At last night’s Summerstage gig David Bowie played a few tunes with Arcade Fire … as expected. I didn’t get one decent photo.
Anybody got tips for me to get near-Vegan quality pics at low no light gigs? This is what I’m using these days.
RELATED: AF buzz on Yahoo!.
If there’s one band iconic of the ["indiedom"] scene, it’s Arcade Fire.“I think they’re like the best band, period,” says Carl Newman, frontman of the New Pornographers, echoing the feelings of many indie rockers.
Some point to Arcade Fire as the obvious candidate to sell like Modest Mouse.
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a playlist?
Bowie sure looks old.
he’s gotta be in his mid-fifties, so yeah, he’s starting to get up there. Who cares?
I love Bowie’s outfit. Definitely a tribute to Simon LeBon in the “Hungry Like the Wolf” video.
i left before he came on stage. my girlfriend and I were bored out of our minds. what’s up with all the theatrical banging?
seems forced
Some say forced, some say fun…
He’s 58.
scott if you want to get shots like that you have to get a semi-pro camera. i suggest the canon 20-D. It goes for about $2000 with everything included. Or you might want to wait for the 5D to come out which will cost $1000 more but will be well worth it. I know its alot of money but these cameras rule. That’s what I shoot with.
Word.
Well, what was the music like with Bowie and Arcade? U posted a blurry picture, threw in some comments by Carl Newman, some dumb statement about Modest Mouse but what about the fucking music man???? Want to hear about the music not how to fix your fucking camera and train you to be a journalist! Weak…
Have to add are u just posting to post so you keep up with everyone???? Content man, content, setlist, talk about the music, get a real fucking camera, put together a cohesive post…. Some of us viewing this site aren’t in NY…..put links to other reports about the show…fuck man what are u doing? Well, at least you said you were sorry…. and that my friend is about the most accurate thing you have said..
I gotta say, the show as a whole wasnt that exciting, at least from the extremely sweaty and unmoving middle/back section of the crowd. In the middle of their set, Arcade Fire played approx 4 songs in a row that werent from the album, which, I’m sorry, if you only have one album out, is a serious setlist no-no. Things picked up in the latter half, and really how can you complain when Bowie comes out? but still.. somehow didnt seem quite worth the 30$.
I like the banging drum guy – he is like a little boy parading around the kitchen with a pot and wooden spoon.
Bowie is still a fox.
Scott,
What ISO speed are you shooting at? In order to compensate for low light, you need to either use a slower shutter speed or a higher ISO setting. As a slower shutter speed is going to result in blurring if your subject is in motion or you’re not using a tripod, you want to push up the ISO instead. The side effect of a higher ISO setting in a digital camera is going to be more noise in your pictures, but you can use a post-processing program to remove most of the noise. There is a freeware program called Neat Image that you can easily find on the net that works quite nicely for this and includes noise profiles for most of the major manufacturers’ cameras.
In any case, I’m not a highly experienced photographer, but with the methods described above, I was able to get some really nice shots of Shivaree (I love you, Ambrosia) in a dimly lit club using a sub-$200 Sony Cybershot.
They have that mini-album/EP thing with like 8 songs. The songs you didn’t know were probably from there. Maybe their flaw was assuming that people might not have bothered to check out their back catalog.
Do you read Bostonist interview of Clap Your Hand Say Yeah?!
“Bostonist: Have you checked out Stereogum? They’re huge fans.
Alec Ounsworth: Stereolab?
Bostonist: No, Stereogum. Its a music blog and they love you guys.
Alec Ounsworth: Oh, no. No internet.”
Huaha great!
I agree with jtb… you don’t need to spend thousands on a camera.. besides you don’t want to be lugging loads of gear with you on a night on the razz do ya! All you need is to set the ISO to 400, 800 or 1600 depending on how bad the light is.
I’m no expert but personally I usually switch the camera to shutter-speed priority & set it to 1/60 of a second – any longer and you’ll get camera shake. You can then brighen the pictures in photoshop if they’re too dark. Although if you set the ISO to 800 or 1600 this shouldn’t be necessary.
BTW what’s with all the haters moaning about the site? Fuck ‘em.. keep doing what yr doing.
Cheers
James Headphonesex
http://www.headphonesex.co.uk
Scott – I don’t have a pro camera (It’s an Olympus 4MP with a 6.3-63mm zoom) — and I only got what I got last night with a flash (which I dislike — it annoys band, crowd, and flattens out the picture).
But with a 1600 ISO on your camera, you should have better luck; use your fastest setting. Also try simply cropping wider shots (in post) instead of zooming all the way in — something I’m reluctant to do, myself (telephoto just makes for a better picture). Not, again, that I’m a pro or anything.
For 58 he still looks old!
Trippy photo btw…
BTW what’s with all the haters moaning about the site? Fuck ‘em.. keep doing what yr doing.
That i guess would be me..although hater moaning is a little strong… just high expectations about the Gum living up to his big reputation and press he gets… just expecting to see what i always hear about the gum… don’t really hate anything… shit even like the your headphonesex gig….just wanted to hear what was played, how it sounded, maybe some original comments about the show, ya know things like that
Did anybody hear any more info about what Bowie’s black eye and bandaged appendage were all about at the fashion week show? Did they make an appearace at this show as well?
Are black eyes the new black eye-liner or am I missing something?
Hey Johnny Appleseed, since you’re such an expert why don’t you get your own fucking website. In the mean time SHUT THE FUCK UP. Moron.
hey xed, working on it & will let u know personally when it is up and running.
i’m sure the gum is up to a little criticism now and then. he is sure critical about a lot of things himself. and if he is the man they say then he can take it and doesn’t need a pinhead like you helping him…..
