Category Archives: Cover Bands

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Cover Bands

Shazam at Beaches

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Shazam are a brilliant party band who gets everyone up dancing. Talented musicians with a great repertoire of crowd pleasing covers.

This was our first photoshoot of this Band, and our first shoot using the new Sony HVL-F43M Flash unit.

A full Flickr Gallery of Photos can be viewed at this link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Shazam at Beaches

 

Further information about Shazam can be found at their Facebook Page:

Shazam Facebook Page

You can also check out Shazam’s Website at this link:

Shazam Melbourne Website

 

EQUIPMENT:

Sony Alpha A-77
Tamron 17-50mm F2.8
Sony 35mm F1.8 Portrait Lens
Sony HVL-F43M Flash
Stofen Diffuser.

In this shoot I followed the general approach I am currently using for shoots at Beaches. Everything is shot as JPEG, and mostly in full Manual Mode.

Step 1 is to get some low light no flash band pictures using the 35mm F1.8 fixed lens. About 1 in 6 of these shots work out, but I use the good ones in the middle of the final photo album to break things up a bit. I am still getting a lot of “Martian” and “Smurfs” photos from this, but these are real images of what the lighting was really like at the gig.

Step 2 is to attach the flash and diffuser and do some more band shots, as well as “Party People” shots of venue patrons for the Beaches Facebook page.

Most band shots were taken at ISO 1000, with shutter fixed at 1/125th or even 1/250th. Party People shots were taken at ISO 1000, with aperture priority used, so that aperture of 4.5 or 5.0 could be used for group shots to try and get everyone in focus.

For this gig, I tried using the EVF viewfinder, rather than the LCD screen for “chimping” (eg. for checking shots). The pictures looked great in the EVF, but when I loaded them onto the laptop the next day, they were a lot brighter than I was expecting.

The new Sony Flash has zoom lens adjustments, such as 24mm, 50mm, 110mm. I am assuming these govern how wide the flash beam goes out, and also focuses its power on a small area at 110mm?

It also has easy to access Power Levels in fractions as 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/16, 1/32 etc, as light intensity in physics follows an inverse square relationship. I understand the maths, but I have not figured out the optimal settings for people pics yet. A lot of the People Pics were way too bright.

Another interesting thing is that I am shooting my people pics at 1/125th of a second, but several YouTube videos and Forums say to do nightclub people pics at super low speeds of 1/10, 1/20, or 1/30, as the Flash in manual mode will freeze the action. I will have to try out these low shutter speeds, and see what happens, even though it does not feel quite right.

This is the first time I have used the Sony Flash, and I set it tilted up at 45 degrees, with a Stofen cap diffuser from my old Yongnuo flash on it, since Sony do not provide you with one.

Sony also do not provide the hotshoe adapter needed for the A-77, and so I had to rush out to the Sony Shop in Nunawading to grab one of these a few hours before the gig.

I reckon Sony should give you a Stofen diffuser with the flash, and throw in the adapter as well. Even cheap Chinese Yongnuo give you everything you need with their flash.

I am still to try out my Gary Fong Light Sphere, and the Gary Fong Blade Card Diffuser, but hope to give them ago as soon as I get the opportunity.

It is challenging at the moment with Flash photography, trying to get the settings and diffusers right, but once I figure it out, it will hopefully become a set and forget.

The next step will then be to get a copy of Adobe Lightroom, and start shooting in Raw; as all the professionals say that Raw + Lightroom is the way to go. It sounds like Lightroom has the ability to make adjustment presets, which greatly speed up post processing and touch ups.

 

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Enjoy,
Passy

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Cover Bands

Two Phase at Beaches

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Pete and Trev, who form the Duo called “Two Phase”, are one of my favorite Friday Night acts at the Beaches venue.

I especially like Trevor’s Nils Lofgren look with bandana, and his guitar solos are smooth and effortless and sound great!

Pete is very thorough with the sound from his PA, and the backing tracks sound just like additional Band Members playing.

This was a special gig, with Pete playing Conga Drums for a few of the songs, such as Lionel Ritchie “All Night Long”.

 

A Gallery of Photos of the April 24th gig can be viewed at this link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Two Phase at Beaches on April 24th 2014

 

Two Phase have been playing at Beaches for over 20 years, and there is a Photo Album I did in 2013, using my Panasonic Lumix LX7 Low Light Camera.

