Barry Manilow
Beyonce
Billy Joel
Blondie
Bruce Springsteen
Cher
Eric Clapton
John Mellencamp
Jonas Brothers
Justin Timberlake
Lady Gaga
Lisa Marie Presley
Madonna
Mariah Carey
Motley Crue
Muse
Neil Diamond
Neil Young
New Kids on the Block
Paul McCartney
Rihanna
Rod Stewart
Steve Miller Band
The Eagles

Robert Plant
Shakira

Neil isn't always a soundboard shoot; in 2008 you could shoot from the side of the pit.

I think it depends on the stage setup too, not a hard and fast rule w/ some artists.

soundboard shoots i've done that aren't listed above:
The Decemberists
U2
My Bloody Valentine
Pixies (this was venue-specific)
Hall & Oates

You should always check an agency site (like getty) to see where it looks like they have you shooting from.

A lot of these you already know from experience and once you go to the soundboard YOU DON'T COME BACK- Lady Gaga, Springsteen, Madonna, Van Halen, Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Reba, Blondie, Eric Clapton, Genesis, Tina Turner, McCartney, Motley Crue, Justin Timberlake (only because he was in the round), Neil Diamond had you about 10 rows back, Beyonce, Muse, Leonard Cohen, The Killers, Rod Stewart, Fleetwood Mac, Kelly Clarkson, Janet Jackson and Nickelback both have you from the middle of the floor, New Kids On The Block, Spice Girls, Christina Aguilera,

The worst is when you have to shoot the opener from the SB because that's where the headliner has you shooting from!!

jill scott

Sting
Meatloaf
George Thorogood & The Destroyers
Gypsy Kings
Kenny Rogers

Kenny Rogers was a pit shoot for me.

Leona Lewis, Britney Spears and Guns n Roses are the only ones I can think of that hasn't been listed so far.

I am supposed to shoot Shakira tonight. I was told it will be soundboard "or further". She performed just 40 miles away this weekend and that looked like it was soundboard.
I've only got a 200mm, so I was going to chance it with the soundboard, but I'm thinking twice now that it might be further.

There are shots of Shakira on Retna and it looks FAR !!!!

Hall & Oates the past two times I have done them have been pit shoots..

Chemical Brothers, Deadmau5

Mainly because of their large lighting setups...

Janet Jackson
Lil Wayne

This is a great thread!

Ray LaMontagne is 15 rows back, stage right.

I found out the hard way about Reba & Neil Young...didn't know until I got to the venue...very frustrating.

Tim McGraw

Michael Buble

Pet Shop Boys (soundboard / balcony for their own shows, festivals they do sometimes allow pit, but you're stuck on one side)

Mark Knopfler had us shoot from about a third of the way back on the floor (Arena venue)

Tori Amos was balcony first time I shot her, second time it was crouched in the aisle near the stage, so that might be venue by venue. She also sometimes allows shots in soundcheck instead of during the show.

Blondie and Alanis Morisette so far.

In London;

Leona Lewis
Rihanna

Lady Gaga was from the back of the venue not the soundboard

Kenny Rogers was from the side of the venue.

silversun pickups
muse

Allison Krauss, no pit
Ray LaMontagne was pit, but only left side of the pit

Would be good if the thread starter could update his first post with the list as currently assembled... that way we don't end up with loads of duplicate mentions.

Nelson's advice is exactly what I do. Just check Getty/Wire or whoever and see if there's hands in the shot or the angle looks odd.

Regina Spektor was no pit - balcony only..

I shot Regina from the pit about 6 weeks back...
www.flickr.com/photos/m_g_gray/4816044803/

Was yours not just a seated venue with no pit?

Norah Jones is non-pit, too, while I'm thinking about it, and I'm pretty certain Kylie Minogue was on her last UK arena tour.

Ray Lamontagne had me shoot from GA bleachers on the left side of the stage and I had to be at least 17 rows back. And to make matters worse he stood on the left side of the stage all night. Managed to get a few good shots but for the most part he was a tiny speck, even with the 70-200. Did get some nice shots of Tift Merritt and David Gray from the pit that night though.

Haha! There was a nice big empty pit in front of Regina Spektor and a packed up close standing audience. How odd! Maybe she was having a bad hair day or something...It was on her say so though, apparently,.

Funny one. I'd actually expected it to be balcony, and had taken a 400 in case. Could be that the venue wasn't really suited to a balcony / sound desk shoot.

Muse on Coke Live Festival in Poland was from the pit - the standard 3 songs no flash.

From the soundboard: 30 Seconds To Mars

Robert Plant in Oslo - 3 songs from the soundboard.

@fronta I think that's an exception for festivals - their own shows have been from quite a distance, although technically "in the pit", it was full length on a 400mm on a crop for my show, for instance (stadium show)

Can confirm Guns 'n' Roses still desk, but no contract to sign. There was one at Leeds Festival, but nothing tonight.

Soundboard = Garbage i personally decline most SB

I'm over it..

Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience was a soundboard shoot.

I had to shoot Drake from 'SB' distance, it was sent to me 20 minutes before the show. The excuse was cameras in pit for the show, cant comment on the ongoing tour dates.

Carrie Underwood

I asked a friend recently, why do they make us shoot from the soundboard? His reply was, image control.

I can possibly understand an aging rocker being shot from the SB but the likes of Lady Gaga, Carrie Underwood and Beyonce who are in their prime and lookin' hot should want good pics of themselves while they are young.

Is it really image control? I shot Jason Bonham from the SB and one of my shots is of a 3/4 empty arena. Really? As a band, you'd take the chance of getting a shot of your performance to a nearly empty arena than have photogs getting kick ass shots from the front of the house? If you never give a photog a chance to shoot an empty arena, then you won't get images of an empty arena.

