Suggestions for shooting performances with lots of different lighting effects?

[mattbaume]

The thread over here got me thinking about a similar problem that I encounter: I shoot a lot of performances in dark venues, where performers move quickly between very bright lights and very dim lights.

It's very challenging to get a good exposure, since in addition to the spotlight there are darker, colored accent lights that I want to include in the shot. But if I expose for the spotlight, I lose the accents; if I expose for the accents, the spotlight blows the performer to pure white.

I'm also sometimes using an off-camera flash to fill in their faces, since they occasionally step out of the spotlight before the lighting guy can follow them. In those situations, if I didn't have the flash, I would have a nicely-exposed photo of just their knees or the backs of the heads.

I tend to use Tv mode and stick to between 1/160 and 1/200 (sometimes dipping down to 1/30 to get more of the crowd, though the motion blur often makes that un-usable) at an ISO around 3200.

Any suggestions for getting a good middle-ground, where I can get some accent lighting without the spotlights destroying everything? I'm including a few examples of the closest I'm able to come. I think these pictures look OK but not great.

EDIT: Um. I realized after I posted this that the examples I picked make it look like a strip club. It's not, I swear! It's a drag show.



1/40
f/3.5
ISO 1600
flash +1.3


1/30
f/4.5
ISO 2000
flash +.3


1/250
f/3.5
ISO 4000
no flash


1/200
f/5.6
ISO 8000
no flash


1/50
f/3.5
ISO 4000
no flash

 

[cgipson1]

you realize that you are sharing your email with anyone and everyone by putting that in your profile that way? Or is that what you want?

 

[mattbaume]

I don't mind sharing my email.

 

[TCampbell]

I don't mind the average person knowing my email, but I DO mind spammers knowing it. I would just think you get a lot of spam in your inbox if your email is easy to find.

As for the lighting... you get to set the camera to just one exposure setting for the shot. For a still subject you can shoot bracketed shots and merge them in software for an HDR image. But for shots like these where the subject is moving, pretty much the one shot is all you get.

You could bring your own lighting to guarantee balanced light, but that's probably not practical unless this is a venue paying to be promoted.

That means you'll have to expose for your most important elements and then tease out any other details in post-processing.

 

[bratkinson]

I recently photographed a big band without flash that had a spotlight on the singers, but for the band, only the lights of their music stands provided illumination. Once I had figured out settings for the spotlit singers, it was another setting for the band members. Without realizing it, I was underexposing the band about 1/2 stop, which worked out for the best as I could dim the music stand highlights in Lightroom and then increase the overall exposure to where I wanted it.

In retrospect, I need to get more accustomed to Tv shooting with exposure compensation and keep the aperture and ISO 'locked' where I want them. That way, I should be able to move from one lighting to another without having to stop and adjust my settings.

 

[thetrue]

In retrospect, I need to get more accustomed to Tv shooting with exposure compensation and keep the aperture and ISO 'locked' where I want them. That way, I should be able to move from one lighting to another without having to stop and adjust my settings.

Wouldn't that just be Manual.................?
Leave ISO and aperture alone and adjust shutter?

 

[bratkinson]

Wouldn't that just be Manual.................?
Leave ISO and aperture alone and adjust shutter?

Yes, it is/was. Unfortunately, when moving quickly, I forgot to readjust the shutter speed and wasted a couple of frames before I realized my mistake...several times.

Reaching Medicare age really plays havoc with the memory cells!