check setlist.fm to see what they will play for the first three songs. learn the songs. be prepared to “pray and spray” when things happen during the song.
get there early to see the openers. get a sense of the stage lighting.
extra memory cards and batteries.
bring different lenses for variety and flexibility. Some rooms I’ll bring 85mm and 16-35mm, while others I’ll bring 24-70 or even 35-150.
introduce yourself to the front security. this will pay off over time if you shoot a lot of shows.
respect the rules. if it is 3 and out with no front of house shots. respect that. use your phone if you want some shots from front of house after the first 3.
check if the guitarists are right or left handed.
take a couple shots of the drummer.
take crowd shots between bands.
if there is a barrier, make sure to move a little from left, center to right and wide.
shooting from the stage is invite only and you would know before hand. if you don’t have “band” access, don’t even ask.
Pace yourself to your buffer. You don’t want to have to wait for burst writes and miss out on something exciting.
Shoot RAW and JPG.
Find your selects that night after the show. Don’t wait.
Last thing. If your camera has it turn off electronic shutter.
I personally shoot wide open at 1.4 with 85 for close to the face. 2.8 with 24-70. 2.8 with 16-35. 2.8 with 35-150.
Having been to a number of Interpol, you should be able to shoot with a much lower shutter speed as they don’t really move that much as compared to someone like Billie Eilish.
Been shooting shows for 20 years.
I personally shoot wide open at 1.4 with 85 for close to the face. 2.8 with 24-70. 2.8 with 16-35. 2.8 with 35-150.
Having been to a number of Interpol, you should be able to shoot with a much lower shutter speed as they don’t really move that much as compared to someone like Billie Eilish.