Solange @ the Pageant — 2008.05.31

Soaking up the spotlights, decked out in a sequined dress, Solange Knowles displayed a captivating stage presence as she brought a classy dose of old school R&B to the Pageant.

Photographer’s Notes:

Despite having only two songs for this performance, I had a blast photographing the lovely Solange as she opened for Raheem DeVaughn at the Pageant.

There was no photo pit per se for this performance, as there was no barricade, but the pit was filled with seats and I had free reign of the length of the stage.

With plenty of light for this performance, the main challenge of this shoot was Solange’s constant movement.

The singer was always on the move, whether swaying as she sang or walking along the stage. As evidenced by the shots above and in the full set below, Solange will throw her hands up in the air at the blink of an eye, so timing was certainly a factor for this shoot.

Lighting:

This set was lit by two spotlights from up in the balcony, which were a boon for this performance. Seeing them on first entering the venue, I knew this shoot would be a technical cakewalk with regard to shutter speeds and keeping ISO down.

Of course, the downside to spotlights is the shadows they can cast, which were an issue with this shoot. As a result, I tried to time my shots for when shadows on Solange’s face were as minimal as possible.

During the first two songs, the background effects were mostly subdued blues and magentas, which gave a cool compliment to Solange’s bright purple-pink dress.

Lenses & Gear:

I shot with the Nikon D3 using the Nikon 24-70mm and Nikon 70-200mm. While I was right up to the stage, I often chose to hang back and shoot with the Nikon 70-200mm for better isolation and more flattering angles.

Exposure & Metering:

I shot this set around f/3.5, 1/500, and ISO 1600. Due to the spotlights the Pageant uses, exact exposure with them is a tricky thing, as the light sources flicker in intensity that can vary as much as one stop.

End Notes:

Even though the alloted time was only two songs, the plentiful light and great subject made this feel like an easy shoot. Even if R&B or soul isn’t your thing, I’d recommend checking out Solange’s performance if you can.

About the author: Todd Owyoung is an internationally published music photographer specializing in concert photography and band portraits. He also grills a mean steak.

Contact Todd for image licensing and assignments wherever the rock show lives. You can also get in touch with Todd via Twitter.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 8th, 2008 at 9:05 pm and is filed under Music Photography and tagged with 2008, 24-70mm, 70-200mm, concert photography, devaughn, images, nikon d3, pageant, raheem, solange, solange knowles, tour. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.