Professional concert photography advice?

[gsgary]

The 50mmF1.8 is the lens you want if you will be right infront of the band, the only time i use my 300F2.8L is for bigger bands when you can only shoot the first 3 songs and then i shoot a few from the back

 

[Bakugekiki]

The 50mmF1.8 is the lens you want if you will be right infront of the band, the only time i use my 300F2.8L is for bigger bands when you can only shoot the first 3 songs and then i shoot a few from the back

He'll be struggling to get a 300mm 2.8 for $300!

I've had a look through some of Jared's videos for you, I'll post you a link to some helpful ones. Is that allowed? If not I'll remove them straight away.





These should include some good tips, there are more but these are found only after a few minutes of searching. I'm sure Jared would also recommend checking out Jim Marshall's work, he has some of the most recognisable music photography ever made. You're sure to have seen it if you're at all interested in Music photography!

 

[Mot]

Yeah, I can't recommend Jared Polin enough. He can be a bit irritating at times but definitely knows a lot about music photography, if you watch the right videos he gives you tips about how to get in to the concerts, where to shoot from and sometimes advises which is the best gear to buy. Even for people who don't like concert shoots there's a lot more to learn from him. You might also want to look at Adam Lerner's Channel, he's a musician who became a pro photographer.

The main thing is you get a lens that can cope well with low light, zoom lenses are good if you've got a body capable of high ISO but otherwise you need a fast prime. The 50mm range is the most obvious for you to look at.

Why not post some of your work for us to look at? It would be great to see what kind of style you have in terms of composition and editing!

 

[penfolderoldo]

Yep, like Gary only time I use the 300 is festivals and stadium gigs. If you're in the pit or in front of the stage anything much over a 70's likely to be too long. A 50 f/1.8 or even a 50 f/1.4 effectively becomes an 80mm, but that would be the best entry level. I use a 24-70 f/2.8 and an 85 f/1.4. Not sure what the high ISO noise performance is like on the T3 but ideally I try and get away with 1.8 at around 125th of a sec at lowest ISO I can get away with.

 

[gsgary]

Here's a few from a 50mmF1.8 before i changed to F1.4, shot with my old 1D at iso1600-3200

And some film shots on Ilford Delta3200 pushed to 6400 shot on an Eos5

 

[OhInsanity]

The 50mmF1.8 is the lens you want if you will be right infront of the band, the only time i use my 300F2.8L is for bigger bands when you can only shoot the first 3 songs and then i shoot a few from the back

He'll be struggling to get a 300mm 2.8 for $300!

I've had a look through some of Jared's videos for you, I'll post you a link to some helpful ones. Is that allowed? If not I'll remove them straight away.





These should include some good tips, there are more but these are found only after a few minutes of searching. I'm sure Jared would also recommend checking out Jim Marshall's work, he has some of the most recognisable music photography ever made. You're sure to have seen it if you're at all interested in Music photography!

thanks for the links =]

 

[OhInsanity]

While I don't work or shoot in these kind of conditions I will second sierra's advice. If the venue is dark then a 300mm at f/5.6 on a Rebel isn't going to be fast enough or of any real use, I can't see you getting a shutter speed much higher than a second! You also won't need a focal length much longer than 70mm if you're anywhere near the bands.

What you want is a fast lens, probably the 50mm 1.8 which will allow you to keep a moderately fast shutter speed to freeze what's happening on stage. It's also inexpensive, compact and can be used for much more than shooting in clubs!

Also, are you thinking about applying to College to do photography before you even have a portfolio? I'm sorry if I sound condescending but it sounds like you're still at the stage where you simply want the longest lens rather than the most appropriate. I would also like to say that it is just about impossible to make a living from music photography, you can do it on the side as something you are passionate about, but be prepared to do more than concert shoots.

I've been saving up so I have a budget of around 300 for a lens or two, any suggestions on a specific lens? And yes I do have a portfolio, but I dont have to apply until december so I am trying to build it up some more between now and then. The colleges I'm applying for provide career services and internships, and theyre pretty big colleges so they can help me get in with big companies, even with that said, I know it not a lucrative career unless you manage to get in with large band or big magazine. I know I'll probably have to have a job on the side, but this is my passion so I'm going to pursue it.

I did suggest a lens, the Canon EF 50mm 1.8. I know it's now been reposted but I'm not sure that you realised that a 50mm 1.8 was an actual lens. It costs around $100 or £80 so it's a very good investment.

I second watching Jared Polin's earlier videos, he shares your passion for music photography and has taught me most of what I know about it. He also teaches a very important thing that you need to keep in mind, you need to be thinking about aperture as a priority when choosing a lens. A 300mm 5.6 is fun in bright sunlight but a waste of money if you're trying to shoot at f/5.6 when you can't really get past 800ISO without excessive noise.

