Advice for capturing brightly-lit moving targets in the dark

July 4, 2009 12:37 AM

I'm taking still pictures and video of a hard rock-like spectacle tomorrow. What do you think my exposure and ISO settings should be?

The show has complicated theatrical lighting that constantly shifts, both in terms of how much light is aimed at the stage, and also what color. At a few points, there are strobe lights.

To complicate things further, the band members are constantly moving around like crazed marionettes trying to break free from their invisible strings.

The one thing I have one my side is that I know the lighting guy, and he has agreed to coach me as to the best moments in each song to focus on specific band members when they are well-lit.

I am using a Canon 5d Mark II for still photos, video, and both at once. During their last show, I locked down the ISO at 3200 because of how dark it was at several points, but that proved not only to make the picture grainier than I think it needed to be, but also made the bright moments blow out.

Here is a video of the band (Cordel do Fogo Encantado). The second half of the clip gives you a sense of what I'm up against.

posted by umbú to media & arts (8 comments total)

I'm skeptical that you don't already have a pretty good understanding of the tradeoffs you're necessarily making. Low light photography is all about tradeoffs, right?

For instance: Don't want the highlights blown out? Stop it down and lose some more shadow detail. Or: Things are moving fast so you want a fast lens instead of IS, but it's on a stage and you're not, so you want a long lens, and maybe you don't want to also pay a million bucks and wind up lugging a 3 kilogram chunk of glass around.

Really there's not a lot of tricks here - you are constrained by the light you can get on the sensor, and you already know it. The only thing I can think of to say is maybe shoot at a lower ISO and bump the brightness in post when you can't get things wide or long enough. Doing that shouldn't introduce much more noise than shooting at the higher ISO in the first place.
posted by aubilenon at 1:02 AM on July 4 [1 favorite has favorites]

First, set the metering to spot , not average. Secondly, 3200 is quite high. I have used 1600 as a max (with real film). I also set my shutter speed to a minimum 60 or 100, this will assure at least a somewhat stable shot. As far as technique, I would take a few moments at the start of the show to zoom in on spotlit faces and see what the meter is telling you. Remember those settings and zoom out. See the difference? The faces will be washed out. So set the camera manually to the zoomed in settings and shoot away. Some shots may be a little under or over depending on the difference in lighting, but you'll probably get enough good ones.
posted by Gungho at 4:56 AM on July 4

Use your meter and use your LCD. In the first few seconds of an act take a few test shots. Look at your LCD and then adjust accordingly. If you understand how to use a spot meter then do that as well. Remember if you expose for a singers face in bright light to adjust exposure up a bit for skin tone, but not too much to avoid blowing out your highlights. Be sure to check the LCD on occasion during the show, to avoid issues.

The lighting in that video to me looks fantastic, use it to your advantage. The biggest mistakes you can make that I can think of are using too high of an ISO and too slow of a shutter speed.

I can read the anxiety in your question and I know where you are coming from. I notice a lot of photographers who may just be starting out always ask what the settings are that someone shot something in. Really that isn't going to help you as much as you might think. I mean maybe if we are standing next to each other shooting the same thing then it may help but otherwise every single situation is different and every single photographer interprets that situation differently.

The biggest thing to remember is that this is all you. It doesn't matter what settings others have shot concerts in. You are the photographer, you have creative control here, so go nuts and do what I am sure you know how to do. Just remember a few key tips that apply to most photography (don't overexpose, high enough shutter speed to stop action, use fast glass if you have it. etc...) and you will be good to go. Enjoy the show.
posted by WickedPissah at 7:40 AM on July 4

Check around the interwebs!

Popular Photography magazine has a good article or two:

http://www.popphoto.com/Features/How-to/Secrets-of-Killer-Concert-Photos-Revealed
http://www.popphoto.com/Features/How-to/How-To-Shoot-a-Stadium-From-the-Stands
posted by photomusic86 at 8:30 AM on July 4

Thanks all--really reasonable advice. WickedPissah, you're right that I'm anxious and starting out with this monster gear from work (which I'm excited about, but not sure yet how to best utilize).
posted by umbú at 9:43 AM on July 4

What are you lens options? I wouldn't shoot with anything slower than f/2.8, and I've never used anything slower than f/1.8.

The 5D MKII has excellent low-light capabilities, so don't be afraid of using ISO1600. I've only ever shot gigs on manual exposure, but if you're worried about varying light conditions, you could shoot them on Tv, which is shutter priority, and just stick it at 1/125th or so. I'd put it at spot metering no matter what, as there'll be wildly varying light conditions across the frame, and probably meter off the faces. If you do use an automatic metering mode, get adept at adjusting the exposure adjustment.

Lastly, take a crapload of pictures. Seriously, way more than you think. Bring lots of memory cards. Don't bring an external flash, it kills the atmosphere.

Above all, have fun!
posted by Magnakai at 11:12 AM on July 4

Magnaki, I have a Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 lens, and the 24-105mm f/4 lens. The problem with using the 50mm is the distance from the stage without the zoom. I'll try it though, and probably switch off throughout the night.

I just saw the stage, and this time it'll be about 15-18 feet up from the ground, unfortunately. I may be forced to only take side shots from the stage.

This has been really helpful. Thanks.
posted by umbú at 11:25 AM on July 4

To follow up, I lowered the ISO to 1600, or even 800 in certain cases, except for when it was almost pitch dark, in which case, I went back toe 3200. I stuck the shutter speed between 1/100 and 1/200, and I shot using continuous shooting the entire night. As a result, I have an insane amount of photos to sort through (700?) but I caught some great moments.

Thanks all--these shots are much better than my last try. I'll post a link to them once I've processed the RAW files and posted them.
posted by umbú at 8:46 AM on July 6