The Flickr Gallery of Photos of the Two Phase 20 Year Anniversary gig can be viewed at this link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Two Phase 20 Years at Beaches

 

Further information about Two Phase can be found at their Facebook Page:

Two Phase Facebook Page

 

EQUIPMENT:

Sony Alpha A-77
Tamron 17-50mm F2.8
Sony 35mm F1.8 Portrait Lens
Yongnuo YN460 Flash

In this shoot I followed the general approach I am currently using for shoots at Beaches. Step 1 is to get some low light no flash band pictures using the 35mm F1.8 fixed lens. About 1 in 6 of these shots work out, but I use the good ones in the middle of the final photo album to break things up a bit. Step 2 is to attach the flash and diffuser and do some more band shots, as well as “Party People” shots of venue patrons for the Beaches Facebook page.

Most band shots were taken at ISO 1000, with shutter fixed at 1/125th. Party People shots were taken at ISO 1250, with aperture priority used, so that aperture of 4.5 or 5.0 could be used for group shots to try and get everyone in focus.

The interesting thing is that looking back at the 2013 album done with the Lumix-LX7, I should probably take it along to Beaches Gigs and do some ground level side of stage dance floor shots with it. When I get my black Cargo Pants with a zillion pockets, I will consider doing this.

 

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If you enjoy visiting Photos By Passy, why not get a free subscription to the website.

You can then receive notifications of new items and updates directly to your email address.

Go to the subscribe area on the left hand sidebar, (or down the bottom of the page if using a mobile phone), fill in your email address and then click the “Subscribe” button.

Enjoy,
Passy

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Cover Bands

Single Income – April 2014

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Single Income are extremely professional, and one of my favorite Cover Bands.

They play lots of old rocking favorites from the 80’s like The Doors, The Angels, and Bad Company.

The crowd is always up dancing and having a great time at their gigs, and the lead singer Greg is the penultimate frontman.

He wanders around with his radio mike and gets people singing, (even the staff behind the bar), and really knows how to work with a crowd.

A full Flickr Gallery of Photos can be viewed at this link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Single Income at Beaches

Further information about Single Income can be found at their Facebook Page:

Single Income Facebook Page

 

EQUIPMENT:

Sony Alpha A-77
Sony SAL35mm F1.8 (for non flash photos)
Tamron 17-50mm F2.8
Yongnuo Speedlight YN460-II

Adobe Photoshop CS5.5 (Quite a bit of photoshopping was done).

Post Shoot Notes are much the same as the one’s for the Momentum Shoot the previous night.

– Photshopping adding Gamma Exposure for rich blacks and dramatic high contrast.

– No Flash photos done with the Sony SAL35mm F1.8 with a few usable shots obtained, but focussing in low light band shots does seem to be an issue.

– Yongnuo Flash annoying the hell out me when it doesn’t fire, just as you have everyone set up for a great “Party People” shot.

– Need to make the final photoshopped photos just a little bit brighter, as they are not quite bright enough on Mobile Phone. Even though they look “just right” on the PC with a good bright monitor.

– I still not have worked out how to eliminate white splotches on cheekbones, nose tips, and foreheads on flash shots of people; however it seems that using ISO 1250 and a bit more flash power, to make quite bright pictures helps this to some extent. I have a Gary Fong Light Sphere diffuser on order, and hope that it may spread more even soft light than the standard diffuser I currently have, and help this problem. We shall see what it is like when we first use it.

For additional Post Shoot details, read the Momentum Shoot write up here:

Momentum at Beaches – Shoot Notes

Overall I was quite happy with some of the Flash Band shots I obtained, which was greatly assisted by the band guys draping the whole stage and its sides in black cloth; Brilliant for Photos!

 

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Enjoy,
Passy

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Cover Bands

Momentum at Beaches

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Momentum are a hot three piece of very talented musicians who play rocking covers that get the crowd partying.

They are seasoned highly skilled players, and they need to be for the material they cover with such ease.

They are a real musician’s band; and one that I intend to go see again.

