Re: Jazz concert, pushing 400 to 800?

Jim wrote:
> (E-Mail Removed) (Patskywriter) wrote:
>
>> have you asked if it's OK to take pictures using your flash?
>
> Absolutely - and not only did they not mind but said that a recording
> would be okay too as long as they got a copy of it! It was not a very
> formal affair! Like you, I always ask and offer to do flash only
> during setup and applause, but never while music is playing.
>
>> please do -- many
>> musicians find flash very distracting. i always ask in advance and
>> am usually told not to use flash. try using 800 film. once i used
>> 3200 and came with some VERY interesting shots! try it! (and while
>> you're at it, grab a roll of 1600, too). just have fun!
>
> Well, I decided to err on the side of caution and found myself
> getting through 2 rolls of 400, and was about to push a third to 800
> (having got a considerable number of relatively safe shots) to see
> what happened, when the evening drew to a close. I had been thinking
> a lot about which film to use etc. but in the end when the music was
> playing I decided to take the easier route, hope for some success,
> and experiment with B&W and faster films/lenses next time. One step
> at a time. If they work out okay I'll post to say. If they're a
> disaster, I might just sulk...
>
> Great evening...
>
> Jim

Jim: I've been away and am only now catching up with the group. What were
the results like? I have limited experience in photographing live music
events, and typically the lighting has been less predictable than what I
would expect from a jazz gig (I could be wrong of course), but I found that
400 wasn;t really good enough. I usually prefer to use 400 pushed to 800, or
800 pushed to 1600, at a stretch. I woulld have been using f4.5 most of the
time, and seem to recall longish exposures without flash.
I never used flash at a gig.
How were your results?
M




Mike Sendrove