Concert Photos - 5D mkIII with 70-200 2.8 non-is and tokina 11-16 2.8

[Cgdillan]

I think these are on the warm side and should be rebalanced to tungsten

[revup67]

Ahh, I see you are on the stage..well that certainly helps quite a bit.  here's an example of where I was seated..dealing with numerous seated heads and my distaste for red light as shown in this pic..the other shots previously posted was the opportunity where I had to stand near the men's room a few times to nab the prior shots.  I don't much like this shot but posted here to offer a feel for the cub's dynamics and seating arrangements..yes I am aware the shutter speed was too slow, etc..

[Cgdillan]

Ahh, I see you are on the stage..well that certainly helps quite a bit.  here's an example of where I was seated..dealing with numerous seated heads and my distaste for red light as shown in this pic..the other shots previously posted was the opportunity where I had to stand near the men's room a few times to nab the prior shots.  I don't much like this shot but posted here to offer a feel for the cub's dynamics and seating arrangements..yes I am aware the shutter speed was too slow, etc..

That is a tough situation. I had a lot of freedom and it was a huge stage. Sorry to be off topic I notice in your description that you have the mp-e65. How do you like it? I've been thinking about it and don't really know much about it. Haven't done my research yet.

[revup67]

Hello all - been out of the loop the past few days with posts and such.  The 80s band Modern English (hit smash I Melt With You) were in town and are personal friends of mine.  Here's a few photos from last nights concert at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA on 7-12-12.  Note:  I have not spent much time using a flash prior though own the 580 EXII.  This was attached via the hot shoe on the Canon 5D Mark III along with the 70-300 IS USM L Lens.  Photo shot in Manual mode, 1/100, F 5.0, ISO 400, One Shot AF, 1st Curtain.

I did not have seats.  I was merely running around the club, standing on chairs, taking shos from the sound booth upstairs, squatting between isles, etc to obtain as much versatility in these pics as possible.  I believe that all made a difference.  Light post processing in ACDSee Pro 5 and/or Lightroom 4.1 and/or DPP.

Note for some reason when comparing my local copy of the 3rd image below to what I see locally on my PC, it appears faded with less contrast here online.

[D_Rochat]

I've been doing more concerts lately and I think I may have a few pointers to help out.

- Shoot manual in spot metering. Expose for the face and don't worry about the changing lights behind the band.

- Shoot in RAW. You'll be far better off if you need to correct your exposure and make other adjustments to your files.

- Don't be afraid to bump your ISO! The mark III can handle poor lighting in just about any venue. Besides, noisy pictures are better than blurry ones from low shutter speeds.

- Be careful when shooting singers head on. Sometimes you may end up with a mic growing out of their head! *cough*second image*cough*

- All red lighting looks like shite, but make excellent B&W candidates. I prefer contrasty B&W anyways.

- Try to anticipate and capture the action, motion or emotion

- DON'T USE FLASH! (unless authorized) It's a good way to piss the bands off and not a good thing to do if you like shooting bands.

- Don't chimp. Turn your lcd off and view the images after the set. Nothing wrong with taking a fraction of a second once or twice to make sure your exposure is on, but you don't want to be missing what's going on in front of you.

- Look for other details on stage

That's all I can think of at the moment and I hope these help at least a little. Here are a few that I have done.

*edit Images 1 and 3 were actually shot with a mark II. 2and 4 were with a mark III

[D_Rochat]

One more thing. Take critiques about your processing with a grain of salt. Everyone is going to have an opinion based on what they find visually pleasing and no one is really wrong. Find your style and stick with it.

[D_Rochat]

BTW, it looks like the Modern English guitarist had some rough years during the hiatus!

[D_Rochat]

I might add if no flash shoot at least at 1/100s or slightly higher to avoid those unwanted blurs

Agreed. You can sometimes get away with a little less with some bands if they don't move much. If it's a very active band, then get that ISO up for faster shutter speeds. You can fine tune to get slight motion blur with the drummer or people strumming their guitars as well.

[And-Rew]

Some interesting first shots - and for most, a first concert can be 'hit or miss' to say the least.

My first concert was shot off stage with a 5D2 and 24-105 L with ISO cranked up to 6400 from off stage. Whilst lighting worked - ominous kit growing out of mouths or ears were definitely a minus.

