dcsang
Canadian & Not A Dentist
What with recent threads on "portability" and "the right tools" and such I thought I would repost my latest blog entry here (because it applies to both of those discussions):
On Saturday night I went out to see a burlesque show.
Yep.
No, really.
It was actually a lot of fun. There has been, over the past number of years, a bit of a revival in burlesque. This is the 1950’s style burlesque (if I have my eras correct) and not what may pass as “stripping” or “pole dancing” or “lap dancing” or such. Sure there’s a bit of skin, but it’s usually all done in a classy and fun fashion. The women, at least the ones I saw on Saturday night, are “real” - no need for emaciated silicone enhanced girls with collagen lips here!
The opportunity to photograph (along with other regular photographers) this event for my own personal enjoyment was, to be honest, a great learning experience in being able to use the right tool for the job at hand. As I said, I was not being paid nor was I commissioned or requested to photograph the event and, instead, I approached one of the performers beforehand and requested that I be able to shoot. My only instructions were not to get in the way of the other patrons watching the show.
The show was held at The Cadillac Lounge in the Parkdale area of Toronto. The lounge is small and not too wide so there was a limited amount of room to move. Basically, because I was the “new guy” shooting photos and because it was so crowded with fans, patrons and onlookers, I was relegated to crouching down, on the floor, stage right. I wasn’t too close but with the 50mm lens I could get most shots.
Now, with the limited space, and the type of show this was going to be, I felt almost “dirty” using my 5D. Add to the mix that it was pretty dark (it was a bar after all) and now I’m stuck with shooting ISO 1600. Well, I decided that it may be a good idea to bring along the M7 and my 50 Summilux, 35 ASPH Summicron and Zeiss 21mm. I could easily shoot Ilford Delta 3200 and I would hope that I would get that “1950’s / early 60’s” feel out of the B&W film.
So with these thoughts in mind, I trundled up towards the stage as the show started with both cameras. I shot quite a bit with the 5D but as the night went on I found myself using the M7 a lot more. The main reason was the ease of carrying the M7 and lenses. It was, basically, a no brainer. The 5D was great but with the battery grip and trying to carry a couple lenses, it was difficult in such a tight location. I literally had about 2 sq feet of “personal space” without getting into a patron’s line of sight or the other photographer’s shot. Add to that the fact that I was able to shoot without flash made it a lot of fun as well. And once I got into the groove - focusing on moving objects wasn’t as hard as I had thought it was going to be. Set the lens to f5.6 and I still had enough light to get by with a reasonable shutter speed.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I liked the shots I took with the 5D but I really liked the shots I took with the M7 because they made it “feel” like it was in the 1950’s.
So, in the future, I will definitely be keeping that evening in mind as something that will remind me to take along the best tool to do the job.
Cheers,
Dave
On Saturday night I went out to see a burlesque show.
Yep.
No, really.
It was actually a lot of fun. There has been, over the past number of years, a bit of a revival in burlesque. This is the 1950’s style burlesque (if I have my eras correct) and not what may pass as “stripping” or “pole dancing” or “lap dancing” or such. Sure there’s a bit of skin, but it’s usually all done in a classy and fun fashion. The women, at least the ones I saw on Saturday night, are “real” - no need for emaciated silicone enhanced girls with collagen lips here!
The opportunity to photograph (along with other regular photographers) this event for my own personal enjoyment was, to be honest, a great learning experience in being able to use the right tool for the job at hand. As I said, I was not being paid nor was I commissioned or requested to photograph the event and, instead, I approached one of the performers beforehand and requested that I be able to shoot. My only instructions were not to get in the way of the other patrons watching the show.
The show was held at The Cadillac Lounge in the Parkdale area of Toronto. The lounge is small and not too wide so there was a limited amount of room to move. Basically, because I was the “new guy” shooting photos and because it was so crowded with fans, patrons and onlookers, I was relegated to crouching down, on the floor, stage right. I wasn’t too close but with the 50mm lens I could get most shots.
Now, with the limited space, and the type of show this was going to be, I felt almost “dirty” using my 5D. Add to the mix that it was pretty dark (it was a bar after all) and now I’m stuck with shooting ISO 1600. Well, I decided that it may be a good idea to bring along the M7 and my 50 Summilux, 35 ASPH Summicron and Zeiss 21mm. I could easily shoot Ilford Delta 3200 and I would hope that I would get that “1950’s / early 60’s” feel out of the B&W film.
So with these thoughts in mind, I trundled up towards the stage as the show started with both cameras. I shot quite a bit with the 5D but as the night went on I found myself using the M7 a lot more. The main reason was the ease of carrying the M7 and lenses. It was, basically, a no brainer. The 5D was great but with the battery grip and trying to carry a couple lenses, it was difficult in such a tight location. I literally had about 2 sq feet of “personal space” without getting into a patron’s line of sight or the other photographer’s shot. Add to that the fact that I was able to shoot without flash made it a lot of fun as well. And once I got into the groove - focusing on moving objects wasn’t as hard as I had thought it was going to be. Set the lens to f5.6 and I still had enough light to get by with a reasonable shutter speed.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I liked the shots I took with the 5D but I really liked the shots I took with the M7 because they made it “feel” like it was in the 1950’s.
So, in the future, I will definitely be keeping that evening in mind as something that will remind me to take along the best tool to do the job.
Cheers,
Dave
Attachments
dcsang
Canadian & Not A Dentist
That's how tight it was, I was kneeling at the feet of the guy with the DSLR there.
Cheers,
Dave
kshapero
South Florida Man
I had a similar experience at my grandson's play. Well not exactly.
sweathog
Well-known
An interesting read, and certainly some interesting photographs.
I can certainly understand the feeling of going smaller; in my preferred watering hole I occasionaly get asked to shoot things going on, and traditionally did it with my 350D, but recently I took along my Bessa R, and then QL17 (both just for fun) and found both to be quite liberating.
Also, I have few friends who are in a CanCan/burlesque performance group (do a Google on Pretty Little Horsebreakers...) and they've asked me to do photos for them in the past, but I haven't yet said yes. This post may just have changed my mind...
I can certainly understand the feeling of going smaller; in my preferred watering hole I occasionaly get asked to shoot things going on, and traditionally did it with my 350D, but recently I took along my Bessa R, and then QL17 (both just for fun) and found both to be quite liberating.
Also, I have few friends who are in a CanCan/burlesque performance group (do a Google on Pretty Little Horsebreakers...) and they've asked me to do photos for them in the past, but I haven't yet said yes. This post may just have changed my mind...
furcafe
Veteran
That's funny because I shoot a lot of burlesque w/my RFs, mostly Leica M, & have a friend who also shoots a lot of burlesque (even more than I do, actually) w/a 5D & I often wish I could shoot @ higher ISOs & had autofocus for fast-moving acts.
dcsang
Canadian & Not A Dentist
Ya.. that's what I always thought too - but then I realized that, sometimes, AF doesn't always hit its target; especially in dim or low lit areas.
I've had misfires in situations like I shot in on Saturday night and at weddings as well. It really does depend on the situation, how much contrast is available to you in the scene etc.
Cheers
Dave
bmattock
Veteran
Burlesque is making a minor come-back here in Detroit, but I haven't been able to catch a show yet. We also have roller-derby, which I tend to think of in the same vein for photographic potential.
What's next, apartment house wrestling? (Google for it)
Anyway, nice photos. I'd like to do something similar. I'm thinking Lynx 14 and Tri-X, processed in Diafine.
What's next, apartment house wrestling? (Google for it)
Anyway, nice photos. I'd like to do something similar. I'm thinking Lynx 14 and Tri-X, processed in Diafine.