Dance Photography Tips

I interviewed photographer Bryan Theisen from Hungry Pine Photography.  He has great advice for getting the best dance photos and videos 

Eden: What kind of cameras and video cameras do you own?

Bryan: I shoot video with a Sony FS100 and still photos with a Canon 70D

EK: When you photograph or video dance recitals, what equipment do you take with you? Why?

BT: When recording video for a dance recital I like to have two videos cameras. One that captures a wide shot of the entire stage, and a second that is closer to capture the close ups and expressions of each dance. Shooting like this requires two similar cameras with lenses that allow for a great zoom distance. 

EK: Is there a photo gadget you wish you owned?

BT: A telephoto lens for still photography would be really helpful. The lens I use has a maximum focal length (zoom amount) of 105mm. To really capture the close up images this requires me to hide just off the stage. Using a lens with a higher focal range would allow me to take photos from the back of an auditorium. 

EK: What are good settings for action photos?

BT: You really need to be able to shoot a lot of photos per second in a low light. Get a camera that can handle a high burst setting (my camera can do 7 photos per second which is kinda on the lower end). The low light setting is controlled by the ISO. Some cameras can handle shooting at a higher ISO level without becoming too grainy. The 70D can get to about 1200 ISO before it’s really too grainy to use. Some cameras can go much higher then that, allow you to shoot in a lower light setting. 

EK: What kind of software do you use?

BT: To edit photos I use Adobe lightroom, and for video I use Adobe premiere. 

EK:  What's your favorite thing to photograph

BT:  I take a lot of cosplay photos at Comic Conventions. It’s amazing to see how much work people put into building costumes. As a photographer it’s really important that I take each photo seriously. Some people will come with costumes they’ve worked for years building, and others will come with something they’ve put together in the last few weeks. Each person has a totally a different skill level and they deserve to be taken seriously. The same thing is true with dancing; rather it’s taking photos of toddlers as they wandering around on stage looking cute, or someone whose perfected a routine over years of practice. It’s my job to take a great photo of both. 

EK: How can people share large photos online? 

BT: I use dropbox to share a lot of my client based projects.

EK: How can kids learn to capture good pics? 

BT: A good start is trying to replicate other photos you’ve seen. Looking at someone else’s work and thinking through how they set up lights, or what settings they had to use really challenges you get better at learning what it takes to capture a good photos. 

Photo Credit: Bryan Theisen
Special Thanks: Hungry Pine Photography, Step n' Time Dance Studio