The Mr. Jones Band is an Amy Winehouse tribute band. I absolutely loved watching this show, the band is full of energy and talent. The singer Mary Jo channels the spirit of Amy while crooning her hymns and rocking a big Winehouse wig. The band is stellar, the guitarist Julian shreds like Hendrix, Nick jams and jazzes up the whole joint on the keys, Mary Jo’s husband Jeff slaps the bass around like it’s out of line and I was fortunate to have a constant front-row glimpse through the lens of my camera. I was immensely appreciative of the glowing neon lights at the Anderson that night and I felt like this came out quite great, especially considering it was my first go filming a live music event.
Here are 5 tips and takeaways I would pass on after filming a live event:
Be confident. Get in there, capture emotion, and be part of the show. You’re part of the crew capturing the moment for them. Of course, be conscious of people trying to watch the show… but get what you need for the band.
Change focal lengths. I used a mix of 50mm and 16mm lenses. This gave a nice mix of shot choices. Getting more focus and emotion from the performers with the closer focus range and more sense of scale and views of the venue with the 16mm.
Edit to the energy of the music. Cut on the beats and to the energy of the music track. The recording of Rehab I used here made for some nice dramatic Dip to Black effects in the beginning of the edit.
Hold shots on the performers for 15 seconds or longer. When you capture those raw moments of expression and energy you’ve got little pieces of magic for the edit, but it takes a little patience to snag them.
Notes for next time: I’d shoot some b roll in at least 60 FPS to have better B Roll.
Multiple camera angles and quality live audio are also on my list to improve quality… as for now, here’s the show!