Photographing Ballet

Backstage? Are you shooting "Behind the Scenes" photos?

Those lenses will be mostly worthless for shooting ballet actually happening. You'll want an 80-200mm f/2.8 and maybe a 300mm f/2.8 depending on staging and size of the venue, and a good camera with excellent AF and high ISO capability.

If you are shooting posed images on stage for simply marketing material, just follow the staging advice from the director and/or choreographer and shoot appropriately. Ask them to bring up the lighting if it's too dim. No flash - ruins the mood of the lights. Lock your white balance at incandescent (or whatever works best) and don't try to correct to "white."

I've shot a lot of dance/theatre but always at the opening/preview events while the show was going on. If you can, see a rehearsal beforehand so you know what's going to happen. The local news guy came in usually and made a couple snaps of posed images, but IMO posed shots are boring and always obviously posed.
 
If you've never seen it close-up be prepared for true horror!
Blood in their shoes, spoken to like prisoners in a Feudal society..
The illusion of beauty is remarkable!
If dancers are under age, quit now!
Everybody assumes you are a pedophile..sigh.
A fast camera, available light as flash too difficult.
I worked with SLR Nikon Ftn (film days) 28mm,35mm,50mm f2.0, 105mm f2.5. 400 ASA (ISO).
Digital gives way more effective shooting.
Great color under difficult lighting.
Watch as much as possible before really shooting..

I photographed my niece (became a ballerina in Provincial Corps).
Also professional companies..
 
My experience is just with kids recitals. EV values around 5-6 on stage under the lights, depending on the gels used.

Tells us more about what you are trying to do. If you are documenting the show, if you have the opportunity to capture some of the jumps at rehearsal, where you could use strobes, etc.
 
froyd said:
My experience is just with kids recitals. EV values around 5-6 on stage under the lights, depending on the gels used.
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Thanks, this is helpful.

It is a professional company at a large theater. I have access to back stage areas an hour or so before the performance, and also during the performance.

What kind of shots "work"?

I shoot bw film with a rangefinder. It's all I shoot. Yes, I am very good at focusing and the equipment is not a hinderance.

Now I shall duck and hide and prepare for calumny.
 
Ideally you'll have see the performance once before to help you know when key moments are about to happen. My experience is with film also, and motion blur, blown highlights, not enough lens reach have all been issues.

If you use an incident meter (highly recommended here) make sure you get a chance to take readings under the various light schemes used during the performance. If pushing film, with increased contrast you might risk blowing highlights unless you meter correctly. This is especially true if the costumes are white or a pale color.

Even with backstage access, the 50 might struggle to reach the action on stage. This obviously depends on the size of the theater, but if it is as I suspect, you might want to shift your focus from dancer-only shots to images that include some of the environment (curtains, audience, tech crew). These could be quite interesting.

Speaking of lenses, not sure how fast is your 21, but it could be a challenge to use under typical performance light conditions. Could be handy for the after-party!
 
LCSmith said:
It is a professional company at a large theater. I have access to back stage areas an hour or so before the performance, and also during the performance.

What kind of shots "work"?

I shoot bw film with a rangefinder. It's all I shoot. Yes, I am very good at focusing and the equipment is not a hinderance.
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You'll need to define what you (or they) are looking for.

You simply won't be getting live action shots of the performance with that gear/limitation, which is fine if that's not what the intent is. Backstage lighting will be even dimmer and more restrictive. Get some T-Max 3200 and see what you can get.

I've shot a lot of this kinda thing, both as a photographer and someone working in various capacities both back and front of stage. Planning and consideration of the conditions is key, especially with the gear you want to use.
 
Corran said:
You'll need to define what you (or they) are looking for.

You simply won't be getting live action shots of the performance with that gear/limitation, which is fine if that's not what the intent is.
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Yes, action will be difficult but it depends on the lighting on stage. I do not have experience photographing in this kind of environment at all. I am not "looking to get" any particular kind of photo, which means I can experiment quite a bit. Much will depend on what kind of position I can get backstage without being in the way and looking like a rube (which, in my case, is largely unavoidable anyway).
 
froyd said:
This obviously depends on the size of the theater, but if it is as I suspect, you might want to shift your focus from dancer-only shots to images that include some of the environment (curtains, audience, tech crew). These could be quite interesting.
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Yes, these are the photos I am most interested in.
 
Just last weekend I was at a symphony concert that had very bright stage lighting. According to my meter (I was, in fact, shooting some BTS images on b&w film in a rangefinder), the exposure was f/2.8 at 1/60 and an EI of 400.

A theater/ballet show will definitely not have that kind of light during the show. I remember often being set at an ISO of 6400 on my digital to get action shots at f/2.8 and 1/250. But of course the lights are very dependent on the show and artistic direction.

Backstage shots can be nice if that interests you. I often take backstage photos of the performers or stagehands. Here's a friend of mine from this past weekend working on a score at a recording session I was working with him:

aug-1-20-5113ss.jpg


Shot at f/1.8 and 1/8 of a second at an EI of 400...
 
LCSmith said:
Thanks, this is helpful.

It is a professional company at a large theater. I have access to back stage areas an hour or so before the performance, and also during the performance.

What kind of shots "work"?

I shoot bw film with a rangefinder. It's all I shoot. Yes, I am very good at focusing and the equipment is not a hinderance.

