House of Blues, Orlando Flordia - March 26, 2010

This was a fun night for me, because I actually got to shoot alongside my buddy Alan Hess, who I’ve learned tons from about concert photography. It was right after Photoshop World, which is why he was in town, which gave us a great opportunity to shoot together.

This was my first time shooting at House of Blues Orlando, so it was a cool experience for me.

Cara Salimando opened up…

And this is Julia Sinclair, who was helping Cara out with background vocals and additional instruments…

Next up was Ingrid Michaelson, who was quite funny on top of being a very talented singer/songwriter.

Guitarist Bess Rogers…

Ingrid using hand motions to explain kissing.

Which the crowd enjoyed very much :-)

And a detail shot of Ingrid playing.

Last up was Mat Kearney (along with guitarist Tyler Burkum on the right).

I liked this mic. A lot. I shot way too many pictures of it…

A little wide angle goodness.

And he wound up in the crowd at some point. This was one of those discreetly-lifting-the-camera-hoping-I-don’t-get-caught-shooting-after-the-three-song-limit shots :-)

Shooting this show, I tried to keep in mind the advice that Alan gave earlier in the week. His goal is to move from one side of the stage to the other throughout the three songs (or whatever the limit is) and shoot a variety of shots. Not just different angles, but different focal lengths to show different amounts of detail…

Wide shot - Shows the stage setup and establishes who and what is where in relation to one another. I like these because, as Todd Owyoung says, when they work, they work really really well. Most people focus on tight shots, so wide shots that are done well can really help you stand out from the crowd.

Medium shot - I would probably consider this a full-body shot of someone. Do this for each person on stage if possible. They may not all be portfolio shots, but they’re nice to have if someone wants a shot of themselves playing.

Tight shot - These are the detail and close-up shots that, I think, can help set you apart from the other people in the photo pit with you. It helps show what it is you see differently than everyone else and shows your attention to detail. Close-ups of the people, instruments, set decoration, and anything else that makes the artist unique. While everyone else is trying to get their 20th shot of the lead singer with their mouth wide open at the mic, you can be shooting stuff that they may not be seeing (after, of course, you’ve nailed the obligatory and expected shots).

Notes: