Concert Photography – A recap of UMX 2008

Your first try at concert photography can be intimidating.

In 2008 I volunteered with the Denver Darkroom to photograph the Ultimate Music Experience (UMX) at Bender’s bar in Denver. Since 1974 the Capitol Hill United Neighborhood has hosted an event called the Capitol Hill’s People Fair. Food booths, vendors, musicians and artists fill the central part of Denver by the State capitol to celebrate Denver’s diverse urban community and its residents

The UMX is the tryouts for bands wanting to perform at the People’s Fair. Two days of 80 bands playing from 10:00am to 6:00pm on two stages – all play for 15 minutes and the winners are selected by the fans.

In 2008 I wasn’t so sure I was into concert photography. I had decided I needed to pare down the types of photography I enjoyed before venturing into small business land and I was pretty sure concert and band photography was going in the bin. I hadn’t tried concert photography but I wasn’t exactly a fan of bars (I more of a pub guy myself) and loud music – little did I know.

I arrived at Bender’s at 9:30  looking, and feeling, like a total weenie. I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt over which I had donned my photographer’s vest (yes, it is beige). I really wanted to show up sporting a nice Think Tank belt system but money was tight and why spend it on something I might never use again.

At the time I was shooting with a Canon 20D (8.1mp, 5 fps, 1.6x sensor) with vertical grip. I had a kit lens, the 28-135mm f/3.5 – 5.6 IS, a 50mm f/1.4 and, because I was worried about speed, my 100mm f/2.8 macro. I had also brought along my 580ex flash just in case I was allowed to use it.

Not exactly the concert photographer’s kit of choice, but you’ve got to work with what you’ve got.

Reading up on concert photography on-line I had gotten the basic idea of what it was all about. Speed, sharp focus with a shallow depth of field and capturing the moment. Simple backgrounds, shots of the crowd, etc, etc. I walked into Bender’s at 9:30 and knew immediately that I was in trouble.

One stage was set at the end of the bar, tucked into a corner with yellow wallpaper and a green glowing exit sign right behind the drum kit. All told the stage was about 30 square feet with the stage floor at chest level to the crowd. Great setting if you want ugly backgrounds and views up performers noses; not so great if your looking for a simple introduction to concert photography. I doubted that even my faster lenses would allow me to throw the background into a pleasing blur at the distances I’d be shooting. Well nothing worth doing ever comes easy.

The other stage was more traditional. Set in a much larger room the stage was 100 square feet, thigh height with a simple black background. There was plenty of space to spread out here, an upper deck to photograph the crowd, and the sound booth to snag some “artistic” shots of the mixing board.

This I could handle, this stage might actually be fun.

I took some in-camera meter readings trying to get a feel for what I’d be shooting at. I would be pushing it with the kit lens but the 100mm macro and 50mm would work. If I could pop some flash I’d be much better off – although mixing flash temperature and club incandescent temperature wasn’t going to be my favorite look.

The music started at 10:00 and I dove in. I think if you’re going to try something, especially if you’re not sure of it, you’ll want to commit 100%. Anything less and you are setting up a self fulfilling prophesy of disappointment.

It was my first experience shooting in a group of other photographers, shooting bands, and shooting in such “challenging” lighting. It didn’t take me long to realize I was having a blast. I was poorly prepared but I was having fun, laughing with the other photographers and making these local bands feel like rock stars (it turns out flashes were allowed).

In the end putting myself out there was a great lesson. It reminded me of what connects me to photography; fun, camaraderie and the ability to make people share a moment.

Who could ask for more?

This entry was posted on Friday, March 27th, 2009 at 3:21 pm and is filed under Concert Photography and tagged with Concert Photography, discovery, learning, UMX. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.