Before I ever picked up a camera I was musician, the frontman in an alt/rock/folk band nonetheless. I loved it. We toured, we had some crazy fun times, we released an album, we were championed by the likes of Dave Fanning, the future was bright, we split up.
70mm, 1/125s, f2.8
There is a lot crammed into that sentence but the sentence before it really sums it up – I loved it. One of my favourite things about the music, apart from the creative splendour, was meeting other musicians that shared the same passion. You can’t fake it, it is real and raw and nothing in between. One musician that we shared a stage with on a few occasions was Jinx Lennon, a name to remember, a live act you could never forget. I jumped at the chance to cover his recent Dublin gig, combining two passions.
It is no secret that I love photography and I love weddings. When I can combined the two together the results are pretty damn fine (if I may say so myself). Concert photography is similar in the context of combining the passions, but very different in terms of topics and themes. It is tremendous fun and it is great to do something a bit different. In this blog I will outline how I approach Concert Photography, the challenges and the gear, and share some practical tips on how to make it work (because although it may be fun but it ain’t easy!).
The venue was The Sound House on Eden Quay in Dublin. I was unfamiliar with it so headed down just as doors were opening to have time to suss out the best perches and get myself setup for the lighting challenges.
Horses for Courses
Live gigs always throw up a raft of physical & physics obstacles, here is how I approach them:
Low light means you need to open that shutter a little longer to let in enough light for the correct exposure, but your performers are not statue-still (unless you are a pretty shit gig). Blurry or dark..... blurry or dark.... neither a good option generally. To combat this I brought along my trusty 50mm f1.8 lens - the massive aperture window means more light which should help combat the darkness without going too ‘slow’ on the shutter speed.
So close, yet so far away - The 50mm is a fantastic lens but it is a Prime lens (i.e. no zoom) so not much flexibility. Additionally, the focal length is pretty small so if you are unable to get a decent perch that is close to the performer your frame is going to be filled with a whole lot of nothing and a small bit of something. In good lighting this is not such an issue as you can generously crop an image and retain high resolution on the part of it that you want to keep. In low light, blowing up this ‘good’ part to fill the print will introduce a lot of grain. Stylistically this may sometimes be pleasing but generally speaking, it is not good. So, to address this I also brought my Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 zoom. This is a fantastic lens; great optics, wide aperture and it also has image stabilisation (which means that at low shutter speeds it adjusts for any movement I make while holding the camera).
Crowds! Apart from my naturally introverted nature (ahem) there are practical considerations in crowded venues - how close can you get to the stage (see above)? Will my perch become over run (or rendered useless by a seven foot tall super-fan)? In the larger venues it is a little more predictable - The Pit is a nice bubble with uninterrupted access and aspect (assuming the other photographers follow the 'Don't be a Dick' code and share the best spots). But in smaller venues, the crowds are unpredictable and things change fast. An excellent vantage spot can become a windowless prison. Access to the front of the stage can be cutoff, a moshpit can be either a cool foreground or a reason to head for the hills with that delicate equipment.
70mm, 1/125s, f2.8
This venue was pretty decent, a large tube shaped room with bar on one end and stage on the other. The stage had a nice lift to it. I spotted a large pillar to one side of the area in front of the stage and flagged that as my main perch. Standing in front of that pillar gave me a few things
The lighting was the only thing I was really concerned about. The stage was bright enough but the Front of House lights had the ‘Dreaded Red’ filters. This look works for certain types of boudoir photography, or maybe if you are covering a submarine, but for concerts it is shite. Red tints are hard to remove in post-production without stripping out natural skintones (which also have a dominance of red). I could adjust my white balance and take a punt but I rather shoot things 'real' in this situation and spend a bit longer in the editing session working it out.
That's a lot of talk and I haven't pushed the button yet! Moving things along....
Support Act
My top tip on shooting concerts? Shoot the support act! And I don't mean 'Shoot the Support Act' as Morrissey might say 'Hang the DJ', I mean cover the support act just as you would cover the main performance. You get to iron out all the wrinkles in your settings and position (just make sure you are analysing the images on the back of the camera as you go). Also, the support acts may not be in a position to hire a photographer and it is a really sound thing to do if you can send them some professional quality images for free. That wheel of Karma won't be long turning around..... Anyway, I had a good time with the support act (Deadlians) who not only put me through my paces but they were, well..... deadly! So what did I learn? I learned that the 50mm was a little bit 'short' and that the light was actually pretty good. The frontman was in nice balanced light even if one or two of the other band members were Red. If I had changed my settings for Red and not covered the support act, I would have lost a few minutes re-adjusting once Jinx started playing. Also I knew for sure I was going to be doing most of my shooting with the 24-70mm lens (it can be very tricky trying to change lenses in a crowded venue like this during a gig so this gave me a lot of peace of mind).
I have included a few shots of Deadlians at the end of this post.
There's no show like a Jinx show...
First off, if you have never seen & heard Jinx Lennon performing – sort yourself out! Massive energy, raw, real, grit, songs about you, your community, Ireland and what lurks in it. He is like nothing else. In my mind Jinx is a sort of pre-apocalyptic preacher and we are his congregation of converts and cannibals. I really wanted to capture him in this light; capture that passion and the power of a true believer. The frantic, manic frustration and desperation of somebody trying to open our eyes and ears to the chaos around us. Blue pill, red pill, everybody gets the same f*****g medicine.
I stuck with the 24-70, Jinx moves about the stage between two front positions - one for his synth & samples, the other for his guitars. A single focal length would not have been as effective. Surprisingly one of the strongest lights on the night was a spectral green which hit Jinx from behind. This light faded in and out and, at its peak, was quite strong. I timed my snapping with the 'peaks' for a very interesting ethereal look which I quite like (above).
Call me old fashioned but I think Black and White is the ultimate medium for concert photography. I grew up reading NME and HotPress, most of which were then printed in B&W. There is something transformative and magic about the black and white stuff, the images take on a sort of timeless aspect. My favourite shot of the night is below. I think it captures the Preacher in full flow, the lighting is juuuuust right and the black and white gives it the contrast and gravitas that the subject matter deserves. Very nice, if I may say so myself!
65mm, 1/150s, f2.8
So that's it, I hope you found this interesting / useful! Happy to answer any questions, just pop me a mail. Incidentally I cycled to and from this gig, which was one of the reasons I brought so little gear (simply a camera, two lenses and a flash which I didn't end up using). The other reason for a stripped down kit is that it all fits into a very small bag which is a lot easier to mind in a crowded venue. Keep it simple!
Until next time.
61mm, 1/125s, f2.8
Some Shots of Deadlians........