My first band shoot - with Gojira!

[Wretched]

I’d been wanting to get into doing band promo shoots since going freelance back at the start of 2010. While I hadn’t made much of an effort to get out there and drum up that kind of business, it was definitely something on my to-do list. Last week, I got my chance to dip a toe in thanks to the guys at Australian Hysteria magazine.


OK, so perhaps shooting an international band like Gojira (from France) is a little more than a ‘dip’ into the promo shoot waters! being my first band promo shoot and being a fan, I was pretty nervous about the shoot in the lead-up, so I made sure I wrangled in an assistant (thanks to Jackson for his time and help!) for the day and got there early to check out the location and set up some lighting options and test them before the band got there.


I only used simple two-light setups for all these shots, taken in two different parts of the same location for different looks. I ultimately had the band’s attention for no more than 10 minutes, which I would assume is normal for this kind of shoot – but I got what I needed. I also got wrangled into shooting the band with their equipment for another section of the same magazine, which was cool. It also meant we got to watch Mastodon’s sound check while waiting for Gojira to arrive and then shoot the gig (which also featured Kvelertak).


Check out more pics here: Gojira - a set on Flickr

 

[iRaiseTheDead]

<----Jealous.
Congratz! Looks really good man! \m/

 

[TheSixthWheel]

Congrats, that's a great opportunity and it looks like you made the most of it. I think you'll have an easy time finding more promo work within Australia. These shots turned out looking nothing short of professional. Post pics of them with their gear when available!

 

[themike]

Looks great man!

 

[Miek]

The guy on the far left looks really concerned about something.


...I bet it's global warming.

 

[DLG]

great job.

and yes, the drummer always looks tired and like he got 3 hours of sleep in the last month for some reason

 

[Wretched]

All four guys were very polite and softly spoken. I'm not even sure the drummer knew much English, but the others were talkative enough and truly stoked to be touring here.

 

[leonardo7]

 

[ridner]

very nice

 

[KingAenarion]

Love this... Love Gojira.


Have you got a website/Facebook page? I know bands in Sydney that are looking for good photographers

 

[vampiregenocide]

I hate you so much.

 

[Wretched]

Love this... Love Gojira.


Have you got a website/Facebook page? I know bands in Sydney that are looking for good photographers

Sure do:

Facebook - Hosking Industries | Facebook

Website - HOSKING INDUSTRIES. >> Freelance Writing & Photography, design and more

 

[sk3ks1s]

Nice.
I really like the lighting and tones.
I don't like the arm cut off on the second one though...
Set-up/gear used?

 

[Wretched]

It was a simple two-light setup using simple Canon Speedlites and Cactus triggers.

Both shots are very similar in that the main front light was a 580EXII through a white umbrella. Shot one above had the main light to camera right at about 2M elevation, on full power.

The rim light was a 430EXII with an orange gel on the front of it (full CTS, I think), also on full power. The big highlight in the first image is the flash. In both instances this one was off to camera right behind the subject, but in the second image it was a little more beside them as behind.

Camera settings were 200th at f7.1, from memory, maybe f8. That's pretty standard for me when using the flashes, unless I specifically want to capture more of the surroundings and go for a slower shutter. Hovering around f7.1 and f8 seems to keep the flashes under control on full power while still getting decent depth of focus on the subject.

 

[thelarrinator]

The shots look sensational, congratulations
I hope this opens up more work for you, i've got several friends that are photographers and understand how big a deal this could be!

 

[Wretched]

Was bummed to receive a panicked phone call from the editor of the magazine 48 hours before print time asking if I could re-send the disc with the photo shoot on it as he'd lost the one I sent before...

Naturally I was 300kms away from my computer and couldn't help, so they went with some other images for the story, meaning these will never be seen in print. Kind of a kick in the nuts, but at least I got the experience, I suppose.

Man, disorganised people are so annoying.

 

[Danukenator]

Aww man. That totally blows. These shots looked great, really polished and professional. Hopefully, this won't effect you personally because of his mistake.

 

[Wretched]

Well, I suppose it won't have a negative effect, but it won't have the positive effect it may have had, either. Oh well, there are always other opportunities, right!