Opening for Big Head Todd & The Monsters, Trampled Underfoot probably had some of the most gorgeous lighting I've ever seen for an opening band. While the effects weren't super bright, and thus required primes for a good portion of the shooting, the production for this trio proved that even dim lighting, given the proper exposure, can look fantastic.
Photographer's Notes:
Cameras Used:
- Nikon D3
- Nikon D700
Lenses Used:
This gig with Trampled Under Foot was lit from the front exclusively with an LED rig that had some dedicated white bulbs, mixed with orange output. While LED lights often get a bad reputation among music photographers, these lights looked fantastic, thanks to the dedicated white bulbs. Often, LED rigs will have an RGB array that are mixed to create white-ish light, which looks alright to the audience but often photographs poorly. Not the case for this gig.
Mix in a little backlighting and a lot of haze, this show was gorgeous – albiet dim enough that it necessitated shooting with primes.
Sometimes low quantity of light can still mean good quality, so I was thankful for the Nikon D3, D700 and my f/1.4 primes to open up the relative darkness for this show.
My Camera DSLR and Lenses for Concert Photography
| Nikon D850: I use two Nikon D850 for my live music photography. A true do-it-all DSLR with amazing AF, fast response, and no shortage of resolution. |
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8: For most gigs, the 24-70mm is my go-to lens. Exceptional image quality at wide apertures and super-functional range. |
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR: A perfect pair to the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8, I can basically shoot any job with the midrange and this lens. Superb image quality. |
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8: Ultra-wide perspective, ridiculously sharp even wide open at f/2.8. I love using this lens up-close and personal, where it excels. |
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