On an aside, i note the mention of the 70-300 L and ponder why more people don't use this lens - the IS is just about second to none, and with pictures shown i noted shutter speeds of 1/30th and 1/40th sec. I myself have been lucky enough to get away with 1/20th sec on London's Southbank at night. I can't help feeling this lens really is one of Canon's unsung heroes. Tac sharp, great IS and an amazing focal range, amazing lens.

[D_Rochat]

On an aside, i note the mention of the 70-300 L and ponder why more people don't use this lens - the IS is just about second to none, and with pictures shown i noted shutter speeds of 1/30th and 1/40th sec. I myself have been lucky enough to get away with 1/20th sec on London's Southbank at night. I can't help feeling this lens really is one of Canon's unsung heroes. Tac sharp, great IS and an amazing focal range, amazing lens.

This could be a great lens for outdoor venues with daylight, but near useless for any other concert setting since most concerts have terrible lighting as far as photographers are concerned. Especially in a dingy dark bar. The variable aperture is far from ideal for shooting in these situations. While the IS may allow you to handhold landscape shots at 1/20, the IS will not stop motion in front of the lens. I wouldn't even shoot a fixed f/4 (in a poorly lit venue) unless that's all I had.

I'm not saying no one should use that lens ever. Shoot with what you have. But if you are looking to buy a lens for concert photography, it would be one of the last lenses on my list. The article below is worth a read on lenses for concert photography.

http://zarias.tumblr.com/post/27058917808/hi-zack-which-lenses-do-you-recommend-for-shooting

[And-Rew]

On an aside, i note the mention of the 70-300 L and ponder why more people don't use this lens - the IS is just about second to none, and with pictures shown i noted shutter speeds of 1/30th and 1/40th sec. I myself have been lucky enough to get away with 1/20th sec on London's Southbank at night. I can't help feeling this lens really is one of Canon's unsung heroes. Tac sharp, great IS and an amazing focal range, amazing lens.

This could be a great lens for outdoor venues with daylight, but near useless for any other concert setting since most concerts have terrible lighting as far as photographers are concerned. Especially in a dingy dark bar. The variable aperture is far from ideal for shooting in these situations. While the IS may allow you to handhold landscape shots at 1/20, the IS will not stop motion in front of the lens. I wouldn't even shoot a fixed f/4 (in a poorly lit venue) unless that's all I had.

I'm not saying no one should use that lens ever. Shoot with what you have. But if you are looking to buy a lens for concert photography, it would be one of the last lenses on my list. The article below is worth a read on lenses for concert photography.

http://zarias.tumblr.com/post/27058917808/hi-zack-which-lenses-do-you-recommend-for-shooting

Points well made and an interesting article. Nice to see the old nifty fifty still has supporters other than me! 

[D_Rochat]

I can't help feeling this lens really is one of Canon's unsung heroes. Tac sharp, great IS and an amazing focal range, amazing lens.

Yes completely agree..most happy with the results I have gotten from this lens through and through

Thanks for the article D_Rochat.  I'm not sure (as you don't say) whether you have shot with this lens yourself or not and I don't believe all that I read (make my own conclusions).  When you have distance and people as obstacles at concerts (and I've been to well over a 1000) this lens ranks supreme.  It cuts through and gets the job done as posted above.  Along with the 5D MKIII, I think the shots are pretty stunning.  I shot from side stage, balcony, on chairs, on the floor and found it flawless and made my job real easy.  The band has already seen the photos (some) and will be posting on their site.

PS - the majority of these shots were F5, F5.6..the long range was essential as a 200 on a full frame would not have cut the mustard at this show.

I have not shot the 70-300L, but I have shot variable aperture and I have worked concerts where the fastest shutter speed I could get with 6400 ISO at f/2.8 was around 1/60. I'm not disputing the quality of this lens. It's the variable aperture that I'm saying isn't good for these shooting conditions. You are also using flash to add more light. I'm assuming that you're not working any of these 1000 shows and just show up with a flash mounted. Most bands don't appreciate being blasted with speedlites and a variable aperture won't come close to cutting it in my experience with the venues that I've worked.

[D_Rochat]

Of course the depth of field is going to be narrower. You're shooting f/5 at 221mm. If I get a full stage shot at 24mm f/2.8, it will have a wider dof. You have to take your focal length into account when selecting an aperture.

IS won't stop movement in front of the camera. With all due respect, all your concert images (with the exception of the close up flash shots) are blurry using the methods and settings that you are saying are good. I still have much to learn myself, but I can not agree with your comments. Please don't take this as an attack, I just very much disagree.