Advice, inspiration, and insight for taking remarkable concert photos Concert photography poses a unique set of challenges to photographers, including night or low-light, inconsistent stage lighting, a moving subject matter, limitations on vantage point, complex exposure situations, and no chance for re-takes. Compounded with those hurdles is a lack of resources on this subject?until now. All Access: Your Backstage Pass to Concert Photography fills this gap and provides you with all the information you need to know, from choosing the right gear and camera settings to negotiating rights to publish or share photos as well as how to best edit your photos in post-production.
- Reveals essential techniques and valuable best practices for dealing with the unique challenges of concert photography
- Features more than 200 stunning concert photographs to inspire you and illustrate the tips and techniques the author describes
- Written by experienced author and well-known concert photographer Alan Hess
All Access: Your Backstage Pass to Concert Photography is an ideal resource if you are determined to learn the skills necessary to capture clear, well-composed, and professional-level concert photos.
Table of Contents:
Introduction XV 1 Concert Photography Rocks: Capturing the Thrill of the Show 1
Picture a Musical Journey 2
It's Who You Know 5
Be Ready for the Pressure 6
It's a Balancing Act 9
On the Cover of Rolling Stone... 9
Pro Tip: Billy Morrison... 10
2 Your Ticket to Shoot: Getting Credentials and Handling Releases 13
Who to Ask... 14
What You Want 19
When to Ask. 21
Why You? 22
The Request 24
The Photo Release 25
Follow Up with Thanks 27
Pro Tip: Dennis McNally 28
Pro Tip: Heidi Ellen Robinson-Fitzgerald 29
3 Pit Rules: Behaving like a Pro 31
The Players 32
The Photo Pit 37
Soundboard Shoots 39
Shooting from the Crowd 42
Pro Tip: Allen Ross Thomas 46
Pro Tip: Maile Hatfield 48
4 Oh the Gear: Working with the Best Camera and Lenses for Your Job 51
Camera 52
Lenses 60
Flash 65
Pro Tips: Scott Diussa 68
5 Lights Out: Exposure Basics for Concert Shooters 73
Measuring light 74
Metering Modes 75
Proper Exposure 77
Exposure Settings 79
Exposure Modes 85
Focus Modes 87
White Balance 87
All Together 88
Pro Tips: Drew Gurian 92
6 In the Spotlight: Composing Hot Shots for Live Music 95
Focus 96
Timing 98
Emotion 101
Background 104
Guitars 106
Drums 109
Keyboards 112
Vocals 113
Group Shots 115
Pro Tip: Hali McGrath 118
7 The Bar Scene: Photographing Music in Bars 121
Working with Bad Light 124
Choosing Exposure Settings 125
Pushing the ISO: What’s Too High? 126
Using the Flash 128
Composition 129
Pro Tip: Bob Minkin 134
8 Club Level: Shooting at Larger Local Venues 137
Professional Behavior 138
Lighting 140
Photo Pit 141
Room Work 143
Experiment 146
Exposure Settings 147
Fast Glass 149
Pro Tip: Susana Millman 150
9 Rock the Halls: Bigger and Brighter Venues 153
Great Light 154
Camera Settings 156
Work the Room 158
Shoot Outside 160
The Lighting Director 161
Pro Tip: Anthony "Groove" Pirrone 162
10 Rock Spectacle: Working the Big Shows 165
Lovely Light 166
Limits! 168
Camera Settings 172
Stand-Out Shots 174
Pro Tip: Charles Jischke 176
11 An All-Day Party: Shooting Festivals 179
Comfortable Shoes 182
Picks 182
Changing Exposures 185
The Press Tent 191
Surviving the Day 192
Pro Tip: Chelsea Lauren 194
12 Backstage Pass: Getting Behind the Scenes 197
Shooting from the Stage 198
Sound Check 203
Shooting Backstage 205
Trust 208
Pro Tip: Jay Blakesberg 210
13 Show Variety: Different Types of Bands 213
JamBands 215
Country 216
Jazz 218
Rock and Roll 218
Heavy Metal 219
Rap/DJ 221
Pro Tip: Brad Moore 224
14 More Cowbells: Handling Post Production 227
File Types: JPEG and RAW 228
Workflow Overview 230
Import Images 230
First Sort 234
Lightroom 235
Photoshop 244
Black and White Images 245
Show your Best 249
Pro Tip: Mark Karan 250
Appendix A: Accessories 252
Camera Bags 252
Memory Cards 255
Earplugs 256
Business Cards 257
Monopod 258
Credential Holder 258
Batteries 259
Battery Grip 259
Camera Strap 260
Lens Cleaning Kit 262
Flashlight 262
Appendix B: Copyright 264
Register your Images 264
Why Register 270
Digital Millennium Copyright Act 270
Appendix C: Resources 272
Index 274
About the Author :
Alan Hess is a professional concert photographer who has photographed such diverse acts as Anthrax, Billy Idol, Bruce Hornsby, The Grateful Dead, Slayer, Steel Pulse, Tim McGraw, and many more. He has written four Digital Field Guides, the iPad Fully Loaded series, and Night and Low-Light Photography Photo Workshop.
