Ellie77

I am a mom with a camera who has been asked to help with my children's school pictures. I have a 70d and sigma 17-50 2.8 and canon 85 1.8. Their end of the year program is coming up. Would these two lenses be enough to capture good pictures of moving children on stage? How do I deal with lighting? These pictures are going to be used in their yearbook. This is my first function. Any suggestions? Thank you!

DMGill Loc: Colorado

There are many variables that you need to know before you will know if your camera/lens combos will be adequate. The two that would be top on my list are: 1) how far back from the stage will you be and how tight a crop do you want; and 2) what type of lighting and how bright is it? Will you be able to visit during a rehearsal so you can get a good idea ow where you will be and what conditions will be like?

My go to lens for events is an f2.8 70-200. You might want to rent a longer lens than you mentioned depending on conditions and you might also want to consider a tripod or monopod. A back up camera body is also worth considering in case Murphy was an optimist. ;-)

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

Yes.

Don't.

If you are wondering what lens to use and asking about how to deal with lighting then it's better that you don't. That's not an insult, but at the point you are taking pictures for others and doing a pretty good job, you won't be asking things like this.

Enjoy the school functions, take pictures for yourself...leave it at that.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

My concerns would be how close you will be to the stage, are they single performers or a group (and how large?) and what the available lighting will be. Will flash be allowed? If you could provide a bit more detail, there are some excellent shooters on the forum that can assist. Also, perhaps you can get access to the venue before the event and take some trial shots?

canon Lee

First consideration is the lighting. You do have 2 very fast lenses for low light situations, but they are wide angle lenses which won't help if you are too far away. You may need a longer focal length like 200mm. With motion you will need high speed shutter settings like 1/1000 or you will get blur. There in lies the problem with shooting action in low light. I suggest you use Manual mode and set your aperture wide open F1.8 ~2.8, and shutter to 1000. Get as close as you can as light falls off very quickly. Using a flash will only distract the kids. use a tripod and a release cable. Light room will assist you in getting good exposure. Very few year books are in color, and if this is the case shoot in camera RAW and convert your shots to B&W. Save your camera RAW shots in a file in case parents might want to purchase some. I have shot wrestling in gyms with fast lenses and high speed ( 1/1000th ~ 1/1600th) and they turned out great. Go to the location and see what the ambient lighting is and take some shots with your kids moving. Its good to practice and take the stress away.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I've shot lots of wresting also and typically I can get by with 1/500, and I doubt your subjects will move much faster than wrestlers, so that may help a little. And while the 85 f1.8 on a crop camera may be long enough, I agree with the previous suggestions that having a 70-200 f2.8 (perhaps renting one) would probably be a lens of choice unless you can get fairly close. Know that shooting in available light, unless very well-lit with spots, at 1/500 will imply high ISOs (perhaps 6400) and the attendant noise. Shooting action in available light is always a challenge.

Photocraig

My yearbook experience pre-dates many folks and ALL of the equipment, even on this forum. But, as the Grandpa with the camera (EOS 50D), I shot a few events at my grandson's elementary school. A couple of things to keep in mind, that will actually tend toward making your lenses more viable.

Since I'm 6'4" and strictly unofficial, I chose to stay in the back and shoot with my fastest lens, Tamron 90mm f2.8. That worked in the dimly lit Multipurpose room (Cafeteria). I got a decent selection of shots. The majority of throwaways were because parents hold smart phones and tablets over their heads to capture the little darlins. Fine for them. For a photographer in the back, my foreground is now dotted with LCD screens like a Rock concert.

That means that you MUST be close to get the best shots. Your 70D and 2.8 and 1.8 aperture should work OK, BUT remember you'll have a shallow depth of Field. So only one or two kids will be in focus.
Plan for a set of shots for each scene wide, narrow and using the slower shutter speed for a smaller depth of field when they's idle for a moment.
Go to a rehearsal and get a run through with the event director so you can anticipate the best positioning.

Remember, for the yearbook, they'll only publish a max of 2 shots from this event, so concentrate getting those that define what it was all about--like Christmas or Columbus Day (sense of place and moment). THEN, the irresistible character shot will really capture the human reasons to have the event in the first place.

Have fun, be charmed, and keep on the look out for the individual ultra charming (cute?) shot of that little kid who HAS to wave to MOM, or the teacher mouthing the lines with the most earnest expressive expression. And, of course the audience and the unsung Pianist, and everybody's favorite, the Custodian with a huge smile.

BHC Loc: Strawberry Valley, JF, USA

Ellie:

I know this must sound terrible to you, but Mr. Pavich is sincerely trying to help you with his advice. I don't know your level of skill; you are probably a much better photographer than I am (everybody is), but over 60 years of screwing up pictures has taught me that people who ask questions like yours are ill equipped to take on such a challenge. If you decide to accept the assignment anyway, I wish you the best of luck; I'm sure you will give it your best effort and, based on the other advice you receive here, you may well be successful. But you might be much more useful as a second shooter or wrangler.

StanRP Loc: Ontario Canada

You have been asked to take them - so do a rehearsal - go and take some photo's of your children on the stage - with the lighting the same as it will be during that program. (At the same time of day to get the natural lighting )

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

Aren't photographers, who generally specialize in Yearbook photos, hired for such occasions?

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I used to shoot stills for a local theater group during plays, and I used lenses that weren't as fast as you have. I set a tripod on the floor in front of me, and let the camera decide on exposure. Unless you're very close, the 17-50 won't be much good, but the 85mm will always have the same view - no zooming - which could be okay. I would ask to do some practice shots ahead of time.

