For the second year in a row, I photographed the Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware. This music festival has really become one of my favorite festivals to photograph — it's just an extremely well-run and well-organized event in the forested Woodlands of Dover.
Just like last year, I was photographing for one of the festival's sponsors. My duties were largely to create lifestyle images from the festival, essentially showing the attendees of the festival. What this amounts to candids of festival-goers as well as posed shots. What this means for a music photographer is basically being “on” all-day, constantly on the lookout for subjects and moments that will tell the story of the festival. Here are some of my favorite shots from the Firefly Music Festival.
Photographer's Notes:
Cameras Used:
Lenses Used:
At Firefly this year, I shot with two Nikon D800 and my two main lenses — the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 and the Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8. For this kind of festival photography focused on the fans, this combo is just about perfect. 24mm to 200mm is an extremely versatile range — nothing wider or with more reach is really needed.
In terms of shooting, music festivals require a huge amount of stamina. At my longest, I had a 20-hour day of shooting to cover this festival. But for all long days and short nights, these kind of events are supremely fun and rewarding to cover. Until next year, Firefly.
