KyleAHPhotog
Member
I love concert photography, every show is a challenge. Though from the last show I found out that everyone has their own way of approaching extreme low light conditions that require wicked fast speeds with unpredictable lighting.
Al Barr of Dropkick Murphys
I tend to keep it in Aperture Priority (have that sucker wide open), high ISO, and just fire not even look in the viewfinder.
The last show I shot (Porcupine Tree) had good lighting, it was just to dim, so i couldnt really attack it like I could normally, and it did not help that the venue was a theater and every one was sitting. I was crawling on the floor cause we were told not to disturb the audience, the stage could have been lit candles and it would have been brighter.
Steven Wilson from Porcupine Tree
Best Lighting was GWAR! It was like being on the set of a Van Helen video when ever they did the shots where they where on stage and they had lights EVERYWHERE!!!
Balsac of GWAR
Worst photofriendly lighting EVER! Skinny Puppy, none of my pictures of that show came out. Though it was the best show I have ever seen. I was an AV orgasm of color and bass.
Nivek Ohgr of Skinny Puppy
So how do you tackle very minimal light when staying still is not an option.
Post pictures of anything that was done in really low light without tripod.
All images in this single post are ©Kyle Henderson all rights reserved

Al Barr of Dropkick Murphys
I tend to keep it in Aperture Priority (have that sucker wide open), high ISO, and just fire not even look in the viewfinder.
The last show I shot (Porcupine Tree) had good lighting, it was just to dim, so i couldnt really attack it like I could normally, and it did not help that the venue was a theater and every one was sitting. I was crawling on the floor cause we were told not to disturb the audience, the stage could have been lit candles and it would have been brighter.

Steven Wilson from Porcupine Tree
Best Lighting was GWAR! It was like being on the set of a Van Helen video when ever they did the shots where they where on stage and they had lights EVERYWHERE!!!

Balsac of GWAR
Worst photofriendly lighting EVER! Skinny Puppy, none of my pictures of that show came out. Though it was the best show I have ever seen. I was an AV orgasm of color and bass.

Nivek Ohgr of Skinny Puppy
So how do you tackle very minimal light when staying still is not an option.
Post pictures of anything that was done in really low light without tripod.
All images in this single post are ©Kyle Henderson all rights reserved
zgeeRF
Established
I usually shoot B+W at 800-1600. The problem is to tame the contrast.
HP5+ in 120
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zgee/4086918346/

HP5+ in 120
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zgee/4086918346/
cnphoto
Well-known
Some recent stuff. I mostly shoot around ISO1600 on Neopan or TMax/Tri-X.
Obituary
ignore the Flickr 'oversharpening' on these:
Revival Tour
Reality
Obituary

ignore the Flickr 'oversharpening' on these:
Revival Tour


Reality

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Federico Alberto
Member

Gloria Gaynor sings a Barry White duo with her singing partner. (Taken at Santo Domingo's Hard Rock Cafe, 1 August 2009).
Olympus Digital PEN E-P1
Leica D Summilux 25mm f/1.4 ASPH
Olympus MMF-1 FourThirds/Micro FourThirds adaptor
Aperture Priority Mode
f/1.4
ISO 1600
25mm
1/125
Metering: Matrix
White Balance: Auto
Hand grip
No Photoshop
No HDR
No flash
W
wlewisiii
Guest
From Saturday night - f2@1/75th on BW400CN
A while back - 35/1.8 - 1.8@1/30th on Fuji Superia 1600.
William

A while back - 35/1.8 - 1.8@1/30th on Fuji Superia 1600.
William
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jmarcus
Well-known
furcafe
Veteran
While small clubs are usually the best place to check out music if you don't have to shoot, they tend to have the worst lighting (next to dive bars & certain nightclubs/restaurants). They also have the tendency to use awful red gels on the crap lighting that they do have. If you don't want, or aren't allowed, to use flash, your only solution is to use the highest ISOs that you can squeeze out of your film/sensor & the fastest glass that you can find. In my experience, I need a minimum of ISO 640 & f/1.4 to get shutter speeds high enough capture any moderately energetic band (minimum 1/30th-1/60th sec. if you time it right), though some motion blur be OK. Here's an old example:

shyoon
Well-known
Olympus Stylus Epic with Neopan 1600.

semrich
Well-known
Sala Terrena Mozarthaus
Vienna, Austria
MP, Summicron 28/2.0 ASPH, Delta 3200 @ 1600
Vienna, Austria
MP, Summicron 28/2.0 ASPH, Delta 3200 @ 1600

cnphoto
Well-known
that's a beautiful image semrich.
from a newly dev'd roll of Neopan 1600, 1:100 stand developed for 2 hours in Rodinal.
from a newly dev'd roll of Neopan 1600, 1:100 stand developed for 2 hours in Rodinal.


semrich
Well-known
cnphoto, thank you. I'm glad it came out this well it is a reminder of an excellent venue and performance.
sevres_babylone
Veteran
I shoot with my R-D1, usually at 1600. I have learned that it is important not to underexpose. Lately, I have also been using my Ricoh GRD3 at 1600 and F1.9, and it is surprisingly usable. These two shots are from SXSW in Austin, using the R-D1 and the Canon 50 1.5. The top one is of Seattle's Vince Mira, the bottom of Denmark's Choir of Young Believers.


Bnack
Established
k.a
Well-known
RayPA
Ignore It (It'll go away)
I'm going to follow William's lead here and add to the John Doe count (here with Exene).
Lots of ...jostling up front at an X show (the slight blur).
Hexar RF 'cron 90/2. Superia 400.
Same night same setup.
Here are some recent ones my G10 (not my first choice for shooting shows) at 400 and 800 ISO. I probably could sharpen these up some more.
Lots of ...jostling up front at an X show (the slight blur).
Hexar RF 'cron 90/2. Superia 400.

Same night same setup.

Here are some recent ones my G10 (not my first choice for shooting shows) at 400 and 800 ISO. I probably could sharpen these up some more.




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furcafe
Veteran
Well, if there's an X theme, I'll add to it, though this wasn't really low-light, since the 9:30 has good lighting.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/furcafe/2560729394/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/furcafe/2560729394/
RFaddict000
Member
I don't have tele lens so my shots are all made by 50 mm or wider. I also happen to be cheap and sit quite far from the stage. But that can let me bring the audience into the frame.
I like to take b/w photos of concerts. They distill the visual stimulus and get you to feel as if there is music going on.
With b/w I can also push the film if I need to, but for the concerts I have been to I can always have good results with ISO400 b/w film without pushing. Perhaps I had only been to big shows.
Jason Mraz in Boston 2009
U2 360 in Boston 2009
I like to take b/w photos of concerts. They distill the visual stimulus and get you to feel as if there is music going on.
With b/w I can also push the film if I need to, but for the concerts I have been to I can always have good results with ISO400 b/w film without pushing. Perhaps I had only been to big shows.
Jason Mraz in Boston 2009

U2 360 in Boston 2009

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Juan Valdenebro
Truth is beauty
Sala Terrena Mozarthaus
Vienna, Austria
MP, Summicron 28/2.0 ASPH, Delta 3200 @ 1600
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Richard, outstanding photograph!
Oh, chamber music...
You've captured its spirit very well here!
Cheers,
Juan
Disaster_Area
Gadget Monger
douwe
Jazz and Silver
Mostly with Contax G1 on Fuji Neopan 1600@1250, or Konica Hexar on Kodak Tmax 400@400, or any possible combination:



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