Looking back, ISO was 1600, with apertures in the f/4 range. Shutter speeds were low, so some blurring was not uncommnon.

Jcmarino

Im going to assume since you said you are a "mom with a camera" instead of a professional photographer that you have little experience in these type of situations. The lighting will depend on the auditorium, the ambient lighting and the stage lighting. Since we do not know what that is like, there is really no way to tell you what you will need exactly. Most likely you will be shooting available light if shooting during the performance. Hopefully the auditorium is very dark and the stage is very bright.
You will want both close ups and wide angle shots and a very fast lens and high shutter speed, possibly a high ISO if the children are moving and depending on the stage lighting. Stage lighting changes so you need to adapt quickly. If shooting during rehearsal, you can use a flash possibly. This can stop the action even at lower shutter speeds if the lighting is right. However, using a flash may wash out the ambient lighting which may be essential to the scene. Using the flash manually will help with that. Make sure you go to the rehearsals so you know what is happening then ask to shoot during the full dress/lighting rehearsals. Review your shots and shoot another full rehearsal. Hopefully the stage is bright enough that you do not need a flash. If you get enough good shots during the rehearsals then the night of the performance you can relax and watch the show.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Hi, Ellie. I used to teach this stuff to yearbook photographers and to pros working for a national photography company that supported its own and other yearbook printers, so this is right up my alley.

This equipment is a very good combination for this sort of work. I've used a lot less with really good results. It's your technique and skill that are most important here.

Stage lighting runs the gamut from fabulous to terrible. School auditoriums usually have terrible lighting. It's not that it's dim (it often is), but it's harsh, uneven, and contrasty! That makes it difficult to get a correct reading, especially if the stage floor is black, the curtains are black, and there are other dark parts of scenes.

Flash is completely out of the question. It is almost ALWAYS forbidden in such situations. Unless you had a professional monolight with at least 400 w/s of power, you would not get great results, anyway.

So, you are stuck with high ISO (1600 to 3200) and f/2.8 on the Sigma, and I'd use the 85 at f/2.8 to f/4 for depth of field. Your shutter should be at least 1/125 for two reasons — to avoid shaking the camera when the 85mm lens is mounted, and to stop the little critters on the stage.

The quandary of the situation is: "How do I meter this nightmare photographic scenario?"

The answer is complicated.

If the lighting is very, very even (overhead fluorescent fixtures, lots of stage floods, etc.), and the scene is of average reflectance (no predominant white or black areas), I would probably use Aperture priority and matrix metering.

In the more likely scenario that the lighting is very uneven, harsh, contrasty, and the scene has lots of spotlit figures against a dark background, I would take a very different approach. I would set the camera on full manual exposure. (Manual ISO, Manual Aperture, Manual Shutter Speed) I would meter an exposure target (Delta-1 gray card or One Shot Digital Calibration Target) at several points on the stage, in the exact lighting they're going to use (WAY ahead of the show, in consultation with the lighting control operator). I would note those readings on a hand-drawn map of the stage.

I would record ONLY raw images for such an event, and post-process them in either Adobe Lightroom or Affinity Photo or Canon DPP. You need all the exposure latitude that you can get. JPEGs have MAYBE +1/3, -2/3 stop of latitude before adjustments look poor. Raw files can be tweaked +2 to -1.67 stops — a HUGE difference.

If I thought I could get away with spot metering in the camera, I'd try it, but... I am not a fan of spot meters.

CHIMP your images (review them on the LCD) and pay attention to what the histogram is doing. Adjust exposure to keep the highlights just to the left side of the graph.

Try NOT to work from the back of an auditorium, or you'll not be close enough. With those lenses, I'd want to be on the front row or the sides near the front. I would also want to move around, so I'd wear rubber soled, soft shoes, and muted, dark colors (so as NOT to be noticed).

Make a lot of exposures. Remember the photojournalist's and the filmmaker's habit: Vary the perspective from long view, to medium view, to close-up, to bird's eye view, to worm's eye view...

Yearbook photojournalism is all about MOMENTS. You want to capture the peak expressions, peak actions, and peak emotions of the day. To do that, you have to learn to anticipate what's going to happen, and be ready to calmly press the shutter button almost before those peaks occur. Sometimes, a high frame rate is the only way to do that, but with practice, single-shot mode works well.

Finally, don't frame too loosely or too tightly. I always liked to give my editor two or three cropping options to fit the scene to a layout. That is more important for a custom high school book than a K-8 book using pre-designed layouts, because large high schools with professional journalism teachers and yearbook advisors who want their books judged in competitions are very finicky about photos they use.

fobbox

I haven't done any pictures like this, but I have worked back stage at a few community type plays, and I have a few observations of the photographers (when we had them) I would like to suggest. If you can, go to the dress rehearsal and take pictures. Review them before the performance. It gives you a good chance to see what is going on, figure out the camera settings for the lighting, where is the best place or places to get good photos. Also, you may get some back stage photos that would be interesting as well. With the freedom to move around without an audience, the pictures you take as the dress rehearsal may actually be the pictures you want to submit for the yearbook. No one will know except for you.

fobbox

I haven't done any pictures like this, but I have worked back stage at a few community type plays, and I have a few observations of the photographers (when we had them) I would like to suggest. If you can, go to the dress rehearsal and take pictures. Review them before the performance. It gives you a good chance to see what is going on, figure out the camera settings for the lighting, where is the best place or places to get good photos. Also, you may get some back stage photos that would be interesting as well. With the freedom to move around without an audience, the pictures you take as the dress rehearsal may actually be the pictures you want to submit for the yearbook. No one will know except for you.