He looks … 58.
I saw one of the other great Canadian bands last night instead. Carl Newman did say something from the stage about Arcade Fire, but it didn’t sound so complimentary. Maybe he was just joking. The New Pornos put on a great show for an intimate crowd at the Bowery, playing pretty much the whole of the new CD. They also played a rollicking version of the Cars’ “Best Friends Girlfriend” with the lead vocals handled by their incredibly entertaining drummer.
Hey, I was at this show as well. Phenomenal.
They came back for the encore and said, “This is a David Bowie song…” and then Bowie pops up wearing what was apparently his outfit in the “Modern Love” video. Phenomenal. Did one of his songs (blanking on the name) and then “Wake Up” together.
Phenomenal.
Show rocked. Bowie came out for the encore. They played “Queen Bitch,” then “Wake Up.”
“Queen Bitch,” of course! Thank you. That’s been driving me crazy since last night.
on bbc 6music they said it was five years. ho ho?
It’s a little inconvenient, but I recommend a large format camera. You know, those old-fashion ones where you crouch underneath the curtain and ignite some black powder for a flash. It’s a little tough to hide the tripod under your jacket, and the fire codes probably prohibit the black powder, but if you can manage it, they take great shots.
It’s how Ansel Adams took all those great shots of the Ramones.
best show I have ever seen inside the US borders.
and for the people that are saying bowie looked old: I will laugh at your potbellies and bald heads when you reach that age lol
SET YOUR ISO TO 1600 BROSEPH. OR 800- BUT MAKE SURE THE SHUTTER IS AT LEAST 250 WITH A FLASH.
Topher that’s fine and all if you are into the high tech gadgetry like that but for the rest of us you just can’t beat a good old fashioned black and white lithograph. ISO shmiso, that’s what I say!
GAAAAHH. I just don’t GET Arcade Fire. I don’t get it!
So true Chu Chu. Your comment reminds me of the time I went to a Fugazi show and snuck in an abstract expressionist under my jacket. The picture was a bit splotchy (Ian Mackaye came out more like a greenish square) but it was better than the time I used a minimalist. I mean, come on! I could’ve just painted the canvas pure white all by myself.
If you can, y’all gotta catch Smoosh playing tonight at Warsaw with Longwave. Have fun!
anybody else go to the dfa showcase last night? the juan maclean was awesome but hot chip…not so much.
is everybody who posts here fucking loaded? Seriously, holy shit. 3000 dollars for a camera? Just to shoot shows? Goddamn.
You should’ve seen what I had to pay the abstract expressionist.
seriously, am i the only one that thinks the drum guy in the middle looks like napoleon dynamite? gosh.
I hear ya …. But I was packing for vegas and didn’t have time to compose a setlist. Where’s Jed and Jim when you need ‘em? They’re so fired.
But c’mon …. No points for my Pink Is The New Blog parody on the shitty photo?!
Have a great weekend everyone.
Jed—thinking the same thing. My buddy took some fucking phenomenal shots at a CYHSY show in Philly the other night. Now, granted, its a $ 1,000 Canon EOS Rebel Digital, but the shit wasn’t $3,000.
Here’s what $1,000 can get you:
http://www.thebmrant.com/?page_id=545
oh–and the lighting was shite at the Khyber in Philly that night.
One other photo-related thing–some venues won’t even allow you in with a prosumer camera. If it looks even remotely legit, they scoff. Are you calling ahead with something huge like that? Gotta suck the doorman’s balls? What’s the secret? Usually, I stuff a 2.0 MP Cybershot in my pocket because nobody sweats that.
Non-fellatio related tips, please…
“Hey Johnny Appleseed, since you’re such an expert why don’t you get your own fucking website. In the mean time SHUT THE FUCK UP. Moron.”
I think J. Appleseed had a link to his site, where is yours XED? It is way too easy to swear and call someone a moron when you are pretty much an anonymous nobody with nothing to lose.
As far as equipment goes, you get what you pay for. Nicer cameras give better quality shots.
Actually Scott, when I 1st saw that pic I thought you ripped the picture off Trent!
you need a camera with a faster lens (f/stop 1.4 or 2). you need to start shooting with a faster ISO. wide angle shots come out less blurry (don’t zoom all the way). eh, just some tips.
the drummer looks like napoleon dynamite.
I read an interview with the drummer somewhere, and he was asked if he gets a lot of Napolean comparisons. His answer was something like “oh my god. yes.”
k is right, you need a faster lens as well as upping your iso settings. I the canon g6, which has an f.2.0 lens, doesn’t look like some prosumer slr monster, and takes *great* shots in low light. the trade off for the fast lens is it doesn’t have as much zoom range as the fuji you’re using. but if you can get a little closer, it would do the trick! 
Gummer lay off the free blow you get from promoting crappy music here and your hands won’t shake so much and the pix will be better….
no one should ever lay off the free blow….
Gummer lay off the free blow you get from promoting crappy music here…
HA, now we are getting somewhere! Back in the day, we had another term for blow, we called in ‘dummy dust’…..
I rest the camera on top of my head to prevent shaking. I look pretty sweet doing it.
I rest the camera on top of my head to prevent shaking. I look pretty sweet doing it.
Johnny I actually prefer the devils dandruff…over dummy dust!
Bowie is God.
Amen, Robin. Amen.
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Jesus, shut up everyone. David Bowie looks wonderful for his age, he’s rocking that outfit, and David Bowie plus Arcade Fire make outstanding music. I love the version of “Five Years” that he plays with them, along with everything else.
And to the man who left the Arcade Fire show early, before Bowie came out- you’re an idiot.