I mentioned in another thread about a band that I used to manage. Well they've asked that I catch shots for them, and simply because I can take so many shots; I'm bound to get a bunch of good ones!

None the less, I'm clueless on how to properly use my camera in a concert/club setting. How would you tell a newb to basically set a D80 up to shoot at a concert?

Here are a few shots. They're not great by any means, but I put them here as a baseline. How do I set the cam up to have the opportunity to get good shots regularly?

 

Consider renting the 70-200/2.8 VR lens. A fast, constant (F 2.8) telephoto zoom with vibration reduction would be ideal.

If you need a fast wide angle, the DX format makes it a bit more difficult although the 10.5/2.8 DX fisheye is a great lens. I have the 12-24/4 which is a great lens, but it may not be fast enough in low light.

Just my 2 cents...I'd wait for the pros to weigh in though...

 

Your biggest issue is your shutter speed - it's killing you here; it looks like the computer knocked it down to 1/6th of a second in order to compensate for the diminished lighting. Bump your ISO up to 800, possibly higher (I'm not sure about noise patterns on the D80) to compensate a bit. You need to get that up; right now, nothing is in focus due to camera shake.

Beyond that, what lenses do you own? You're going to need something that lets a lot of light in (so you won't have to bump up your ISO quite as much, among other things).

Also, try and get low to the ground. I've noticed that a lot of clubs go to great efforts to make the artists seem larger than life - do your best to try and mimic that (without making it seem like Triumph of the Will) in your shots.

Best of luck!

 

Wow! And thats just the starting point!

Thank you!

I have crap for lenses, I just got the camera, and I have no idea what to buy.

Would the lense that Al mentioned be a place to start lense wise? (I didn't know one could rent lenses...)

 

I'm not expert, but I'd also recommend shooting in RAW to allow you correct mistakes later (white balance, exposure, ect. ect.)

 

Good guidance! But I've got enough trouble learning how to take a shot!
Add touching up to the equation, and I'm way screwed for a while to come!

 

Let that f2.8 shizzle alone. f1.2 is where it's at for such low light. Buy or rent a prime f1.2 (50mm usually ...) and ejoy shooting.

The only sharp shots look hazy ... PShop that!

 

Except that Nikon doesn't have a 1.2 prime .

The best prime lens, IMHO, would be the 85/1.4 which isn't an AF-S, but has awesome bokeh. But, it all depends on how much latitude Choke has on stage for composing pics. The zoom telephoto with VR will give him more flexibility IMHO.

The D80 has pretty good high ISO performance at ISO 800 or even 1600. But, Nikon high ISO "noise" has always been a bit behind Canon especially given the tendency of Nikon to emphasize chroma noise reduction.

 

BorrowLenses.com - Camera Rental and Canon/Nikon Lens Rental is a great place to go to for glass rentals. I'd recommend:

BorrowLenses.com - Camera Rental and Canon/Nikon Lens Rental

I own one and would be more than happy to loan it to you (you seem like a trustworthy guy ), but it's got to be sent in for repairs .

 

I responded in your other thread...but I figured this would be a better explanation....this is the ONLY way to get proper shots at concerts and dimly lit live events...


The only way to get a shot at a concert or a sporting event in a dimly lit indoor arena is "dragging the shutter."

What is dragging the shutter?

Dragging the shutter is using flash and existing light at the same time to create more natural looking lighting. Basically you manually set the camera to a slow shutter speed (1/30) to allow existing light to illuminate your background while using your flash to stop the motion of your subject. It also allows the background to motion blur (depending on where/what you're shooting. It's paticularly neat when lights are in the background.)

So...basically the shutter is used for ambient light, and the flash is used to expose your subject.

Some light reading...
ilovephotography.com -- Light Readings Article #9

Perfect example of what it does....


See how the front of the kid (where the flash hit) is perfectly exposed, but the rear section of him is missing? Dragged shutter. Master this, and you will go up a notch in the photography world.