Mara Conflict 2: We found the singer!

A couple of weeks ago, I introduced you guys to Mara Conflict. My friends' (Ben and Dylan) rock band, and man do they rock! I went out there to shoot photos of them practicing and maybe some band shots, but unfortunately, the singer wasn't able to make it to practice. So I went back last week to listen to them play and shoot more photos. This time around the singer was able to make it, and we were able to get them some group shots.

The last time I had three lights set up, which worked well, but the hard light was a bit too much on some shots. So I took one of the lights and turned it around and shot it into an umbrella at 1/2 power to be able to reflect some softer light, and it worked out pretty well. It made the light source bigger and the light seemed softer coming from that light. It lit the room a lot nicer, I think.

Here's how they turned out...

Here's the lead singer, Josh, doing his thing.


Dylan on drums and Jared on guitars. The light that had the umbrella is to Dylan's left.




Note to self: when photographing a band, specially the drummer, stay away from the crash cymbals! I was underneath Dylan's crash cymbal when I took this shot. Moments after this shot he started banging on the cymbal profusely. My ears rang the ENTIRE night!



The place they practice at is pretty sweet. It's what I would call a "band haven." Kinda like a storage building, but instead of storing miscellaneous stuff in it, you put a drum set a few monitors, guitar and bass amps, maybe a couch, fridge, coffee table... maybe hang some pieces of carpet on the wall to sound proof, some posters of your favorite bands and musicians, and you've got a pretty sweet pad to play in ... as loud as you want to! Some of the rooms they rent out hourly to other musicians who just needs a place to practice every once in a while. This one was blacked out with black carpet and paint on 3 walls and the floor. The ceiling was white and the other wall had mirrors. So I was able to reflect some light into the ceiling and mirrors to brighten up the room better. Kind of a nice place to take group shots in.



For this shot, I placed 2 bare flashes on their right and left side and one light in front of them for a fill light. I like this effect. =)


Some solo shots, same set up. This is Ben.


Charlie.


Josh.


Dylan.


Jared.


We took a stroll outside the building, which is located in an industrial area of Dallas. And took more group shots.


Surprisingly enough, the vignetting you see here is an accident. That was created by the flashes not spilling light into the darker areas. Its almost like a spotlight.



Note to self: If you are ever going to take group shots outside, avoid cars. I was laying on the ground for some of these shots. A few cars came by and almost ran my equipment over ... and me. =\



These were shot with my 20D with the 55-250mm f.4-5.6 IS.






These guys rock pretty hard and I enjoyed shooting their practice sessions. I can get used to having a private concert while I'm photographing. =) They're playing Ridgley Theater in Ft Worth this Friday. Can't wait to see them live in front of a crowd!

GZ