I have been doing concert photography for almost 5 years now. I am working as an official photographer of a band in Chittagong, Bangladesh. I am not a pro but I had experiences that can be shared with you and that’s the intention.
A concert venue is a place where nothing is stable. No matter what kind the music is, the environment is not giving you an inch of comfort. You have to fight with lights and subject constantly. How you tackle this is a topic for later. But I am going to tell you several things better be avoided.
Firstly, never use flashlights. Yeah I admit it can be discussed but I always felt the ambient lighting of the concert gives the best output. That dangling red, blues, or green, they’re going to put scribbles in your photos. You may realize, it’s not a 100% success when shooting in vibrating lights, but you will get eventual amazing results.
Secondly, never share frames with others. Which is to say, whenever you’re taking a position, avoid where others have gathered. Yes, in the midpoint of the stage, closeup spots to the artists, these are the spots everyone is thriving for. Avoid these spots at the first phase because you’ll eventually get a chance and mostly avoiding common frames can provide you more unique components.
Thirdly, always be cautious about the technical equipment in the venue. In a concert, a massive amount of wires and equipment are common. Intercepting a wrong wire or smashing a fragile light won’t be a good experience to gather. Moreover, these sensitive things can create massive destructions in the arena also.
Fourthly, never interrupt or irritate artists or technicians related to the concert. Because you never want to annoy the main reason of the show. The musician and the musics are the main the reason behind this.
There may be hundreds or thousands of other aspects to maintain. But I have realize, avoiding these can make the experience better.