In time for the weekend here is a new edition of my “Instant Inspirations”, something for you to try to overcome photographers block or if you simply want to give your photography a new angle. This ninth episode should inspire you to combine photography with music. How about using your camera to capture some fond memories of a memorable concert? For a bit of how-to, lots of photos and links to some previous episodes of “Instant Inspirations” continue reading after the jump…..
The other week I went to a concert taking along my inconspicuous PEN-F with the m.Zuiko 17mm f/1,8 attached and the m.Zuiko 75mm f/1,8 in my pocket. The 17mm (relates to 34mm in full frame format due to the m4/3 crop factor of 2) is my favorite lens for street photography and served as the wide-angle glass for the concert, while the marvelous 75mm (150mm full frame, normally my go-to portrait lens) was used for close up shots of the musicians.
Just to put things into perspective, I was in the audience about ten rows from the front, translating to about 15-20 meters from the artists on stage. ISO 3200 was the max ISO I used on these photos and I went down to 200, which is quite amazing for indoor shooting with a mirrorless system.
My Olympus PEN-F with the 17mm and 75mm primes is a great combo to shoot concert. And while you would probably not be able to take your DSLR into the venue the PEN-F is small enough to fly under the radar.
But regardless of the camera you use, capturing the vibrant atmosphere of a concert is a challenging photographic task. Of course you need to check if cameras are allowed at all. Photography for personal use is normally not a problem. Besides, if you don’t want to take your camera into a big concert you can start small. Go into a local club and ask if you can take photographs of the session of a local artist. Or ask the artist himself. Especially the ones starting out themselves might even be interested in getting some photos of their performances. Get out of your comfort zone and try yourself at photographing a musical performance. And hey, besides having a chance at some interesting photography you might also enjoy the concert itself.
I leave with you with some more photos of my first real effort at concert photography.
Have a great weekend!
Marcus
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Your work never disappoints and your shits are brilliant as always. Really enjoy visiting your blog and so glad you are on here and that our paths have crossed. Hugs my friend.
Thanks, you know this means a lot to me 🙂 ! Hugs back!
Hahaha just now noticed that spellcheck corrected the word “shots” to “shits” hahaha. I know you know what I meant and hope you got a good chuckle out of this one. 😂. Well I guess what I was trying to say after all is that your shots are the shit. 👍🏼
Jokes aside, you know I am one of your biggest fans my friend.
lol…..saw that and had a chuckle myself…the spell check ridiculed me so many times 😉 And I know…..and this means so much 🙂
Ziemlich geniale Aufnahmen, Hut ab!! Sehr stimmungsvoll und authentisch!
Danke schöne, freue mich sehr über dein Feedback!
These are fantastic! My favourite is #8 – the one with the smartphone in focus and the performance blurred in the background. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Vanessa, really appreciate your great feedback!
Stunning photos Marcus – you have caught the concert atmosphere on your camera so well. Hope you have a good weekend. We had a light snowfall here yesterday so I’m planning a walk later to take some photos!
Thanks so much for your kind feedback, M. 🙂 ! Here it has been snowing through the night and all morning. Fighting a nasty cold I better use the weekend to recover. Enjoy shooting in the snow and have a great weekend yourself! Marcus
You created a fantastic atmosphere in your pictures! Colors and light are splendid. A lot of energy in every image!
Thanks so much for your kind words 😊🙏! Marcus
Those are amazing Marcus. They are all great, but I LOVE the fourth one down, the one with the big screen in the back and the heads. Awesome!
Thanks, Janet, your feedback means a lot! I love this shot as well. I had so much fun experimenting consciously with the camera during the concert, although it earned me some very critical looks from my wife 😉
Haha! I can relate. Well, glad you did. 🙂