It seems like you've got a lot to learn before December, have fun pursuing your passion.

yeah but the point of college is to learn, they don't expect you to come in as an expert in the field. Anyways thanks I'll probaly go with the 50 1.8 though the prospect of not being able to zoom out bothers me. Luckily there is a camera supply shop near me and they will let me test the lenses out before I buy one =]

 

[OhInsanity]

Yep, like Gary only time I use the 300 is festivals and stadium gigs. If you're in the pit or in front of the stage anything much over a 70's likely to be too long. A 50 f/1.8 or even a 50 f/1.4 effectively becomes an 80mm, but that would be the best entry level. I use a 24-70 f/2.8 and an 85 f/1.4. Not sure what the high ISO noise performance is like on the T3 but ideally I try and get away with 1.8 at around 125th of a sec at lowest ISO I can get away with.

Its not the the zooming in that bothers me, its the fact that I wouldn't really be able to zoom out besides trying to back further away. On my 17-55 lens when I'm at 55 that's usually way to close up for my preference. I usually shoot at 17mm or so unless I really want a facial close up.

 

[OhInsanity]

Yeah, I can't recommend Jared Polin enough. He can be a bit irritating at times but definitely knows a lot about music photography, if you watch the right videos he gives you tips about how to get in to the concerts, where to shoot from and sometimes advises which is the best gear to buy. Even for people who don't like concert shoots there's a lot more to learn from him. You might also want to look at Adam Lerner's Channel, he's a musician who became a pro photographer.

The main thing is you get a lens that can cope well with low light, zoom lenses are good if you've got a body capable of high ISO but otherwise you need a fast prime. The 50mm range is the most obvious for you to look at.

Why not post some of your work for us to look at? It would be great to see what kind of style you have in terms of composition and editing!

yeah I'm really glad you guys showed me his site, it helps A LOT =] I'm about to post some of my work so that may help too

 

[Mot]

If you get into College you won't have to worry about equipment, well I know at my University I don't. Here they have an extensive stockroom that consists of professional bodies like Nikon D3s, Hasselblads and Mamiyas as well as appropriate lenses for each system all of which you're allowed to book. If your chosen College is good then they should at least have some professional lenses, you might be able to stop short of buying expensive lenses and rely on the College equipment for a while.

Yes, the point is to learn in college. Even though I've had two separate Universities accept me onto their course I am still skeptical about my knowledge and skills. They expect competent students that know what they are talking about and have the ability to learn independently, they don't expect you to be asking very basic questions.

Also, I know I have no right to say this and it's not explicitly written in the rules but OhInsanity could you please keep quadruple posts to a minimum? There is an edit button so it you want to add more information then you can do that. I'm finding the number of different posts confusing to follow. I'm not trying to be rude, I just feels you'll get better responses to a single cohesive post.

 

[penfolderoldo]

this i'm sure will be a 'doh' moment for me, but seems I don't have permission to post pics - is it in settings, or have I just not posted enough? :lmao:

 

[OhInsanity]

Mot> I'm sorry about all of the posts, I just joined this site and am getting used to the format. Anyways, yeah that's what my friends have told me about colleges. I attended an semester of college at the Savannah College of art and design, which is a fairly well known place, and I was nervous about my own knowledge at first. The foundations course really do walk you through the basics of anything, in fact it was quite boring. From my experience there, I found that at small colleges, the teachers really do care and will help you on an individual level if needed. I just need/want some equipment of my own, especially for my portfolio's sake.

and penfolderoldo> I can't seem to upload any images either D=

 

[Mot]

Where are you trying to post images from? This is a test from Flickr, don't worry it's my own work, and it seems to be working fine. I just clicked 'insert image', took the URL of the image and unchecked the box that said "Retrieve remote file and reference locally".

What kind of course are you doing? I'm just about to start a Degree. Are you doing a Foundation Degree or something similar? My course covers most areas of photography and gives a lot of opportunity for self development, that of course means experimenting with equipment to keep on topic.

Do you have an online portfolio OhInsanity? It would be interesting to see some of your work.

This one's for you, penfolderoldo!

 

[OhInsanity]

oh, I was trying to upload them directly from my computer. I'll go with flikr though.
Nice photo by the way

So how many should I upload, so as not to take up an annoying amount of space?

Mot> I'm just a senior in highschool, I got early acceptance into SCAD through a program they have where seniors get selected to go take a semester of courses there. So as far as actual college, I'm not sure. I want to go to CCA in Cali and major in photography with a possible minor in creative writing. So I guess my goal is to get my BFA in photography. As far as a portfolio, I'm working on creating a facebook page for my work, I'll post it on here when I get it finished =]. Do you have an online portfolio?

*Help* Every time I try to upload from flickr, it says "invalid url" =(

 

[Mot]

To get the correct URL you have to go into 'Actions' on the photo that you want to post, then you select which size, right click the picture and go to 'view image'. That should take you to a page just displaying that photo, the URL that's displayed on that page is the one you want. You also have to uncheck "Retrieve remote file and reference locally".

I would only post 3 or 4; we have a number or images and videos on this page already. We don't want to clog it!

Personally I only have a collection of images on Flickr in a folder called 'Portfolio', they're quite old now. Eventually I'll have my own website. Right now I don't need one.