Shooting Notes

The hardest part of this shoot was that Tall Animals were so far back on the stage. Add in the tables with mounted laptops and it was hard to get a clear shot. Luckily, I had an all-access pass, so I was able to shoot from the stage a bit, which also allowed me to get some of the great crowd in the background. There were strong color washes, but plenty of light, so with careful exposure, I was happy to let the images retain the bright colors (which I felt fit the EDM vibe well!).

I shot the set with the 5D Mark III, and primarily the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS. The 24mm f/1.4 and 50mm f/1.2 also made some appearances.

Shooting Notes

I have to admit, this was a hard set for me.

Not only was this show the day after a weekend of two weddings (which involved about 28 hours of shooting in a 48 hour period), but it was also the first time I had seen Tall Animals perform, and also one of my first times shooting electronica. So, I was a mix of creatively and physically exhausted, super excited about seeing my friends’ new project, and completely clueless about how to shoot this genre of music. Add that to just three songs in the pit, along with dark, rapidly changing lights, and it felt like a hot mess.

Despite all the craziness, I do still love the photos from this set. The shot from the soundboard is one of my recent favorites, in fact.

For everyone that likes technical specs, this set was shot on 5D Mk IIIs, mainly with the 24mm f/1.4L, the 50mm f/1.2L, and the 135mm f/2L. Lots of high ISOs, and quite often, lower shutter speeds than I prefer (I spent a lot of time around 1/80 and 1/100).

Shooting Notes

Company of Thieves played Sausage Fest with Ha Ha Tonka, however, unlike Ha Ha Tonka, Company played once the sun set, which made me a happier photographer because of more dramatic stage lighting.

The great thing about laid-back festivals such as Sausage Fest is that photo restrictions are minimal. I did stay off the stage, but I hit all four sides of the stage, which was fantastic for photographing drummer Chris. I always enjoy an opportunity to get a good drummer shots, since they are so often stuck in unphotogenic locations.

Since the stage was high, I mainly used the 70-200 f/2.8L IS along with the 5DIII, but I did mix in some primes, especially the 85L.

Shooting Notes

This was the first time I had been to Mojoe’s in Joliet. Assuming it was owned by the same people that ran the old locations of Mojoe’s (those who have gone to local shows for many years know what I’m talking about), I wasn’t sure what to expect. I was happy to be pleasantly surprised with the set-up, including a decent light rig. The back lights were LEDs (which still havoc on my sensors for certain colors), but it was balanced out quite often by white light in front.

Since this show was the day after I shot a 15 hour wedding, I was a bit photoed out. While I wanted to shoot the show, I took a much more laid back approach than normal. There was a gate, but I didn’t worry beforehand about getting a photopass, so instead, I stuck mainly to the front gate (with only a one-song detour to the stairs by the stage, so that I could get a few clear shots of drummer Brandon).

Shot with a 5D Mark III, and all prime lenses. The 50mm f/1.2L and 35mm f/1.4L were primary, with a handful of shots with the 85mm f/1.2L and 135 f/2L. While zoom lenses are so much easier, and much more practical during a three-song set, nothing beats the look of primes, especially when I had the full set to shoot!

Shooting Notes

Regardless of their ease, daylit concerts are not my favorite to shoot. In fact, if you go back several years on my blog, you’ll find very few daytime concerts, since, even when I shoot them, I tend to not post them. I vastly prefer the drama of stage lighting…even when it’s horrible, dim light. I think music should be about emotion and passion, which is best conveyed (at least, in my opinion) with colored lights and dark backgrounds.

However, as I mentioned, I do love Ha Ha Tonka. Thus, regardless of their lighting situation, they deserved to be blogged. For their sheer awesomeness.

This set was mostly shot with the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS on the 5DIII. There was no pit, so this was shot from the crowd.

Shooting Notes

This was the first show I shot with my new 5D3s….and what a difference an upgrade makes. Aside from the fact that the cameras, you know, focused better than the 5D2 (always important), I like the colors produced much better. It seems that white balance is a little more accurate (especially impressive in the crazy lighting conditions at concerts!) and shadow detail is much better preserved. The only downside is that I get a lot more keepers, so culling the images to a manageable amount requires absolute ruthlessness.

Technical speak aside, this was a dream shoot. Company of Thieves is one of my favorite bands to photograph because of the energy and soul that they put into their shows, and Double Door is one of my favorite venues to shoot in. Aside from their great staff, the lighting rig in Double Door is the best small-venue rig I’ve run into, so you get the small-venue feel without the small-venue lighting hassle.

Shot mainly with the 16-35mmL, the 50mmL, and the 135L.

Shooting Notes

The last few shoots that I have posted have been at venues that I haven’t shot at in quite a while! We’ve only been to Abbey Pub a few times in the hundreds of concerts we’ve attended…and those times were years ago for Butch Walker shows. Anyway, since this was a small, weekday show, I don’t think the lights were as dramatic as they could have been, but they were perfect for a black and white treatment. Regardless of the lights, I do love small venues and intimate shows, so I have no complaints!

Shot with the 5D3s and variety of primes.

Shooting Notes

I haven’t been to Beat Kitchen in ages, both because I’m so busy with everything else, but also because the lighting kills me, so I generally don’t put priority on shows there (yes, I partially base my concert attendance on venue lighting…). It’s been forever since I’ve seen The Frantic though, so to Beat Kitchen I went! It was a great opportunity to test out the new Mark III in the worst lighting conditions, and it held up pretty well! Maybe I’ll go to Beat Kitchen more often now!

Shot with 5DMk3s, the 35mm f/1.4, the 50mm f/1.2, and the 135mm f/2.

Shooting Notes

Since this show was being filmed, there was unexpectedly no photopit access. So, I shot the majority of this set from the crowd on far stage right, with a few shots from the balcony. Because of stage obstructions from the extreme angle, I was mostly only able to get shots of Gen. But, on the bright side, the light was some of the best I’ve seen at Metro.

These were shot primarily with the 70-200mm f/2.8IS L and the 5DII, with the exception of the first shot, which was with the 50mm f/1.2L.