Sponsored by
How to . . . be a rock photographer
WHETHER it's Pete Townshend throwing one of his trademark windmills, Topper Headon of The Clash smashing his bass, or a group of musicians at the local, a photograph can capture the very essence of rock 'n' roll in a single frame.
WHETHER it's Pete Townshend throwing one of his trademark windmills, Topper Headon of The Clash smashing his bass, or a group of musicians at the local, a photograph can capture the very essence of rock 'n' roll in a single frame.After years of receiving demos and promo discs, I’ve come to realise that rock photography is something that can be done very well, or spectacularly badly.
Peterborough photographer Mike Harris – known to most as Mike Da Hat – has committed any number of our local rock heroes to film, and said he resolutely avoids music photographic clichs.
“So many bands have their picture taken in that diamond formation or standing in front of a wall – it can be so boring,” he said.
Mike kindly agreed to take me through the basics of rock photography at Spirit and Soul’s regular Unity night, which he co-organises, and warned me of some of the pitfalls facing the music snapper.
One of the trickiest things to deal with is the diminished light at gig venues. Mike spent some time setting the camera up for the relatively dim light, and the result was pictures with a lovely warm hue to them. He said the key to this is a small semi-transparent device called a Stofen, which is placed over the flash to prevent the light being too harsh.
The equipment used, of course, is but 50 per cent of the equation.
“You really have to have an eye for it,” Mike said, “but you can pick a lot of things up after you’ve been doing it for a while.”
He said he has learned to anticipate musicians’ movements on stage, and when there are lights, he said photographers learn to work with the effects that are going on up on stage.
Soon, it was my turn to try it out for real. First of all, I took a few pictures of Fre3peace soundchecking, and I was amazed at the quality of the shots the camera was taking. It must have been beginner’s luck, however. As soon as I tried a more ambitious shot, it looked terrible. This photography malarkey was proving harder than it looks.
The Unity night in question was something of a ladies’ night, with smoky-voiced singer/songwriter Heather McVey taking her place on the bill alongside female-fronted Fre3peace.
The headliners were The Neumes, a six-piece that includes sisters Emily, Charlotte and Eleanor, and it was my turn to become the rock photographer.
Once again, beginners’ luck won through (the shot used here is one of the first), and I got a couple of good photos at the beginning of their performance. I was probably helped along by the naturally photogenic nature of my subjects, all pretty girls, and things seemed to be going well.
As time went on, however, I started experiencing some of the problems Mike warned me about. An arm here, or a piece of equipment there, easily distracts the camera and you find yourself with a perfectly focused picture of a microphone stand.
Timing was also crucial. As I tried to take a photo of The Neumes’ lead vocalist, Charlotte, I realised how difficult it is to get a good shot while somebody is singing – singers will always move away from the mic, maybe bop along a bit, sometimes they will have their mouths open with their eyes closed.
Thankfully, the law of averages worked out in the end, as Mike explained.
“It can be difficult sometimes, but you can take 274 pictures with this camera, so you just have to keep going to get the right shot.”
Why do it . . .
To capture the buzz and atmosphere of live music in a photograph.
What it costs . . .
To get the kind of quality shots needed for professional publication, the equipment would cost about 350 or more, but there’s nothing to stop anyone developing their skills on a household digital camera first.
Where to go . . .
To as many gigs as possible.
I must have used a significant amount of Mike's memory card, but in the end, I got some reasonably good photos. Looking at the quality of Mike's shots, however, it became obvious that I'm better off sticking to words.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Peterborough
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.