffer from, too much in focus, having a drummer lost in a blur behind a singer or guitarist makes for a far more pleasing shot and the viewers eye is drawn to the subject

316162_10150361903082531_691837530_8852385_1170300660_n.jpg


Flash also has a tendency to freeze the action around the guitarists hands or the drummers hands, which give an awful sense of the shot being staged, where as a slower shutter speed will usually be enough to let the hands blur while keeping the face in focus giving a real sense of movement and action.

405360_10150453641647531_691837530_9216683_1333531470_n.jpg


I recently witnessed a young guy at a local venue treat a bands set like his own personal photo shoot completely ignoring the crowd behind him and using wide angle to get 'artistic' shots down the neck of the guitar.

I thought any minute now either the band or the crowd are going to kick 7 bells out of him and to be honest I was almost ready to punch him myself for giving photographers a bad name.

So basically follow some simple guidelines and you'll be fine.

NO Flash... remember many performers, especially in local bands are ******** themselves with nerves about performing, the last thing they need is added pressure from someone sticking a camera in their face.

Do not stand in front of the band contemplating shots or fiddling with your camera settings ready for the next shot, remember, they are playing to people who are paying, the crowd behind you, in most cases have paid to see the band NOT YOU. So be discreet. Take your shot and step to the side. review it and adjust the camera accordingly and then line up the next shot.

Personally I only use fast prime lenses, 35mm F2 or 50mm F1.8

50mm F1.8 in Canon or Nikon is such a brilliant value lens but on a 3/4 plate body it equates to almost 80mm in real terms and this can be a problem in small venues, which is why I added the 35mm F2 to the kit bag.

These fast lenses allow you to be creative, I started out years ago shooting on 400ASA film, 30th of a second, F1.8 so I was always looking for pools of light, anything that would make for an interesting highlight on someones face, hair of instrument.

ISO cranked up to 1600 but thats because I like a grainy, shot on film look. But it allows you to get a reasonable amount of light in which to work, if its a really well lit venue then step down to 800 if you like the shot a little 'smoother'

Autofocus I have fixed to the centre point so there is no confusion over what I am focusing on, doesnt always work as people are moving all the time.

The lenses are also small and very light, which means your camera is easy to work with, especially if you are seeing three bands in a night and shooting them all, you get less camera shake especially towards the end of the night as you havent had to hold a weight in it for the last 2 hours, it also makes your camera look small in yours hands, remember most DSLR's are a good few hundred quid add to that lenses and all of a sudden you could find someone wants to take it off you lets face it people get stabbed for mobile phones worth less, so always travel light, especially to venues you dont know.

Also carrying a big rig of gear makes you look professional and that can cause issues, some venues have an open door policy and dont mind what you do, some are more choosy about the kinds of photography they allow, camera phone and point and press is fine, but any hint of professionalism can be an issue. So try and keep everything on the down low until you've sussed out the lie of the land. I often give venue owners and promoter free prints as a sweetner.

I was at a gig the other day and a bloke rolled in with a full on camera bag and tripod... clearly never been to a gig before, let alone shot one.

When I finally go red band its 35mm F1.4mm for me but its £1000 so need to sell some prints before that particular upgrade.

Oh and if there is another photographer there, then be courteous if there is plenty of room to move around then dont hog one spot all night, try and keep out of their way and hopefully they will return the courtesy and you may get a chance in a spot they were in.
 
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NeilMc said:
I do a bit of gig stuff and for me there are some basic rules that I work by.

Flash is a big NO NO. There is nothing more off putting for performers than someone poking a camera in their face and then flashing.

Flash also gives a bigger depth of field, which your photos suffer from, too much in focus, having a drummer lost in a blur behind a singer or guitarist makes for a far more pleasing shot and the viewers eye is drawn to the subject

316162_10150361903082531_691837530_8852385_1170300660_n.jpg


Flash also has a tendency to freeze the action around the guitarists hands or the drummers hands, which give an awful sense of the shot being staged, where as a slower shutter speed will usually be enough to let the hands blur while keeping the face in focus giving a real sense of movement and action.

405360_10150453641647531_691837530_9216683_1333531470_n.jpg


I recently witnessed a young guy at a local venue treat a bands set like his own personal photo shoot completely ignoring the crowd behind him and using wide angle to get 'artistic' shots down the neck of the guitar.

I thought any minute now either the band or the crowd are going to kick 7 bells out of him and to be honest I was almost ready to punch him myself for giving photographers a bad name.

So basically follow some simple guidelines and you'll be fine.

NO Flash... remember many performers, especially in local bands are ******** themselves with nerves about performing, the last thing they need is added pressure from someone sticking a camera in their face.

Do not stand in front of the band contemplating shots or fiddling with your camera settings ready for the next shot, remember, they are playing to people who are paying, the crowd behind you, in most cases have paid to see the band NOT YOU. So be discreet. Take your shot and step to the side. review it and adjust the camera accordingly and then line up the next shot.

Personally I only use fast prime lenses, 35mm F2 or 50mm F1.8

50mm F1.8 in Canon or Nikon is such a brilliant value lens but on a 3/4 plate body it equates to almost 80mm in real terms and this can be a problem in small venues, which is why I added the 35mm F2 to the kit bag.

