Anyone thats familiar with music photography.

[Joshley]

I do alot of music photography, generally live shots for indie label bands. ive pretty much taught myself all i know. Here are some shots ive taken in the past.

I also want to get into doing promotional shots but i feel that promotional shots need alot more thought as if not done well they can look crap.
anyone have any tips or experience they care to share with me about it?


Thanks
Josh

 

[EOS_JD]

What equipment are you using?

 

[Joshley]

Here i used the built in flash and a canon 400d with standard lens.
usually i use a sigma flashgun with a ttl cord but not in these shots.

 

[Digital Matt]

http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/02/welcome-to-strobist.html

 

[Aquarium Dreams]

Take the band to some interesting locations (abandoned buildings, interesting architecture, petting zoos, etc.) and let them be playful and interact with they find there. Like you said, promotional shots have to be done with some thought, or they DO look like crap. So much band photography looks mediocre, like it's cranked out by a band-photography machine. Have some ideas before you go in, some poses to start out with and/or fall back on, but have your eyes open for inspiration on location too. It's like any portrait photography in the sense that you as the photographer can use your personality to bring out your subjects. If you're looking for ideas for promotional photography, look more towards work done by professional photographers, work in magazines, websites, etc, because those photographers will have more experience and therefore more you can learn from (in my opinion) than the thousands of kids who hang out at venues with their digital cameras.