About ten years ago, I combined my love of music and photography, and began photographing the concerts I attended. Concerts vary tremendously, from massive shows to small clubs and bars. Mostly, I prefer shooting in clubs and bars, even though the lighting is understandably much worse — they don’t have the budget that the big acts have. But on the plus side, these bands love my work and appreciate me for doing it.
I can’t begin to describe how difficult it is. Each camera upgrade, from my Canon 7D to my current Canon R5, has brought tremendous improvements in image quality and focus performance. It’s difficult to compare one image to another, because the light is so variable. But, you need to seek out where the stage light hits the artist well. I take hundreds of photos at a show, spend a long time culling through them, and then process out about ten using DxO PhotoLab. Every single image has a different white balance, which I adjust to produce good skin tones, letting the rest of the image’s colors fall wherever they may.
Anyone can bring a phone or camera to a show and snap some pictures. I am trying very hard to create standout images of these performers.
Here’s my favorite shot so far, taken at ISO 32,000. This was ambient-lit; I can’t fire a flash or bring in my own lighting equipment.
