Seems there was "lot's" of light and no disturbing background ( nice to use negative space) which makes life "easier" and one can concentrate on the the dancers whithout cursing all the time
Aww shucks Daniel, thanks. This was the first event of the season.
Velu, thank you - it was a bit brighter than usual. And yes, without some crazy background (I try to shoot into the wings some when that's the case) it was certainly easier. BTW, you have some awesome images on your site - thanks for commenting.
Thanks Mitch. I shot almost everything with 70-200/2.8 and 5D. It's usually a good time, especially when the performances are good.
Except for Max's number: After the previous routine, where I think I had filled the buffer, I waiting for the card to finish writing (blinking red light) so I could swap cards. It was taking forever... Max's routine was starting so I grabbed my other camera instead, 85/1.8 on 1D3.
More votes for #3 and 5. Great sports tog job on 3 freezing her in a seeming unnatural pose, and lots of energy and great comp in #5. Wonder how the 200/2 would fare in this environment.
Tony, these are great shots. I shoot more dance competitions and performances than I can count, so I know good dance photography when I see it. You've caught the peak moments, as well as those "almost peaks" that have drawn comments here. I like your approach to composition with the solo performers as well. But what really sets these apart from the rest, in my opinion, is the selective use of color. That's a technique I don't often see, and up til now haven't really thought about in terms of my own dance photography. I'm curious, though... was your choice of color treatments and/or black and white driven by poor lighting in the venue? Oftentimes that is a challenge, and if so, you've really hit several home runs with these. You've given me a lot to consider, and a healthy dose of inspiration. Great work!
Tony, truly beautiful and inspiring work. As a "dad with camera" and with three daughters in dance and theater, I have learned a great deal from you posts. Thank you for sharing.
Can you provide a little more detail on your settings? The lighbulb finally came on for me & I started shooting in RAW in the fall but haven't had the chance to shoot a performance yet (season starts this weekend for us). Hoping this will make a difference.
Lighting is always a struggle and my gear pales, but I want to try to continue improving. I am limited to an XTI and a rented 70-200 2.8IS and I never seem to get the pop.
Steve Wylie wrote:
Tony, these are great shots. I shoot more dance competitions and performances than I can count, so I know good dance photography when I see it. You've caught the peak moments, as well as those "almost peaks" that have drawn comments here. I like your approach to composition with the solo performers as well. But what really sets these apart from the rest, in my opinion, is the selective use of color. That's a technique I don't often see, and up til now haven't really thought about in terms of my own dance photography. I'm curious, though... was your choice of color treatments and/or black and white driven by poor lighting in the venue? Oftentimes that is a challenge, and if so, you've really hit several home runs with these. You've given me a lot to consider, and a healthy dose of inspiration. Great work!...Show more →
Thanks Steve, I really appreciate your comments.
The lighting at this performance was fairly bright and I had a plain white background. I usually prefer a black curtain or at least anything other than a garish patterned banner. The b/w images usually speak to me pretty loudly, but there were plenty of images where I didn't want to lose the color... I took to split-toning them - I think it was really effective with that one "creepy" dance.
mrcj724 wrote:
Tony, truly beautiful and inspiring work. As a "dad with camera" and with three daughters in dance and theater, I have learned a great deal from you posts. Thank you for sharing.
Can you provide a little more detail on your settings? The lighbulb finally came on for me & I started shooting in RAW in the fall but haven't had the chance to shoot a performance yet (season starts this weekend for us). Hoping this will make a difference.
Lighting is always a struggle and my gear pales, but I want to try to continue improving. I am limited to an XTI and a rented 70-200 2.8IS and I never seem to get the pop.
I've written up some "notes" (on my blog, here) but they're not finished. That should get you started though. I like raw for the headroom in processing and the freedom with white balance, I don't shoot shotgun, but I do run into the buffer on the 5D once in a while with a good number.
I started shooting dance with 300D and 70-200/2.8 (non-IS). Out of all the cameras I've had (300,20,30,5,1D3), the rebel was the worst with focus and high-iso noise. But this isn't unexpected as the oldest and lowliest member of the family... My keeper rate went up tremendously when I got the 20D (I knew it wasn't just me!).
