In our experience, if you’re shooting Meet & Greet photos, you’re either a road-worthy photographer (who’s also shooting concert photos, capturing behind the scenes footage and generally documenting the tour) or your a crew member who was handed a camera and asked to photograph dozens of crazed fans each night. Either way, fans paid for a VIP ticket and expect a professional experience—that includes well-lit photos that memorialize the 30 seconds they spent with their favorite artist(s).
While a decent camera is necessary, proper lighting is equally important when taking group portraits. Some venues will have lots of space and plenty of ambient light. Others will give you a dark room with low ceilings. The goal is to create and easily replicate the same lighting each night, regardless of the environment.
Your camera likely has a built-in or popup flash, which should only be used if you don’t have access to an off-camera unit. These flash types are very harsh and inflexible, producing fake-looking photos with unflattering shadows and washed out faces. They also cause red eye, which is infuriating to fans. If your goal is to take professional Meet & Greet photos that are worthy of fans’ Instagram feeds and living room walls, a basic speedlight or strobe unit is the perfect first step.
Speedlights
Speedlights are small flash units that can be mounted to the camera’s hot shoe or on a light stand. They range in price from $200 to over $1,000, and have plenty of light-modifying accessories for any lighting scenario. When choosing a speedlight, there are a few things to keep in mind:
- Connectivity - When placed away from the camera, speedlights need to be triggered when you take a photo. You can either use a wireless radio system or physically connect to your camera with a sync cord. Most speedlights have built-in receivers, so you’ll just need attach a radio trigger to your camera’s hot shoe mount if you don’t want to use a physical sync cord.
- Automatic vs manual setting - When a speedlight is set to auto, your camera continually reads the room’s ambient light and tells the flash how much power it needs for the optimal exposure for each shot. Most speedlights also allow you to fine-tune the auto setting to perfect the lighting for your environment. When set to manual, you control the flash output, allowing you to keep the flash output identical between shots. For group shots, manual is preferred for consistency. For concert photos, it’s nice to let the camera determine the flash output so you can focus on the artist.
- Power - Like all external flashes, different speedlights produce different amounts of power. Unlike strobes, speedlights measure power in guide numbers (GN). B&H has a great description of guide numbers here. We recommend using a speedlight with a minimum guide number of 40 (like the Canon 430EX). This allows you to light a large group of people from 3-4 meters away, and also shoot concert photos with the same flash unit.
- StagePilot’s speedlight recommendation - While photo gear is a relatively small component of your overall tour budget, we recommend purchasing the most flexible and portable system possible. Before purchasing a speedlight, be sure it’s compatible with your camera. Canon, Nikon, Fuji, etc., all make dedicated flash units for use with their cameras. Most 3rd party units (like Metz, Mieke and Godox) sell specific models for each camera system. At StagePilot, we shoot with Canon 5DMarkII and 5DMarkIV cameras with these speedlights:
Canon Speedlight 600EX ($480)
Canon Speedlight 430 EX ($250)
When shooting with speedlights, we always use one of these light modifiers.
Rogue FlashBender 2 Large ($65)
MagMod Magsphere ($50)
Strobe lighting
While infinitely portable, speedlights’ power output is limited due to their their size. When shooting large groups, creating a high key lighting style, or simply creating a professional, awe-inspiring environment for VIP fans, strobes are the way to go. They do take a bit longer to set up and more space in the trailer, and can feel somewhat intimidating when first using them. But once you get into a routine, they’re very intuitive, super flexible, and create fantastic results.
There are two types of strobe:
- Monolights include their power source in the flash unit. Each unit is plugged in to a separate power outlet and is controlled by settings on the flash unit itself. Monolights work great in tight spaces and make cord management a breeze.
- Head and pack systems have a separate power source (pack) that plugs into a single power outlet. Each strobe head is then connected to the power pack. The output of each flash unit is controlled by settings on a single pack. Packs and heads are perfect for shooting in a studio or controlled environment.
The ability to control the output of 2-4 flash units from one power pack is very convenient. But the cost and number of cords makes them less than ideal for Meet & Greet environments. For that reason, we recommend using monolights.
A basic strobe lighting kit will include:
- Strobe heads
- Modifiers
- Light stands and sand bags
- Radio trigger and/or sync cords
- Extension cords and power strips
- Strobe heads - Like speedlights, monolights vary in power output. While some are powered by a battery back, we’ll address AC powered units. Strobe power output is measured in watt seconds (W). Adorama has a great explanation of watt seconds here. For Meet & Greet photos, you’ll want two or more strobe heads that each produce at least 500W.
