Advice Needed for Piano Shoot

[SYS]

I was asked by my boys' piano teacher to take pictures of each of her students performing at an upcoming recital. The recital is going to take place in a low-lit indoor piano shop and at night. Having been to this place, I do know that I can't use the flash to bounce off the high ceiling, so I'm thinking about using the following DIY reflector/diffuser. No off-camera light set up given the situation. I've tested this using both the default white and with the silver insert, and I'm getting mixed results -- both much better than bare flash, though!! -- depending on the distance to the subject and the flash output. Has anyone used ones like this and what are your technique for shooting a full body or half body shots of pianist? The one that comes closest to this in terms of commercially available one is LumiQuest... Any suggestions would be appreciated.


1) With its own "ceiling"...
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2) With silver insert....
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[bacchanal]

I have a diffuser like that and it works pretty well when the subject is close due to the relative size of the light source to the subject. As you get farther away it essentially becomes a point light source similar to bare flash (except a little bit higher up). It can be somewhat useful in keeping the light above the camera when you're in portrait mode (poor man's flash bracket).
The silver insert should get you a bit more effective light output, but I doubt that it is really necessary.

That said, if you have a light colored ceiling, you can use it to bounce even if it is very high. You would probably need to increase your iso a bit though. A white wall or something would also work for pleasing bounce flash.

Just remember to watch out for reflections in the surface of the piano, which could be a distraction or potentially mess with the ETTL exposure.

[PhotosGuy]

The recital is going to take place in a low-lit indoor piano shop See if you can exchange the bulbs aimed at the player for higher wattage ones. It you have to use flash, try to dial it down to just get a little fill.

[gkuenning]

Double-check with the teacher to make sure flash is OK. Flashes can be extremely distracting to the performers. My wife would kill me if I fired off a flash during one of her performances. I shoot high ISO and wide aperture, and drool over faster lenses.

[SYS]

I DON'T like to use flash at recitals and of course it is strictly forbidden during public performances. However, in this particular instance, it's the teacher herself who requested that I do so. She even pre-announced to the parents and the students to expect the flashes to go off and that they should be prepared for that and not get distracted.

There won't be any room for setting up off-camera lights and the ceiling is way too high for any sort of practical bouncing, so my idea of using the DIY gadget shown above. Bouncing off the wall isn't too good, either, as the walls are of red bricks.

In my initial test results shooting with the above diffuser/reflector with and without the silver insert, I find that, with just the white default, there's a visible light fall off with the background darkened, whereas with the silver insert, both the subject and the background seem to be evenly lit. I also like the skin tonal quality with the silver insert. With the white, I'd have to be lot more accurate with the light output.

Does anyone use LumiQuest pocket bouncer or big bounce?

[urcunina]

I DON'T like to use flash at recitals and of course it is strictly forbidden during public performances. However, in this particular instance, it's the teacher herself who requested that I do so. She even pre-announced to the parents and the students to expect the flashes to go off and that they should be prepared for that and not get distracted.


My wife has taught piano for over 35 years and she has always prohibited flash during the recital because it is distracting for the performer even with an announcement. Also,you would have to take several of each student to make it worthwhile anyway.

Obviously, some kids would be oblivious to the flash(s), but cell phones, sneezing, etc. can derail some too.

What she does do is to allow each or any student to play a short bit after the recital (usually during a reception) and let the flashes fire. Many great pictures over many years have come out of this. Another possibility is to have a special photo session in the teacher's studio.

[SYS]

My wife has taught piano for over 35 years and she has always prohibited flash during the recital because it is distracting for the performer even with an announcement. Also,you would have to take several of each student to make it worthwhile anyway.

Obviously, some kids would be oblivious to the flash(s), but cell phones, sneezing, etc. can derail some too.

What she does do is to allow each or any student to play a short bit after the recital (usually during a reception) and let the flashes fire. Many great pictures over many years have come out of this. Another possibility is to have a special photo session in the teacher's studio.

I was worried about the necessity of taking more than just one shot of each player, so your suggestion to do a separate photo sessions works for me. I'll have to see what the teacher has to say about this. I sure don't want to be the cause of kids messing up their recital!!