Shooting live music is a double edged sword for me. It is my favorite type of photography for a few reasons:

1. I’m a musician, 2.I love music and especially concerts,  and 3. I love the way live music can transfer onto a photo, as if you can almost hear what type of song is being played or what words are being sung.

The down side for me of taking photos at a concert is that when I bring a camera along, all I do is take photos. For example, at the moe. Haiti Benefit concert on Jan 23rd, I took 2,000+ photos. That is absurd. Out of those 2,078 photos, my first go through in Lightroom narrowed it down to a mere 504 decent photos, and after yet another round of cuts I was down to just over 50. From those 50+ I edited 25 in photoshop and posted 6 onto flickr that I was happy with.

Now if i was shooting the show for a client, taking 2,000 photos wouldn’t be so absurd, it might be necessary. But when I’m shooting for pleasure, that means I can’t see the forest for the trees. Of this concert was 2.5 hours, that means I was shooting one frame every 4.5 seconds. The entire concert! I wish someone was there to yell at me to put the camera down and enjoy the show.

Lesson: Sometimes you have to balance pleasure with photography. Limit yourself to 5 shots per song, or just shoot the first 3 songs like the pros in the pit do, and maybe the encore too. Or maybe, and this might sound crazy to digital junkies, take a film camera and only bring 2 rolls of film. That will make you choose your shots more wisely.

Tags: Concert Photography, Concerts, live music, moe., New York City, photography, Roseland Ballroom, YMSB, Yonder Mountain String Band