In the first two articles of this news we learned a number of things about the correct behavior of a live concert photographer and the settings of their camera. In this last part I will give you clues about what you should consider and pay attention to while shooting.

In fact, now that you are ready to shot, the hardest part comes. What to photograph? And how? Well, this is a very personal choice, and it is certainly a matter of taste and inspiration. And of subject. Anyway, here is a summary of hopefully useful guidelines.

Follow the rules
The rules of thirds, for example. The image of a musician playing their instrument will be more capturing if they appear off centered: the whole image will result more dynamic.



Break the rules
The rules of thirds, for example. The image of a drummer behind their drums will look like a cinema show, if centered in a 16:9 frame. Don't be stuck in the classical 2/3 or 3/4 formats... experiment, for example, with panoramic formats (2:1 and higher).



Capture expressions
How many expressions can you see on the face of a musician playing his instrument? Melancholy? Joy? Satisfaction? Concentration? Effort? All of them, and often more than one at a time. So, take that feeling into your shots. A musician playing in relax is doing their job and, since that job is a passion, chances are that it be the good moment for a portrait. However, try to imagine the expression of effort, so deep it looks like pain, musicians have when they bring their instruments to the limits and beyond, and take the music out from their own soul... you will understand the difference.



Pay attention to details
Even the greatest things are made of details. An instrument lying there on the stage... A hand caressing the strings of a guitar... A microphone reflecting the colors of the spotlights... Sometimes it is from details that you can render the particular atmosphere of a concert and its vibrations. How much can you understand of a musician and their concert just from a handwritten tracklist stitched on the stage floor, with corrections and all the rest?



Follow the solos
Photography is not video, it does not support audio. However, you know, musicians don't play always with the same intensity. Even if during solos they usually move faster and are more difficult to photograph, make a try. And another. And another. And one more. Don't feel in a hurry. Compose the frame, follow the movement with your camera, wait for the right moment, shoot a fast series of shots. You'll get the best poses and expressions you can ever imagine, full of feeling and atmosphere. So many times I happened to think that I would enjoy the show even if I was completely deaf.



Portray the instrument too, not just the player
A drummer moves and behaves very differently from a piano player. A piano player does not move as a singer. Not all the singers move in the same way and with the same style when they sing. So, your portraits will result more interesting and brilliant if you take in account what instrument the musician is playing, their style in playing, what kind of performance they are involved in. You will notice that each different instrument requires its own technique to be played, and this always implies a certain way to approach and play the instrument itself. You will also see that musicians' personality can significantly change the way they apply their instrument's technique. Each musician develops their own technique for the instrument they play, it's part of their unique style. By focusing on movements and gestures and catching the differences existing among musicians, chances are that you capture a concept, a style, rather than simply a portrait.



Move your camera
Don't hold your camera horizontal or vertical necessarily: remember that the diagonal of the frame is longer than its longest side, so a slanted position allows to accommodate large things (like a bass guitar, for example) in the image without zooming out. This is also a good way to catch unusual perspectives.



Take your camera to the limits
What can your camera do for you? Try to get the most out of its power. For example, you will find that taking long and fast sequences of shots allows to select among slight variations of the same pose, and you will have the chance to choose the best ones. Fast sequences also help in reducing the impact of your own movement, especially if you shoot with a not so fast shutter time: maybe you are not aware, but when you press and release the shutter, you shake the camera. What features your camera has, that could be useful?

Never use a flashlight
Besides the fact that it could annoy the musicians... you don't want to kill colors and atmosphere, do you?

Master the light
Clean cut shadows and deep contrast can be great features of a photograph, particularly if they make some detail stand out, or add depth to the subject, or make the image more intense and dramatic. This kind of effect is usually more evident in black and white: again, a skillful use of your digital darkroom will reveal what can not be immediately noticed in the LCD screen. Always shoot in color, you will decide later.



Catch the interplay
One of the treasures of jazz is improvisation, and this is even more true in live concerts. Have you ever noticed the way jazz musicians interplay during improvisation? It is a game of sound and sight, of ears and eyes, of reciprocal understanding at a glance. Capture that glance. You'll always see lots of fun in it. Make those who look at your photo understand what or whom the musician was looking at, and why.



Never be satisfied
Do you think you have already taken the perfect shot? Maybe you are right, but never feel satisfied. Keep in mind that most flaws and imperfections are difficult to be seen in the tiny LCD screen of a camera. Its low resolution hides blurriness, even if it is quite significant. Unless your camera can blink overexposed areas, they are very hard to notice. So, shoot and shoot again. You don't know if the light engineer has already given their best. And you never know if your hero will perform the best poses just one minute after you have turned your camera off. You will be able to select the best shots later, at home, once you have downloaded them to your pc.

Think different
Don't despair if you could not take a technically perfect photograph of that particular moment, or expression, or pose. Maybe, looking at it carefully, you will discover that it is terribly alive, even if its composition looks somehow weird, or it is blurry. Does it give a feeling, the feeling of that moment? Does it render the atmosphere? Remember that jazz musicians themselves often privilege feeling over technical perfection.



Feel the music
Well, after all you are at a concert. Enjoy it and don't spend all of your energies and attention on your camera. Listen to the music, try to distinguish the sound and melody of each single instrument. Discover how they are mixed together, the way they interact, how they speak each other. This way, you will be able to know when a solo is to begin, you will feel which instrument will be featured in that particular song. You will understand how to predict when a musician will pose as you'd like for the best portrait. You will know what to shoot, and when, and how. Your technical skill will improve concert after concert, so...

...feel the music, and photographs will come.

PS: I am currently writing a tutorial about live concert photos post processing. My goal is to explain some tricks that can dramatically improve the quality of photographs taken in such difficult conditions. I will upload it to my gallery as soon as it is completed. Expect to see it quite soon.

Now, enjoy this last set of great jazz pics.