Concert Shots: 3 Songs, Then Out...

[george_burrows]

<p>I will be shooting Max Weinburg's Big Band tonight which will have decent light. I have been setting my camera (D300s) in Manual Mode , f 2.8 1/80 and an ISO of 3200, then adjust things during the first song or as the light changes. I check the image via the back, then adjust accordingly.<br>

Should I use the histogram at the time of the shot or is there better ways to adjust quickly? <br>

Thanks,<br>

jorge</p>

[mariosforsos]

<p>First of all, 1/80 is simply not going to be enough to freeze the action! Even 1/100 is not enough - take it from someone who's shot enough concerts and theatre events to know better. I usually work with 1/125 and above, depending on how energetic the band is.</p>

<p>f/2,8 is OK most of the time, but I'd go with 3.5 as a safety precaution for those times the subject is moving around.</p>

<p>I'm a bit worried with your use of ISO 3200. I shoot with a D3 and even then I rarely venture into those territories.</p>

<p>I would not worry overtly about the histogram - after all, there will be very few times you'll find yourself with an image heavily exposed to the whites to correct via the histogram. Shoot RAW anyway - that way even the mediocre lighting errors can easily be corrected.</p>

[daverhaas]

<p>D300s at 3200 should be fine with a little post clean up (noise ninja or noiseware) - I shoot sports in that range constantly. </p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

[george_burrows]

<p>I shot at 2000 ISO or even lower at times. I was surprised at how many worked out!</p><div></div>

[joshuamck]

<p>Looks like the Drum kit is in focus, while the drummer is out of focus.<br>

In low light it can be useful to use single point focus and recompose method.</p>

[george_burrows]

<p>Agreed. It is something I will work on at my next shoot, Carl Palmer, another drummer. Thanks!</p>

[bebu_lamar]

<p>Your exposure is right on. So if you use ISO2000 and use 1/125 and an aperture of f/3.3 you would ended up with an underexposure of 2.3 stops.<br>

It's nice to be able to use lower ISO to avoid the noise, smaller aperture to get more DOF and higher shutter speed to avoid motion blur but only if the lighting conditon allows it.</p>

[Roger G]

<p>Marios Forsos seems to want you to use a faster shutter speed, smaller aperture and lower ISO. Can't be done given that you have no control over the light. Unless you want under-exposed images.</p>

[mariosforsos]

<p>Actually Roger it can be done - have been doing it for years. You just need to meter correctly and focus as needed. You see, more often than not, concerts have special lights trained on the performers and the band at various stages in each song. These spotlights are very powerfull, very focused and, most of the time, provide amazing rim and edge lighting. If you focus using the center spot on your camera and meter (either manually - in lights which move less - or using spot metering - when lights move more) appropriately, you can get some pretty cool shots... have a look in my website and you'll see how this works...;-)</p>