Lights, Camera, ACTION!
Ok, the action has begun, but how do you CAPTURE the action without it becoming one big blur? Great question! Of course, it depends on the type of camera you have and what you are shooting. Typically, you are not allowed to use flash photography for the safety of the performers, so you have to know how to use your camera's other settings to get good shots. Today's info will be on stage photography.
My oldest daughters are in their school's show choirs and when they compete, they are in constant motion and they are under stage lights. To me, that is one of the hardest arenas to photograph because the lighting is not the same in each part of the stage. In other words, depending on where your subject is standing, your photos will come out differently. For the past 4 years, I have worked at getting the perfect (well, as close to perfect as possible) shots of them and their choirmates (is that even a word?).
If you have a camera with the "running man" icon, choose him. That will work well many times. I shoot with a Canon 5D Mark ii. I put the ISO on 6400 and the last time I shot them (no one was injured, I promise!), I chose the shutter priority setting. Here are some of my photos:
Here, my lovely daughter, Ansley, is in place waiting for their show to begin. Snap LOTS of photos when the action is paused! I used a zoom lens (300mm) so that I could get the kids on the back row as well as the ones on the front. There are lenses that get even closer! Maybe one day I'll have one of those!
Now THAT's action! In the past, this would be a blur and I would get so mad at myself! I was pretty happy with how this turned out. I would have liked to have caught it when more of the girls' faces were showing, but I wasn't quite fast enough.
Can you tell that Meg and Matthew are in motion? Look at her hair! It is flappin' in the wind!
Ansley's hair!
I have also used a Canon T2i with a zoom lens to capture show choir photos. It did a good job, but not quite as sharp as the 5D. The color is not quite as good, either. Here are some of Hayden that I took last year with the T2i using the "running man" icon:
Look at the lighting here (above). Hayden is toward the front of the stage where there is less light but look at the guys and gals behind her-they are in bright light. Stage lighting can be tough!
When you are shooting stage photography, it helps to ask questions beforehand. It helps to know what part of the stage your subject will be in if you are going to be shooting one particular person. While my daughters are on stage and I want to get photos of them, I am also shooting the other members of the choir. I attend their dress rehearsals so that I get an idea of what their show will be like and then try to position myself a little bit off exact center due to the microphone placement. That way, I can get a pretty good view of all the members of the group at some point of their show. You can't move around at these events, so stake out your seat early!
I hope this helps you with getting some action shots under stage lighting. You can see more of my show choir photos on my Facebook page.
Happy Shooting!
Andrea:)
