Ludo are one band that’s basically a little slice of music photographer heaven: an infectiously upbeat band (with equally energetic fans) who mugs from the first song to the last. And of course, the band always allows photographers to shoot their entire set, so if you’re in the photo pit, you’ll have the chance to catch it all (light willing).
Photographer’s Notes:
I’ve shot Ludo several times over the last few years and without hesitation, their shows are always one to which I look forward. Silly on-stage antics and a fun atmosphere all around make the band’s performance’s a blast to cover again and again.
In an age filled with the ubiquitous “first-three, no flash,” Ludo’s photographer-friendly attitude is refreshing. Press are invited to shoot their hearts out over the entirety of the band’s set – usually about an hour and a half.
Overall, lighting was probably best on drummer matt Palermo, who got splashes of white light from above to break up the red, orange, and magenta washes that dominated the back of the stage.
The rest of the band was largely backlit more than anything else, with lots of lush colored lighting flooding through the haze on stage.
The lighting for the set was dim enough that I broke out the 50mm f/1.4 for this set and shot around f/1.6 and f/1.8 for a good deal of the show, just as I did for Ha Ha Tonka’s set.
Due to the combination of speaker monitors and the height of the stage, this wasn’t really a “wide-angle” show for me, so in this regard the 50mm was really a quite nice focal length. Tim Convy on the Moog and Andrew Volpe were especially good subjects for the fast 50 due to their positioning on the stage.
In addition to the 50mm prime, I did shoot quite a bit with the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 and Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8. The 14-24mm only came out for a few more close-up snaps of Convy and Palermo.
End Notes:
Sick of three-song limits limits? Go find a band like Ludo who rocks out and loves photographers.
Big thanks to Tim Convy and and all of Ludo for setting me up for this show.
This entry was posted on Thursday, October 29th, 2009 at 4:42 pm and is filed under Music Photography and tagged with 2009, broken bride, images, live music, ludo, music photographer, Music Photography, music photography, photos, redbird records, rock, tour. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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RT @toddowyoung "We don't need no stinking 3-song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers, and you should love them, too: http://retwt.me/1IFp7
RT @toddowyoung "We don't need no stinking 3-song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers, and you should love them, too: http://retwt.me/1IFp7
gorg! RT @toddowyoung "We don't need no stinking 3-song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers & you should love them too http://retwt.me/1IFp7
RT:"We don't need no stinking 3song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers and u should love them too: http://retwt.me/1IFp7 (via @toddowyoung)
Todd, love these! I especially love the one with the gorgeous bluegreen light shining down – http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2529/4040791901_e33fd39743.jpg …so pretty…
Well done as always!
also, the first one shot up through the drum cymbals, *amazing*!
Hi Elisa,
Thanks for the comments, I appreciate the picks.
Awesome work as usual Todd!
I particularly love that first photo of the drummer. Outstanding! :)
Hey João,
Thanks for the feedback!
Awww Ludo is love. Nice pics!
Yup, love these guys.
Genius as always. Love the drummer pics!
Hi Mel,
Thanks for the comment – seems like the drummer shots are popular. It was great to have an all-access pass to get up close to drummer Matt Palermo to get some more unique shots that aren’t possible from the photo pit.
Surprisingly, nobody has ever reminded me about the 3 song rule when issuing me a photo pass nor have they enforced it at the shows either. I usually remove my self from the pit after 3 anyway as a courtesy, but nobody has ever come to collect me after 3 songs.
Of course, I’m not exactly shooting U2 either.
Hi Clayton,
As far as the 3-song rule, it does depend on the venue and their security as to how it’s enforced. Some venues are very strict, while others aren’t – and if tour managers don’t say anything, one might well stay in to photograph the whole set.
I soooooo LOVE the 1st shot of the drummer! *dark green with envy*
Hey Roxanne, thanks for the kind words. Luckily, I’ve shot Ludo several times, so they don’t mind if I go on stage for a bit to get close-ups like this.
These are amazing photos! You are very talented and I will definitely be checking back to see more!
Hi Tori,
Thanks very much, please do come back to check out the work!
Great pictures of Pmo! Being in the audience, you can never get good pictures of him because of the placement of his cymbals…so I love seeing great shots of him!
And you definitely captured the great Convy expressions!
Another job well done, Todd!
Hi Jessica,
Thanks for the kind words. Yeah, Matt’s drumkit setup can make it a bit tricky, especially if you’re shooting from the crowd and can’t get into the one or two spots where it’s actually clear shooting. Glad to hear you liked the shots!
Another strong set. Seeing your shots I realize I need to make more use of my 50mm. Thanks for including the video. I find myself wanting to hear more from these guys.
Hey Scott,
I, too, need to grab the 50mm more when I can. It’s easy to get used to knocking out gigs with zoom lenses, but nothing beats a fast prime when the light drops.
Music Photos: Ludo Live at the Pageant | ishootshows.com: … 2009.12.12 The Dillinger Escape Plan; 2009.12.13 .. http://bit.ly/F3gim
"We don't need no stinking 3-song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers, and you should love them, too: http://retwt.me/1IFp7
Music Photos: Ludo Live at the Pageant | ishootshows.com: … 2009.12.12 The Dillinger Escape Plan; 2009.12.13 .. http://bit.ly/F3gim
RT @toddowyoung: "We don't need no stinking 3-song rule" @LudoRock loves photographers, and you should love them, too: http://retwt.me/1IFp7
@LudoRock @toddowyoung photos from the pageant look great! bummed i missed you guys in chicago. next time! http://retwt.me/1IFp7
what a great set man you killed it as always ….. I shot at the pageant for the first time over the weekend and found it a bit of a challenging
Hey Corey,
Thanks for the comment. Hope you enjoyed shooting at the Pageant, though you’re right – it can be a real challenge for some shows, depending on the lighting.
[...] Under blooming backlights and a stage covered in haze, Denver four-piece Meese rocked the Pageant in support of Ludo on the Broken Bride tour. [...]
hey Todd great pic man question did you use a flash on any of them very cool love the colors man -chris ;)
Ludo: http://ishootshows.com/2009/10/29/ludo/ via @addthis