I am a portrait photographer, but have always had a passion for music. I am looking to branch out into concert photography, obviously starting small. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Concert photography is a very different animal than portrait photography. I’ve been shooting concerts for 17 years, and I would recommend starting off where I did… Shoot at small venues that don’t have photography restrictions and hone your skill shooting in the most challenging settings. Concerts have limited credentials to grant, so it’s not good practice to claim them if you are inexperienced, as they will be denied to others.
You can start out by shooting smaller bands or musicians to begin to build up a portfolio. A great way is to start a blog or IG where you post all of your concert photography, just make sure that you are consistent in posting as this is what publicists look for when they give you a press pass. Also, if you can, if you can work with an online blog, where you can shoot for them, thats also a big plus. One last thing, when you start to begin reaching out to publicists, make sure that you are nice and build a relationship with them as they usually represent many artists. Best of luck!
I am a concert photographer and the best advice I can give is attempt to reach out to the publicist, managers and label reps. They tend to allow photo passes for photographers that are associated with an editorial or some sort of press. Contact your local venues that have live music inquiring about photography, check out the artists slated to perform and reach them; if their local they’d love for someone to not only check them out but photograph them. Start small and then build your portfolio; you could also contact small blogs and magazines and inquire about freelance work as well. Good luck!
Please log in to post questions.
I currently do concert photography. I would recommend finding local bands to shoot their show and typically at smaller venues I have no issue with taking photos of the headlining acts while I am there.