Now I shall duck and hide and prepare for calumny.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I had to jump in here because ballet and modern dance are practically the ONLY things I photograph! (Yeah, the fact that I'm the marketing director of a professional ballet company has something to do with that, but I was doing it a long time before that!)

The main things I want to do are tell you not to worry and to assure you that you're going to have a wonderful opportunity! The best thing you can do is put away all your preconceptions and get ready to be an alert, astute observer. A few specifics:

— The equipment you have is PERFECT for photographing a dance performance from backstage and in the wings. I can't think of a better setup than a rangefinder camera and the lenses you've got. (Technically, ‘backstage’ can mean everywhere in the working end of the theater, including dressing-room area, costume shop, etc., while the ‘wings’ are the draped areas at either side of the actual stage. Both areas offer lots of great photo opportunities.)

— Don't worry about showing what the performance looks like from the house... if people want to see that, they can buy a ticket! You're getting the opportunity to show a side of a performance that most people DON'T see. No 300mm lens required!

— Don't worry about anticipating what the company might want. Presumably, the fact that you've been granted backstage access (that's a big deal; be proud!) means they're interested in what YOU observe.

— Even though you've got permission, it's a REALLY good idea to find a few moments you can talk with the stage manager before you get started. The stage manager is the boss of everything that happens backstage. Of particular importance, s/he will be able to tell you areas that it’s important to stay out of (because of the dangers of moving scenery, flying bodies, etc.) and where you can stand without being visible from the house.

— During the performance, things move very fast backstage: dancers have to run off and make quick costume changes, people are going from one side of the stage to the other, they have to find props, emergency costume repairs need to be made, etc. This can make for exciting and authentic images, just make sure you DO NOT GET IN ANYONE'S WAY EVER! What you're doing is important, but the show is still top priority.

— Shoot a lot, because you'll have a lot of duds. Metering is going to be hard because of the varying lighting conditions you'll encounter — the stage is bright, farther back in the wings it's dark, the shop and dressing room areas are a mixed bag. When I'm in the wings I love to shoot straight into the lights and let the lens flares fall where they may, but it's almost impossible to get a meter reading that makes sense, so just take your best guess and then bracket!

A few seasons ago I shot an entire performance of “Giselle” almost entirely from the wings, and I just threw a bunch of those photos into a Flickr album in the hope that it will get you enthused about this opportunity:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmKVYZzH

Final thought: Everything you think you know about ballet is probably wrong! Let go of your preconceptions and see what's there!
 
Amazing what expertise is present at RFF!
I imagine that if you can speak with the person who does the lighting, that could be very helpful for getting your exposures right. And one of the 3200 films and perhaps a compensating or two-bath developer would be useful, but you should always test first.
 
ranger9 said:
Sorry, I had to jump in here because ballet and modern dance are practically the ONLY things I photograph! (Yeah, the fact that I'm the marketing director of a professional ballet company has something to do with that, but I was doing it a long time before that!)

The main things I want to do are tell you not to worry and to assure you that you're going to have a wonderful opportunity! The best thing you can do is put away all your preconceptions and get ready to be an alert, astute observer. A few specifics:

— The equipment you have is PERFECT for photographing a dance performance from backstage and in the wings. I can't think of a better setup than a rangefinder camera and the lenses you've got. (Technically, ‘backstage’ can mean everywhere in the working end of the theater, including dressing-room area, costume shop, etc., while the ‘wings’ are the draped areas at either side of the actual stage. Both areas offer lots of great photo opportunities.)

— Don't worry about showing what the performance looks like from the house... if people want to see that, they can buy a ticket! You're getting the opportunity to show a side of a performance that most people DON'T see. No 300mm lens required!

— Don't worry about anticipating what the company might want. Presumably, the fact that you've been granted backstage access (that's a big deal; be proud!) means they're interested in what YOU observe.

— Even though you've got permission, it's a REALLY good idea to find a few moments you can talk with the stage manager before you get started. The stage manager is the boss of everything that happens backstage. Of particular importance, s/he will be able to tell you areas that it’s important to stay out of (because of the dangers of moving scenery, flying bodies, etc.) and where you can stand without being visible from the house.

— During the performance, things move very fast backstage: dancers have to run off and make quick costume changes, people are going from one side of the stage to the other, they have to find props, emergency costume repairs need to be made, etc. This can make for exciting and authentic images, just make sure you DO NOT GET IN ANYONE'S WAY EVER! What you're doing is important, but the show is still top priority.

— Shoot a lot, because you'll have a lot of duds. Metering is going to be hard because of the varying lighting conditions you'll encounter — the stage is bright, farther back in the wings it's dark, the shop and dressing room areas are a mixed bag. When I'm in the wings I love to shoot straight into the lights and let the lens flares fall where they may, but it's almost impossible to get a meter reading that makes sense, so just take your best guess and then bracket!

A few seasons ago I shot an entire performance of “Giselle” almost entirely from the wings, and I just threw a bunch of those photos into a Flickr album in the hope that it will get you enthused about this opportunity:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmKVYZzH

Final thought: Everything you think you know about ballet is probably wrong! Let go of your preconceptions and see what's there!
Click to expand...

This is amazingly helpful. Thank you!
 
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