Dave Hoffmann - A Harford County Dabbler in Photography » Performance Arts

If They Could See Me Now …

Dave — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 22:57:58 +0000

I headed north to Elkton to help Cecil county photographer Scott Serio photograph the dress rehearsal for the Cecil Dancenter’s 2010 Recital.

Because of all the colorful lights used during the performances, flash or strobes is a huge no-no if you want to capture the mood of the performance. I used my Canon 5D Mark II and 70-200 f/2.8L lens. I shot at ISO 3200 and set my white balance to tungsten. Below are the results.

Mass Distribution

Dave — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:25:19 +0000

Story by the Baltimore Sun: BSO’s ‘Mass’ CD has electric appeal

Sure, this is a shameless pat on the back (to myself), but hey, sometimes we’ve got to toot our own horn every once in while.

The new CD of Bernstein’s Mass, which was performed and recorded here in Baltimore at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall last October, features as the CD cover, one of my photographs. I wonder if Jubilant Sykes, the performer featured in the photo, had his hand in choosing the image to use. I say this because Jubilant called me from his California home shortly after this performance and ordered a large photograph of this same image to display in his home. Whatever the reason, I think they made a wise choice.

Just for grins, here is what the original image looked like.

You can see more images from that performance here: Bernstein’s Mass

Off the Cuff

Dave — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:24:17 +0000

Saturday night, the Marin Alsop and the BSO performed an “Off the Cuff” series on Brahms. It’s a combination conversation on the featured composer and concert.

Holiday Spectacular

Dave — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 19:02:31 +0000

Last night was the dress rehearsal for the BSO’s Holiday Spectacular, which opens tonight and will have 14 shows through December 23. If you can make the time, I recommend attending.

The performance this year features the African Children’s Choir — made famous on American Idol’s “Idol Gives Back” and The Tonight Show. What a talented group of young people.

Bernstein’s Mass

Dave — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 17:57:37 +0000

Mass is the centerpiece of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s 2008-2009 season and celebrates the 90th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth and his enduring legacy.

I was commissioned to cover the rehearsal this past Tuesday and the performance held last night. This production features nearly 250 performers with the BSO divided into two different orchestras with two organs and nine percussionists, the Morgan State University Choir, Marching Band, Peabody Children’s Chorus, plus the cast of dancers and singers. For more information visit Bernstein: Mass — A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers from the BSO’s website.

Without the ability to use flash, the key to getting the shots in this low-light environment is to combine my f/1.8-f/2.8 lenses, plus high ISO.

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