night club photos (NWS) (2)

Some nice creative shots there, Gambit.

I would love to use my 50mm in the club/bar where I work, but there are many situations that arise when I'm asked to take a large group picture. Many people also think that because you've got a lens on the end of your camera it can do everything. You can only stand back so far before light fall off and space become a problem.

GambitLive wrote in post #12015169
one of the clubs I cover 2 nights a week, has RED ceilings and RED walls... disaster for bouncing.

Try black walls and high ceilings.

IrishK wrote in post #12016019
Some nice creative shots there, Gambit.

I would love to use my 50mm in the club/bar where I work, but there are many situations that arise when I'm asked to take a large group picture. Many people also think that because you've got a lens on the end of your camera it can do everything. You can only stand back so far before light fall off and space become a problem.

Try black walls and high ceilings.

^---THIS!!! Plus it's extremely dark (you know, for people that are trying to hook up) and shoulder to shoulder crowded. My 10-22 gives me the range I need for the close in shots, but i'd love to carry a 17-55 2.8 with me if I could. I just lose that extra 7mm, especially on a crop body.

these issues are normally a huge problem for me, but honestly at f2.8 it really does let in a lot of light.


as for black walls and high ceilings? the club I shot last night was black walls and ceilings, but the bounce worked fine. its coloured walls and ceilings you have to avoid, as it puts a horrible colour cast on all your photos.

as far dark clubs, longer exposures, and fill up the frame with light trails, (2nd curtain is good for this so the subject isn't covered in light trails) I also find asking them to turn around so their back is to the light helps

Hi guys. I hope that this is the right place to ask a bit about pricing. I'm a weekend professional that mostly does model portfolio-type stuff, studio and outdoors. A friend of a client does club promotions and has asked if I'd like to shoot at some event in a local club. I know the club well enough, nothing fancy but plenty of twirly lighting.

This is on the south coast of Spain and will likely be a single night of shooting. I don't want to underprice, I'd much rather lose the job than seem cheap. Any hints from others?

My kit should be fine I think, a 1ds mkii, 17-40 or 50mm and a 430ex with ttl sync cord. I'm comfortable with manual flash as well. Anyone shot with two flashes, fill on camera, key out to the side?

Cheers for any hints that you can give me

OK. Shoot ISO 100-400, drag the exposure 1/4sec+. Manual flash and f/2-f5.6

I'm not sure what Spain venues will pay, but Los Angeles pays $30-$200 a gig and Miami pays $30-$200 an hour. All in USD of course

Addled - how many shots do they want and do they want you on site for a cirtain length of time? Round here shoots go from £20-£150 depending on the photographer and how tight the promoter is (that's if you get paid at all).

You don't want to be charging for 40 shots when they want 200 and you dont want to charge for 2 hours if they expect you to be there for 6.

I'll be on the phone tonight or tomorrow to get some of the above details hammered out. The offer was made in passing and I didn't pay as much attention as I should have at the time. I'll be back with further info if it's going ahead.

For those that use manual flash do you simply have it set for a particular distance and then rely on the exposure latitude of your sensor to cope with differences? Or do you manually adjust the aperture for each shot (or group thereof)?

Digital Panda wrote in post #12022026
I'm not sure what Spain venues will pay, but Los Angeles pays $30-$200 a gig and Miami pays $30-$200 an hour. All in USD of course

Miami does not pay $30-$200/hour.

Hey everybody, I'm new to posting but been following since the last thread (read every post! :/). I wanna get into nightclub photography for the experience, the challenge and of course the networking. Is anybody here from New York? I would love any advice. thanks

I get paid $100 for 2 hours worth of work and provide around 80-100 photos.

cabinajm wrote in post #12030179
I get paid $100 for 2 hours worth of work and provide around 80-100 photos.

i get 15-25€ per club, i tell them i give them 40-50 photos, if its 10 minutes work great for me, if its 2 hours work, my bad

I try to do as many clubs in a night as possible, max. I've done is 6 I think...

Ockie wrote in post #12030531
i get 15-25€ per club, i tell them i give them 40-50 photos, if its 10 minutes work great for me, if its 2 hours work, my bad

I try to do as many clubs in a night as possible, max. I've done is 6 I think...

6 is overkill. I find if you do more than 2 you are kind of tapping yourself out creatively and the photos near the end get stale and bland. I'll keep it to 1 or 2 and deliver better results, personally.

I make $100-$300 for a night, dependent on the size of the show. 50-100 final processed photos. I also shoot 2-3 shows a week and have a consistent role with the promo company I work with. Obviously it's lead me to bigger promo shoots for press kits for producers/dj's. I pretty much have 2 full time jobs at this point. hah