As a concert photographer, I really have to smile at the fact that Julian Casablancas covered Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” at the Pageant, as that song’s title is a haiku-worthy description for the singer’s performance.
Photographer’s Notes:
Photographing Julian Casablancas was rough. In doing research for this show, I saw that the sets seemed hit or miss, which generally indicates that house lights are used. And, as such, it’s all up to the venue and their setup.
At the Pageant, which has a fantastic lighting setup, the one huge challenge is that the lighting rig is super high up in the ceiling – probably a good 30-feet above the stage. Following the inverse square law and lightfall off, light levels drop off very fast this far out. Hence, Julian Casablancas dancing in the dark.
I shot this set exclusively with f/1.4 primes, relying heavily on the Nikon 85mm f/1.4 for many of the tighter shots. Meanwhile, the Nikon 50mm f/1.4 was nice as a more midrange lens for full-length and waist-up shots (when in closer).
People often ask me which lens they should when starting out in concert photography, and I often say it’s hard to go with a fast prime like the Nikon 50mm f/1.4. For all the arena tours and national club tours with their own lights, primes are rarely needed. But for shows like this with a very bare and decidedly dim aesthetic, nothing beats a fast prime.
This entry was posted on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 at 6:16 am and is filed under Music Photography and tagged with images, julian casablancas, live, music, music photography, photos, rock, solo, strokes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Photos: Julian Casablancas laughs at music photographers, covers Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" http://bit.ly/deMP6B
RT @toddowyoung: Photos: Julian Casablancas laughs at music photographers, covers Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" http://bit.ly/deMP6B
Whoops, fixed the Julian C. post – full of images and shooting notes (re:dancing in the dark) http://ow.ly/1EHgX
@toddowyoung whew! That is definitely some red lighting going on! – RT Juliac C. post http://ow.ly/1EHgX
RT @toddowyoung: Whoops, fixed the Julian C. post – full of images and shooting notes (re:dancing in the dark) http://ow.ly/1EHgX
??????????? RT @toddowyoung: Whoops, fixed the Julian C. post full of images and shooting notes (re:dancing in the dark) http://ow.ly/1EHgX
Low light seems to be his modus operandi. It was the same here in Houston, I regret not sticking with my f/1.8 50mm
http://groovehouse.org/wordpress/?p=1970
Hi Eric, thanks for the comment. Both the Strokes and Julian Casablancas seem to like the dim lighting, that’s for sure.
Looks like you faced the exact same kind of lighting.
Hey Todd,
Love the photos of Julian here!
I just took photos of the Temper Trap with my Nikon d700 using Nikon 50mm f/1.4! Love that lens !!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jordanklugman/
Photos: Julian Casablancas laughs at music photographers, covers Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" http://bit.ly/deMP6B
Looks like a tough shoot, not only because of the lighting but because Julian has serious mikeface. I’ve seen him before, and he rarely leaves the mike stand. Oh well…
Epic set Todd. Julian is a favorite!
- fotografia: julian casablancas -> http://bit.ly/aacV8C