It doesn't hurt that the actors give you better expressions and gesture than you'll ever find in a non-actor model. Or that highly professional costume designers are doing your wardrobe for you. Or that set builders are making things look great. Don't forget that you've got a lighting designer making your images look ultra dimensional. Did I mention that you'll be helping a group of dedicated artists fill the seats and keep working in the field that they love? Did a I mention that theater people throw the absolutely best parties imaginable?
But the real reason to shoot for a great theater in your city is the fact that you have a front row seat for the best drama, comedy and musical performances I can imagine. I'll tell you a secret: Belinda and I hardly ever go to movies anymore because live stuff is so much more exciting. A movie is the same. Over and over again. But in the theater every performance is absolutely brand new. A different interpretation. And every night the actors put everything on the line. No retakes. No retouching.
This past Tues. I dragged a bag of gear over to the theater to do the dress rehearsal for the funnest and funniest play I've seen in a long time. It was called, "The Drowsy Chaperone". The cast was packed with Austin's favorite actors. Meredith McCall, Scotty Rodgers, Martin Burke, Jamie Goodwin and many more. Even with the IS technology in several of my lenses I had a hard time holding my cameras still enough because I was laughing so much. Amazing. I'm getting eight tickets for next Saturday night so I can enjoy it without any distractions. Like full CF cards.
No doubt someone will want to know how I shot it. I took the Canon's this time. 5d2 and a the 7d. The 24-105 on the 5 and the 70 to 200 on the 7D. Everything on manual. Spot metering. Color balance set at 3000. Most of the files were shot at medium res. I didn't use lights and a tripod would slow me down too much. I just paid attention to hitting focus and hitting the timing. That and getting the exposures right on the money. (Meter caucasian skin and open up 2/3rd's of a stop. Meter white with vague detail and open up two stops.....etc.)
I'm back to shooting the theater stuff in Jpeg because it's so much quicker of a workflow and I get so many more images on a card. I can shoot like one of those New York fashion photographers from the 1970's who had two guys who just kept loading identical Nikon bodies with film and handing them to the "artist" as he blazed through roll after roll. I love to shoot a couple thousand shots during the dress rehearsal. You never know what you'll catch. I guess if I can to two or three rehearsals I'd know what to anticipate and I'd be able to pare down the take....but who's got that kind of time?
The important thing in shooting theater is to keep your head in the game. There's always a cute actress you'll want to fall in love with. You always end up fascinated by the good lighting that's being done. And for people that are moving!!!!! But you've got to keep your head in the game. Watching the action outside the viewfinder and anticipating the blocking. Most importantly is to watch for gesture and expression and keep remembering that the money shot for the newspaper is two or three actors, close up, interacting with lots of energy. The love scenes. The fight scenes. The glorious finales.
Watch the backgrounds and keep an eye open for good color contrasts. I love white on white with silhouettes in the background. And I love stuff that moves.
And not much beats actors on roller skates. The moment before the kiss is more exciting than the kiss because of the anticipation. The lead up to a punch is more exciting than the punch. And the lead up to implied sex is better than the stage version. There's more emotion in wanting than there is in getting....
I go to a lot of theater. I shot this play on Tuesday evening and the night before I was shooting a Shakespeare production at Richard Garriott's place (yeah. I'm name dropping. Really, Shakespeare...) but when Zachary Scott Theater pulls out all the stops and does a big production musical comedy....well, they had me and my cameras at "Hello." If you live in Austin and don't go see this you're either on life support or you don't know the highest and best way to spent your entertainment resources.
It's all worth it to see the reigning master of Austin theater, Meredith McCall, as.........The Drowsy Chaperone.
If you fancy yourself to be a photographer. If you want more exposure. If you need some other art in your life. Find a theater to support. They'll thank you, but.....you'll thank yourself.
( I love the shot just above. It's not my shot. It's the best collaboration of a marketing director, a photographer, a prop master, a costume person, a lighting designer, a set designer and a great acting talent. Beats sitting at home.)