Comments on: 7 Tips for Breathtaking Dance Portrait Photography

By: archana

archana — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 13:04:00 +0000

In reply to archana.

my photos https://500px.com/azoanajosh12

By: archana

archana — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 13:03:00 +0000

Good Information Siddhesh Jukar will check your gallery on 500 !Sharing some had taken some shots in Disney Magic kingdom

By: Andrea Blizman

Andrea Blizman — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 16:48:00 +0000

I am a sports and action photographer specializing in dance competitions and performances. I agree with many of Peter’s comments below. Lighting at different venues can be extremely difficult as stage lighting may vary throughout the different performances. Flash photography is often prohibited at dance events for the safety of the dancer and to not distract from the performance. It can be challenging as a photographer to not have control over lighting since that is such a crucial part of any photography. Be familiar with your equipment and take test shots prior to the performance . Setting the proper white balance in combination with your ISO will help to give you an image you will be proud of.

With regard to angles, particularly when shooting younger dancers, it is not always appropriate to shoot straight on as some dance moves that display flexibility and choreography may have a tendency to show an unflattering or immodest angle, so you may want to shoot from just to the side a bit rather than straight forward.

I change my focus point to upper center so it is square on the dancer’s face rather than on their body.

As a final point, I like to zoom in on a dancer’s face at the end of their performance to capture the mood or feel of the piece. You need to do it quickly as some do not hold the pose for very long before leaving stage for the next dancer. I have be able to take some stunning photos by doing this.

Feel free to browse my site and let me know your opinions! http://www.SnapCountPhoto.com/Dance

By: ramon marrero

ramon marrero — Sun, 09 Nov 2014 15:42:00 +0000

megustan las fotografias en movimiento

By: searchsid

searchsid — Sat, 08 Nov 2014 10:14:00 +0000

In reply to Peter. Thanks a lot for the comment Peter. Could not have agreed more to what you have said. Would also like to see your work.

By: Richard Hales

Richard Hales — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 06:44:00 +0000

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By: Peter

Peter — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 14:49:00 +0000

As someone specializing in dance (you can have a look at some of my older work at http://www.peterwerner.net ), I can only echo the point about anticipation. The more demanding the form of dance you are photographing, the more key it becomes. Once you are reacting to what you see, you already lost. Learn everything about the form of dance you want to shoot and ideally watch a rehearsal so you have an idea what to expect.

Other tips I can give: The more technically demanding the form of dance you are photographing, the more important it is to position yourself square in front and not shoot from the sides since poses are often designed to be seen square on, especially with forms like ballet. Also, when doing staged/studio shoots, avoid wide angle lenses, especially up close since it distorts proportions too much. The dancers may not be able to point out what it is, but they will not like the photos if you go too wide.

Another thing to note: Never publish any images without asking the dancer about that specific image first (unless you know the specific rules of that form of dance yourself 100%). A photo that looks perfect in every way to a photographer may make a dancer look extremely bad to experts if certain details are not technically correct (feet, eyes, shoulders, there are lots of things that can go wrong). Be prepared to not be able to show some of your favorite images.

As far as camera settings go, I never shoot performances in anything but full manual. Dark backgrounds can throw off the camera’s meter, and even spot metering will cause a lot of incorrectly exposed frames with burnt out subjects since there will be a lot of movement going on and the camera is bound to be metering somewhere you don’t want it to. What’s even worse, if the camera meters the background and consequently decides to use a long 2-second exposure, you won’t be able to shoot again for that duration and may miss your key moment.

For jumps, the movement is slowest at the apex, which means you can sometimes get away with surprisingly low shutter speeds and still get fairly sharp images, but your timing must be impeccable for that to work. Still, knowing this can sometimes save you in situations with extremely low light levels. The more professional a performance and the better the dancers, the easier it gets in general.

By: Phil

Phil — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 13:40:00 +0000

Nice article !
I could also add that the fact of being a dancer actually help a lot anticipating the dancer’s next moves. But again, every dance style is different, so knowledge about the dance itself will help plan the shots.
I also like to shoot with my prime lense (50mm f/1.4), shooting at f/1.8 or f/2.0, because you can’t get enough light, with the fastest iso.
My favorite part of shooting dancers is capturing their emotions while they dance… hard to do but I think it gives the best shots!

Here are some examples (from my flickr sets) of ballroom dancing pictures that I took during a dancing competition:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pcabot/sets/72157641760058144/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pcabot/sets/72157629272264019/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pcabot/sets/72157623314548621/