These fast lenses allow you to be creative, I started out years ago shooting on 400ASA film, 30th of a second, F1.8 so I was always looking for pools of light, anything that would make for an interesting highlight on someones face, hair of instrument.

ISO cranked up to 1600 but thats because I like a grainy, shot on film look. But it allows you to get a reasonable amount of light in which to work, if its a really well lit venue then step down to 800 if you like the shot a little 'smoother'

Autofocus I have fixed to the centre point so there is no confusion over what I am focusing on, doesnt always work as people are moving all the time.

The lenses are also small and very light, which means your camera is easy to work with, especially if you are seeing three bands in a night and shooting them all, you get less camera shake especially towards the end of the night as you havent had to hold a weight in it for the last 2 hours, it also makes your camera look small in yours hands, remember most DSLR's are a good few hundred quid add to that lenses and all of a sudden you could find someone wants to take it off you lets face it people get stabbed for mobile phones worth less, so always travel light, especially to venues you dont know.

Also carrying a big rig of gear makes you look professional and that can cause issues, some venues have an open door policy and dont mind what you do, some are more choosy about the kinds of photography they allow, camera phone and point and press is fine, but any hint of professionalism can be an issue. So try and keep everything on the down low until you've sussed out the lie of the land. I often give venue owners and promoter free prints as a sweetner.

I was at a gig the other day and a bloke rolled in with a full on camera bag and tripod... clearly never been to a gig before, let alone shot one.

When I finally go red band its 35mm F1.4mm for me but its £1000 so need to sell some prints before that particular upgrade.

Oh and if there is another photographer there, then be courteous if there is plenty of room to move around then dont hog one spot all night, try and keep out of their way and hopefully they will return the courtesy and you may get a chance in a spot they were in.
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Thank you very much for this detail response :)

I will deffinatly be taking on alot of your advice :)

I still feel people are thinking of a different scene to what I am involved with though. I play in a band of the same genre I want to photograph and we love to have photographs taken and we rarely notice they are being taken due to the amount of movement on our part and the stage lights flashing!

Although this advice will be very useful to me when I attend local acoustic shows and more mellow nights :)

Thank you all very much!
 
I do take your point and I see all sorts of band from death metal through to indie and accoustic.

These shots were taken in a very poorly lit bar using a 50mm F1.8 , but with a flash none of the movement of this punk/pop band would have been captured, and I think the energy in their performance comes across in the images.

383295_10150339240127531_691837530_8757654_223105182_n.jpg


308975_10150339235027531_691837530_8757640_1828715379_n.jpg
 
NeilMc said:
I do take your point and I see all sorts of band from death metal through to indie and accoustic.

These shots were taken in a very poorly lit bar using a 50mm F1.8 , but with a flash none of the movement of this punk/pop band would have been captured, and I think the energy in their performance comes across in the images.

383295_10150339240127531_691837530_8757654_223105182_n.jpg


308975_10150339235027531_691837530_8757640_1828715379_n.jpg
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I personally don't like images like this. To me they just looked like blurry messes (No offence intended! Just my honest opinion). I much prefer showing some blur but freezing part of the action like in this photo :)

403898_351283298215431_345680782109016_1465546_1958175446_n.jpg
 
I can throw in some advice in this area. First off, take your flash off and leave it off. As soon as you start shooting bands that anyone's ever heard of, you'll start having to work by the standard rules: You get the first three songs and absolutely no flash. These are the rules almost everywhere. I haven't been shooting gigs too long but I've been lucky enough to get pit access to some well known bands and gain valuable experience. Gig photography is a struggle and will test anyone but the best of best. Get a lens with a wider aperature to replace the lack of flash, 2.8 or above will be best, and look to shoot at around 1/125. You'll also going to have to bump the iso up pretty much as high as your camera will allow. (hence why most gig photographers are almost exclusively using full frame). You were thinking about the Tamron 17-50 2.8 and while it's a step up from your kit lens, it's a pain in the a**e for gig photography. Autofocus is just too poor for this purpose. I've all but given up on mine. I'd recommend saving the cash for a used Canon 17-55 2.8. Maybe for the time being just get yourself a 50mm 1.8 so you can get used to working without flash. You won't get the frame filling that you'd like, but you can always crop afterwards for now. To sum up: forget flash, get a lens at 2.8 or below and get all the practice you can. Maybe after you gain some experience I can hook you up with some contacts for media access since you seem to be into rock/metal, which is my area of interest. There's some examples from a handful of recent shoots up on my site if you want to take a look: http://www.kennyswan.dk/galleries.php?gallery=Live Music
 
Gig photography makes up around 90% of my work. The advice above is good, you may as well get used to working without flash, it may be ok at the moment, but there will be a time when it's a no no. As said before, first 3, no flash is pretty standard at most venues.
As for gear, whilst you can get by with cheaper lenses, it's a pita. What you might spend on trying out different ones will only add up to a decent lens anyway.
My stock gig lenses are 17-40L, 24-70/2.8L, 70-200/2.8L. Whilst I do own a 50/1.8 I never use it, it's ok saying its good because it's a faster aperture, it's also slow as a snail focussing.
As you progress, you will shoot better venues with decent lighting, thus allowing faster shutter speeds or lower iso.
I did a year or so working for free to build experience, then the rest of the time paying for expensive lenses lol.
It's a huge learning curve, you just have to get out there and practice.
Dean.
 
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