If you like beautiful melodies and singer/songwriters, you’ll love Kevin Prchal’s music. It’s terrific. I’ve known Kevin for years, through several bands, and I’ve loved them all, because he’s one of those guys that has actual talent. This solo project is Kevin’s newest venture, and I think he’s just waiting to take the world by storm. He just released an EP called Eat Shirt & Tie, and it’s amazing. You should listen to some of it.
Shooting Notes
Schubas, for being a small little tavern, actually has great light… in the center of the stage. Yes, unfortunately, the sides of the stage fall off into magenta light and darkness, but the center stage can be gloriously lit. For solo acts, I always manage to get some great rim lighting and a nice balance of colors. For this set, I shot mainly from the side of the stage (where there are a few stairs that are easy to park yourself on) because I liked the light best from that angle, and it also allowed me to keep the mic out of Kevin’s face. I also shot the majority of the set with the primes – 35mm f/1.4 & 135mm f/2 – but out of preference for using those lenses that day, not because I needed the extra light. In fact, I was shooting around 1/200, f/2, 3200ISO most of the night – which, for me, is nice and bright!
The challenge in this set was getting pictures that weren’t all the same. There was only one person on the stage, and he wasn’t moving. Well, that allows me to play around with framing. I shot through The Verve Pipe’s guitar rack, I shot so the support on the side of the stage was blocking half the shot, I shot wide, I shot tight, I played with flare, etc. It was fun!
