Harold Lopez-Nussa in Maryland (and some tips for taking photos at concerts)

Alain Gutierrez
04.12.2023
5 minutes reading

Sometimes life gives you opportunities, luxuries that become beautiful memories that will stay with you forever. Sometimes those luxuries come dressed in music. When you are far away from the land of your birth, the encounter with any form of expression that brings you closer to your homeland provokes a unique sense of pleasure.

Thanks to the management of Magazine AM:PM and the kindness of Harold Lopez-Nussa, I was able to attend and take pictures at their magnificent concert at the AMP Music Club associated with the Strathmore Theater in North Bethesda, Maryland. On a Thursday afternoon, when work is in session the next day, the hall was completely full. It was a tremendous joy for me to see the audience enjoy the Cuban music delivered by the López-Nussa band: Gregoire Maret (harmonica), Luques Curtís (bass), Ruy Adrián López-Nussa (drums) and, of course, Harold on piano.

I'm not an expert on the subject, so I couldn't give a eulogy about the presentation, but I've worked for many years taking photos at concerts and interacting with musicians. Plus, I'm an eclectic music lover who needs music to breathe. It was spectacular. Maret blew everyone away with his harmonica playing. The band, a blast. I pay a lot of attention to non-verbal communication on stage, and the fluidity during the presentation denoted synchronization and enjoyment of each performer's performance.

Personally, this concert helped me to rekindle certain skills that I have been acquiring as a photographer in events of this type and that I would like to share with you, as they could be very useful for a first time:

NEVER use flash.

Always wear dark clothes. Black, if possible. You will need to be invisible to the audience. Wearing colorful or light-colored clothing bounces light off of you and distracts the attention of the audience.

Pay attention to your surroundings. Move carefully. Avoid tripping over a cable, equipment or scenery that could cause an accident and ruin the presentation.

If you are invited to take photos, talk to the people in charge of the presentations, ask for details and explore the places where you will be moving around before the concert starts.

Look for the best places to park during the concert long before it starts.

The audience has paid to see the show. Please do not move from side to side during a song. Wait for intermissions between songs to move from one position to another. Crouch down when moving, do not interrupt the audience's view.

Speak very softly if you need to. But don't talk.

NEVER stand in front of the musicians to take a picture.

Be gentle with other photographers. When you are behind them, let them know subtly, avoid them tripping over you and suffering a fall or damaging equipment.

LED lights are being used at concerts. The light pulsations are invisible to the human eye, but they cause "banding" in the images. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO REMOVE THEM IN PHOTOSHOP. The solution is to take pictures at a maximum of 1/125 speed. Try it and you will see. If the concert is in daylight, you will have less problems with that.

DSLRs make a lot of noise. If there are moments of silence or very quiet music at the concert, avoid taking pictures at that moment, don't ruin the experience for others.

If you use mirrorlessIf you are using a digital shutter, or mirrorless cameras, you can switch between electronic and digital shutter depending on the moments or dynamics of the concert.

Always shoot in RAW.

Look for unusual angles to take your photos. Show the concert in a unique way.

Don't forget to get as much information as you can about the concert. Musicians, organizer, venue, song order would be the icing on the cake. Use that information in the metadata of your photos.

I hope you find these tips, based on my experience, useful.