I’ve never been overly fond of photographing people. It’s not too bad with family and friends but I still feel like I’m invading their space when I watch them through the lens waiting for the right moment. So, when my son Eric asked if I’d like to photograph the Verona Area Concert Band during a pre-concert rehearsal, I thought it would be a good experience.
Since the doors were not yet open I didn’t have to worry about getting in the way of the audience. That gave me the freedom to walk all around the stage while the band played, a freedom not usually afforded to photographers working a concert. That certainly made the job a lot easier. With the concert starting in a hour, however, band members were all in their concert attire, giving the photos an authentic in-concert look.
With no previous experience to go on I didn’t really have a plan prior to my arrival. I started out trying to capture some wide shots of all or part of the band with the conductor. For these photos I used my Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 lens. Then I moved in for some tighter shots showing one or two musicians with their instruments. For some of these photos I switched to my Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L lens. That was a very nice lens to use for these shots. The light wasn’t too bad; I started with ISO 800 but later switched to ISO 1600. To provide an additional feeling for the event I finished with some close-ups of colors, reflections, equipment, etc. Those three general types of photos seem rather obvious in retrospect but, hey, live and learn.
I’ve had the opportunity to photograph the band twice in the past year. Here are some of the results. Click on them to enlarge.