In my off-time I like to use my camera and creativity to help local bands in the central Texas area. In this case I had been asked by a friend of mine to do some shooting for the September shows at the Grey Horse Saloon. The Grey Horse is a rough-around-the-edges sort of venue, a place where music is played at full volume and beer is served ice cold. Having done some work there previously, I was more than happy to help out. While the shoot wasn’t without it’s challenges, it was an overwhelming success for all involved.
Check out the video!
Overall everyone was incredibly enthusiastic about the shots received and immediately the photos I took went into circulation not only on social media, but in the local music scene.
One of the particular challenges of stage lighting is that the light is rarely static, the lights are as much a part of the performance of a band as the performers themselves. This means colors will change, intensity will shift, and entire compositions will change at the blink of an eye. For the photographer this means that the compositions you’re trying to capture are shifting constantly and as such, your perspective must match that.
Performers are an interesting breed, some may be bottles of lightning waiting to be released, others the stoic poet letting their work speak for itself. One of the bigger challenges faced in concert photography is capturing not only those individual moments of each band member, but also the dynamic between the band as a whole. To try and capture this I like to frame the performers off of each other. This not only creates a sense of depth across the stage but also shows a relationship between band members.
