Had the opportunity or rather the challenge to shoot a small space theatre performance. The performance piece was really fast paced and featured a lot of movement (it was a fusion dance piece
) coupled with many chances in lighting from spot to soft to coloured lighting all with different temperatures and characteristics. Can't use flash so had to stick to prime, bumping up to 1600iso and opening wide.
My questions are,
- In such an event under the constant changing light conditions, how do you achieve a consistent white balance, or would you rather leave the colour casts in as misc en scene?
- What mode would you shoot under? If you shoot manual how do you account for the quick changes in lighting? For example when normal flood lights are used and then quickly changes to a spotlight on the subject at a dramatic point in the play, how do you cope with or anticipate the sudden change in light intensity?
Please feel free share your experience and expert advice
I have done a few "small space theatre performance/s" for friends myself. Similarly they were fast paced; dances, musicals of sorts, a lot of varying colored gels, lights, strobes, .. the works. Mostly for the effect they want on show for the audience; not the cameras. Even the videos can get out of whack!
I chosed asa800, but most of the times played with +/- compensation. As for white balancing, I did a custom on a white board with the (no gel) spotlights before the show and use it thru-out the show; my basis was that the lights were all based on the (hot) spotlights. Furthermore, the directors and producers always wants their effects (the colors, the movements) shown in the images.
Some of my friends shoots RAW, but they spent lots of time post-processing. I shoot a lot (really ALOT) JPG, concentrating the composition and movements.
So to your question "In such an event under the constant changing light conditions, how do you achieve a consistent white balance, or would you rather leave the colour casts in as misc en scene? " - I say to decide on one major source and correct for the whites, let the rest fall into place.
And to your second question "What mode would you shoot under?" - It is really a hassle to shift between modes especially if you are using only one body, so I almost always use "Evaluative" on the Canon because I think I understand it very well (at least well enough to expect what is coming on in the LCD, and/or enough to know why it came out that way on the LCD, and dial in the required changes immediately. My correct exposure usually happen on either the 1st or 2nd image. YMMV) If you have 2 bodies, lots of time, and a multitude of lenses to boot, I say "Spot" and/or "Partial" for each.
Your 3rd "If you shoot manual how do you account for the quick changes in lighting? " - I avoid "Manual" . After so many images in varying conditions, the only times I actually use manual was when I am using my 550ex; then I would usually do manual on the ambient, leaving the 550ex to decide on the subject. My days of manual on the K1000, KR-5, AE-1p ended when I got my 1st Rebel X. I find Canon's "Evaluative" mode surprisingly consistent across the different bodies. The only time I had to scratch my head was with the Eos 5.
As with changes in lights, I have done either (1) "be there and enjoy the first show, bring the camera for the 2nd." Or (2) have the director/producer/lead brief you on the flow of the show, highlighting on the key events, but this means you have to deal with the changing lights yourself.
Hope this helps.