Most strobes include a modeling light – a separate bulb on the face of the strobe which produces constant light. It allows you to set up the strobe without taking endless photos, and keeps your set well lit. We recommend leaving the modeling lights on for the duration of your shoot
Protip: Like all flashes, strobes need to recycle between shots. If every strobe is set to max power, they’ll take a while to recycle and slow down the Meet & Greet process. Purchase slightly more powerful packs and set their power output to 75% or less to keep recycle times short.
- Modifiers - Modifiers are used to manipulate and soften the light produced by your strobes. For Meet & Greet photos, we want to spread the light across a group of people and minimize harsh shadows. The most common modifiers for group photos are umbrellas and softboxes. For Meet & Greet photos, we favor umbrellas because they’re lightweight and compact when traveling. For a wide, diffused light, we bounce each strobe into an umbrella with the umbrella’s opening facing the group.
Protip: Extend the umbrella’s mounting rod away from the strobe to spread light across a larger group. You may need to slightly increase the flash power to compensate for the additional distance.If the artist typically wears a low cap or hat, lower one umbrella to light his or her face.
Protip: If the artist has dark skin, slightly increase the power to expose for their face.
- Light stands and sand bags
Strobes are mounted to light stands, which can be adjusted to different heights. Since portability is critical on tour, we recommend using lightweight, 10’ air cushioned light stands. Lightweight stands with strobe units and umbrella attached are extremely top-heavy, and easy to knock over. It’s absolutely necessary to weight each stand with a sandbag. We use 15 lb or 25 lb sandbags on the base of each stand.
Protip: Set up your light stands in the same order every time to minimize the risk of them tipping over. Reverse the order when breaking them down. For example: - Open the stand bases
- Place sandbags on each base
- Attach the flash units
- Raise the stands from the bottom section first
- Attach the umbrellas
- Plug in each strobe
- Radio triggers and sync cords - Strobes must be synced with your camera to flash when you take a photo. You’ll need to sync one flash unit to your camera with a wireless radio trigger or a sync cord. Luckily, you only need to trigger one strobe with the camera. All other strobes within sight will be triggered by any flash. Sync cords are the cheapest way to accomplish this—just plug one end into your camera, and the other into the closest monolight.
Radio triggers allow you to wirelessly sync multiple strobes with the camera. The primary benefit is removing one physical cord from your setup, and one potential tripping hazard from your set. Most strobe heads have a built-in radio receiver, so you’ll just need to purchase a radio trigger that attaches to your camera’s hot shoe mount.
Protip: If you do choose to use a radio trigger, choose one that lets you control the power output of your strobes. Either way, bring a sync cord, just in case your radio fails.
Protip: If you choose sync cords, buy a coiled one that stretches (in case someone accidentally snags it). And bring two cords, as they are prone to failing over time.
- Extension cords and power strips - When shooting Meet & Greet photos on the road, access to power outlets is always an issue. And the ability to keep your set free from endless cords is priceless when operating in tight spaces. In addition to your lights, you’ll likely need to charge a computer, a few phones and maybe even a monitor while shooting. We typically bring one 25’ heavy duty extension cord for each monolight and three surge proof power strips.
Protip: Bring power strips with USB outlets so you and your crew can keep your phones charged while shooting.
- Accessories to keep on hand:
- Batteries - Speedlights eat batteries much more quickly than your camera. Some units require AA batteries, while others use rechargeable lithium battery packs. Either way, keep plenty of extras batteries and a spare charger on-hand at all times.
- Gaffers tape - You probably have no shortage of gaff tape in your trailer, but it’s good to keep a roll or two with your camera equipment. Use it to tape down all cords and mark the position of your tripod and light stands. You can also mark the spot where the artist should stand for every photo.
- Flash tubes - Flash tubes are expensive, sensitive and specific to your strobe. Expect to break one or two over the course of a tour and not be able to pick one up at the local camera store. We keep two spare flash tubes in our hard camera case.
- Modeling light bulbs - Once you get used to illuminating your set with modeling lights, it’s devastating when they burn out. The bulbs are inexpensive and readily available. We store one extra bulb with each strobe head.
- Sync cords - Be sure to have an extra sync cord or two at all times. If your radio system dies or your sync cord fails, you won’t be able to use your new lighting setup. We keep a spare sync cord in every light case.
Most importantly, be prepared!
Whether you shoot with one speedlight or bank of strobes, be sure to dial in your setup before heading out on tour. Know what you're going to do if you get to a venue and the room is tiny, or has low ceilings. Know how you’ll adjust if a fan is in a wheelchair and your lighting doesn’t reach them. Most importantly, know how to unload, set up and break down the gear in a methodical, repeatable way. Lighting can either be a game changer for taking beautiful photos, or a hassle if it takes an hour to recreate at each tour stop.
While we don’t sell any equipment, we’re always ready to chat about the best lighting scenario for your event. Shoot us a note at support@stagepilot.com!
