Different shows result in different photos. It can depend on the artist, the venue, the songs played. But even during a same show in just course of those first three songs that photographs usually get to get their shots it’s possible to get some rather diverse images, which all represent the different aspects of the particular live music experience.
Point in case:
The Pineapple Thief 2019 show at Store Vega in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Let’s quickly go through the diversity of shots that because of that present the diversity of the show and band’s music in general.
1: The immersive shot
The kind of shot that captures the artist immersed into their music, delivering a performance that is passionate and honest. These moments don’t occur so often, so knowing the artists’ body of work is an advantage in “predicting” where such moments might occur.
2: The layering and the depth
Regardless of the genre and the overall approach, there are always several layers to music, performance and even the stage setup. Capturing the depth on an image communicates those elements effectively on a visual media.
3: Background in front
Focus often seems to be at the front of the stage but there is often a lot important happening in the background as well. Bringing the background to the front balances the experience and gives it more of complete feel.
4: Passionate and direct
One of the most important aspects of live music performance is that direct live experience. It’s what gives the music additional rawness and feel of real world – something that is hard to achieve while listening to music in the safety of own home.
5: Full spectre
Photographic focus is often on individuals, but it’s crucial not to neglect the interplay between the band members and the entire microcosm that is the stage as a whole. That’s where dynamics and vitality of the show often come to life.
6: Piece of the puzzle
Sure, the biggest load is carried by the images of individuals as it’s them that deliver the show and it’s them that connect with the crowd and basically create the magic. But most of image collections from any given concert are served well by a close-up shot or two. Small detail which ads an extra layer to the experience.
7: Up-close and personal
Sometimes those up-close and personal shots ad the humanity to the experience of the show. These are real people presenting their art right therein front of us. They might be wrapped in stage lights, props and choreographies, but we are dealing with people here and that aspects shouldn’t be neglected in live music photography.
