 Jennifer L. Taranto |
First school concert - trying to capture it right My oldest started kindergarten this year and on the 15th her school is having it's first concert of the year. Any tips on getting interesting photos despite all the problems (bad lighting, crowded auditorium)? Not sure if this makes much difference, but I'll be using a Canon 20D with the 28-135 lens (I unfortunately don't have any flash other than the on camera flash). The auditorium is in the middle of the school, so there's no natural lighting. I'll be trying to get there early in hopes of getting a seat up front, but with 400 kids in the school and god only knows how many parents coming I'm not sure where I'll wind up. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance,
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W. |
Tip: shoot kids & animals at eye-level. THEIR eye-level! Bend your knees if you have to. Have fun, Jen! (And ask Santa for a 580EX !)
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Jennifer L. Taranto |
Thanks W! I'm excited. That would be a nice gift from Santa :)
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BetterPhoto Member |
If Santa really loved you then he'd get you a 5D, which is the best camera for women photographers (very light). I know it is costly, but a female friend of my is on a $39.99 a month payment plan which in the end will cost her $300 more than if she payed the full price now. She only has to shot 1 family protrait a month to pay for it. The 20D is nice, but it often has a soft foucs look to it. For some reason it does better in low-light, which will benefit you for this shoot. If I were you I'd sit on the floor in front of everyone, rest my camera on one knee (human monopod)and shoot away.
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Raymond H. Kemp |
The 5D is heavier than the 20D (about 4 ounces). Not sure it can be justified to lay out all that cash just to take photos of kids and school events and an occansional portrait. I think she would be better off keeping the 20D and investing the difference in what W.S. recommended, a flash and I'll throw in a recommendation for a good high quality lens. Ray
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Tami Rook |
and did get some nice shots… they put enough light on the stage a tripod is not a must hope this helps
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Tami Rook |
Jennifer I have found that if you offer to give the school any good photo’s that might turn out and you have a pro camera (any SLR) they will allow you to move around and get some great shots I just shot the Orchestra for our school and I went early got a great seat up front used my 40-150mm lens set to Aperture and did get some nice shots… they put enough light on the stage a tripod is not a must hope this helps
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Mike Rubin |
Your goal is to photograph you child so be sure that you know where they will be positioned so you are in the proper position to capture him/her. IF you are not centered,You would hate to be towards the right and find out your child is to the left. Other shots of the entire group would be good but I think your main focus is your kid.The most important thing is to enjoy seeing him/her perform!
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Christopher A. Vedros |
Jennifer, Is 135mm the longest lens you have? If you can't sit in the front, you may not have enough lens to zoom in on your child. The on-camera flash is only effective at short distances, and you shouldn't use it for this shoot. Typically, when people are performing on a stage, they are lit with spotlights or stage lights, and you can get decent shots of the performers if you ignore the background. Set your camera to ISO 400 and Av mode. Set your metering mode to center-weighted. Set your aperture to its widest setting (smallest f-number like f/3.5 or f/4). Zoom in as much as you can on your child with their face in the center of the viewfinder. If you're not sitting close enough, go up to the front and crouch down for just one shot if you can. See what shutter speed your camera meter suggests. If it's about 1/60th or so, then you're good to go. If the shutter speed is slower, you may need to increase the ISO to 800. Above that will probably be too noisy. Switch your camera to manual mode, set the aperture and shutter speed used above, and shoot the rest on manual. The problem with shooting this event on any setting other than manual is that the meter will likely think that the overall scene is too dark, and will suggest a very slow shutter speed. In reality, there will probably be enough light on the performers to make a decent image. Even if your shots come out a little dark, you can usually lighten them enough on the computer. If you use a shutter speed that is too slow, the moving subjects will be blurred, and there is NO way to fix that. Good luck,
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Jennifer L. Taranto |
Thank you everyone for all of the advice! I can't wait 'til the big day. -- Jenn
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