A full Flickr Gallery of Photos can be viewed at this link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Momentum at Beaches

 

Further information about Momentum can be found at their Facebook Page:

Momentum Facebook Page

 

EQUIPMENT:

Sony Alpha A-77
Sony SAL35mm F1.8 (for non flash photos)
Tamron 17-50mm F2.8
Yongnuo Speedlight YN460-II

Adobe Photoshop CS5.5 (Quite a bit of photoshopping was done).

Band shots without Flash were shot using the 35mm F1.8 Sony Lens.

The 35mm on a cropped body like the A-77 is probably around 45 to 50mm effectively and is not really wide enough to fit a lot in.

It is really a Portrait lens, and in low light band conditions can go into this occasional focussing frenzy, which I have read about on forums. It is a great lens, but for low light band photography it does not work as well as using the Panasonic Lumix LX7 Compact camera. However it does give a few okay natural low light shots which can be put into an album.

Most of the band shots that were done with Flash were shot at ISO 800 with the flash set to 1/7 or 2/7 power. For these the Tamron 17-50mm F2.8 lens was used, which for the $320 price is proving to be a real winner. Very happy with the wide angle and zoom capabilities, and I am also using it for all the “Party People” candids. It is my go to lens for doing pub gigs, and nice and light and easy to carry in a side pouch on my belt. I have also used it for some outdoor nature shots and it went well for this.

However, for low light band shots at larger venues and shows, the Tamron 24-70mm F2.8 is brilliant, and better clarity and crispness than the 17-50mm. So so it should be with its $1200 price tag, and the massive weight of glass inside the thing!

People pics were shot with the 17-50mm Tamron, mostly at ISO 1250 with the flash set to 1/7 power.

Overexposed pictures were adjusted in Photoshop with “Exposure” adjustment, and the Gamma Level pumped up to create great dramatic contrast, and make flashed up grey black colors revert back to deep rich black.

The Yongnuo Flash is proving to be a pain without being able to see any previews through the viewfinder, and was also unreliable and would not fire off every so often.

Still I am getting okay shots out using the Yongnuo, and for the $50 on ebay it cost me, it has paid for itself already; and will make a good spare to carry in the kit bag. Best of all I love the simplicty of it, just guesstimate the power level as between 1 and 3 and shoot!

The old switch off, switch on fixed the failing to fire problem, but by then the moment was gone. It also looked very unprofessional doing this during Party People shots 🙁

Definitely getting a Sony Flash as soon as possible!

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Cover Bands

Size Matters Band at Beaches

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Size Matters are a great Melbourne covers band with vocals brilliantly handled by Deb and Steve.

They play a wide range of songs, and this gig was their first one with well known rock photographer Gary Bradshaw back on drums after a bout with cancer which he has beaten!

Gary has a huge drumkit, which took up at least half the stage, and the rest of the band were crammed in along a straight line at the front edge of the stage. Big Kit, nice big beats in the engine room!

 

A full Flickr Gallery of Photos can be viewed at the following Link:

Flickr Photo Gallery of Size Matters at Beaches

 

Further information about Size Matter Band can be found at their Facebook Page:

Size Matters Facebook Page

 

EQUIPMENT:

Sony Alpha A-77
Tamron 24-70mm F2.8 for band shots
Tamron 17-50mm F2.8 for people pics
Yongnuo Speedlight YN460-II

Adobe Photoshop CS5.5  (Quite a bit of photoshopping was done).

I had a lot of problems with the lighting for band shots and had to shoot them at ISO 1600 even with the Flash in use.
They turned out quite grainy on PC, but look reasonable on mobile phone on Facebook.

I accidentally left the ISO at 1600 and shutter 1/80 second for the two “party girls” pictures in the gallery shown previously, but it kind of worked out okay, because the background scenery was not all darkened up and black. So I may try shooting some party people pics at ISO 800 and 1/125th next time.

The Yongnuo flash is starting to irritate me because I have a very dark viewfinder for composing party people shots, because the Sony camera does not recognise a flash is attached, and so does not do the usual screen brightening function. As a result I am shooting these shots more or less blind. Time to start a savings plan for a proper Sony flash, but will make do with the Yongnuo for the next couple of months or so.

Another issue I do not have a solution for yet is the white patches on people problem:

My party people photos with flash get white patches on people’s noses, chins, foreheads, and cheekbones. Need to find a way to overcome this because it is very difficult photoshopping it out.