@Groovehouse: Ouch. lol. you make a good point.

Adam Lambert is soundboard.
I got the pass but put my cam away in car and got my little fuji out and just shot from crowd.

Smashing Pumpkins also makes you shoot from soundboard.

Drake is SB now? When I shot him supporting Jay-Z it was pit, as it was for Mr Z too.

@SHINIG4MI: When I photographed the Smashing Pumpkins it was anywhere you could find to shoot except the pit. So you could stand up front against the barricade in the crowd if you wanted to, I opted out of pushing my way to the front in a already hostile environment. But I wouldn't consider it a soundboard since they dont make you shoot from there.

@ishotyourband ohh! my bad, i said they were SB since i heard those were the shooting conditions during their set for singfest this year.

I saw that from a post a couple months ago that 30 Seconds to Mars was listed as an SB shoot, anybody know if that's going to be the case on their upcoming tour? I was thinking of trying to get a photo pass for their show when they came to Rochester but if that's the case then I'll just either bring my P&S or sneak in my camera with a small lens.

amber - it's not that's 30stm is really soundboard.. it's just out of the barricade.. and it's been the rule for the past two legs of tours..

Lauren Harris (was opening for Motley Crue), small pen below the soundboard tower, ~60m from the stage, many tall people in front of us; I passed on the "honour" for both, the editor didn't mind

for 30 Seconds to Mars, it seems to vary depending on the venue...I had to shoot from soundboard for their Halloween show. A step stool would have been a good idea, had I known in advance.

Styx here was balcony only.

I'm shooting 30 seconds to mars next week, and had the PR email me today to inform me its from the sound desk, a few photographers have already turned it down/cancelled passes because of that.

DONT EVEN BOTHER w/ 30 Seconds to Mars - THEIR LIGHTS ARE THE WORST !!! Total waste of time. First time in 20 years of shooting concerts I got NOTHING usable.

Rick Springfield
Eddie Money
Fall Out Boy
David Cassidy
U2
Van Halen (Roth)
Van Halen (Hagar)
Sammy Hagar
Toto
Steve Lukather (solo shows)
Ludacris
Shelia E.
Keb' Mo

We can add The Cult to the list

Yeap the Cult :) we had to shoot them from the end of the venue

We should probably compile this into some kind of collaborative spreadsheet as a resource for the group. Does Google docs do that kind of thing? Possibly with columns for

Name Of Band
Date Updated
Soundboard / Pit
Contract
Additional Notes

Don't think linking to the contracts would be a good idea, PRs have been funny about that in the past.

I shot the C_u_l_t from the pit at the House of Blues but they did have a seriously ridiculous rights grabbing contract.

AFAIK all UK shows were from the back.

re: The Cult. Pit shoot here. Hope I didn't ruin it for everyone. I thought they were flattering photos.

30TSM, not worth the bother.

i shot Silversun Pickups in 2010 from pit.

Looks to me like Enrique Inglesias is from the desk (based on the Atlantic City Wireimage shots from this month) - anyone confirm?

Ke$ha is soundboard on her first tour, so that means probably future ones also. Very boring to shoot.

@Sebbux! : I think she was only soundboard last time cause she was opening for rhianna which was soundboard. she is playing the HOB here, not really room at a soundboard.

She was soundboard here at HOB and there was barely any room, only 4 or 5 shooters in the tiny board area and the rest had to be behind them within the crowd. Also she was soundboard in Michigan. Hopefully it won't be but looks like it may be the whole tour.

Someone told me they allowed photos from the crowd recently..

I know for one there is no room at the soundboard in Orlando,, last show that was suppose to be soundboard they made us shoot from the side of stage.

Diana Ross - soundboard, 3 songs and let me tell you those opening Supremes numbers are short and sweet! I shot for 7 minutes. The first image time stamp is at 8:05pm and the last image time stamp is at 8:12pm.

fastest shoot I've ever done was Macca...2 songs, total of about 6 minutes ("Drive My Car" and "Jet").

@tinnitus You need to do Stevie Wonder then - two lots of 60 seconds, but it's not soundboard.

Can confirm Enrique Iglesias is soundboard this tour. Does have a walkway but only uses for one of the three songs.

I just photographed Enrique for a radio show not to long ago, and it was pit.

Radio shows tend to be different though. The whole uk tour has been desk from what I understand.

I would not doubt it.. but now you know how to get up close. lol

I was having this discussion before shooting a show earlier - bands that are no agencies are fine at festivals, bands who are from the desk are from the pit... may as well just shoot the festivals. ;)

Nobody seems have discussed the current Kylie "Aphrodite" tour here. It's not - as many might expect - from the soundboard, but actually from a point just beyond the "splash zone" which you should be able to see on seating layouts. 400 and a 70-200 did the job nicely.

It's beautifully lit, incidentally. A joy to shoot - usual first three and no release.

Add R Kelly to the list

just curious how many people who've shot SB shows actually own a big chunk of glass (300 or 400), or do you rent, or just make do with what you've got?


i shoot SB shows so infrequently that i either use my 70-200 w/ 1.4TC or rent a lens locally. i'd love to have a 300 f/2.8 (and it's an amazing portrait lens if you've got some room) but can't justify the usage/cost ratio i'd incur.

Add Sugarland to the soundboard list.

@tinnitus-I only own a 70-200 and make due. Would love to own a 300 or 400, but can't justify the cost either. I've tried a 1.4TC a few times, but have never gotten good results.

two of the acts at Stagecoach this year were soundboard. Kenny Chesney and Carrie Underwood. It was really, really really far.

Jeff Beck last night. We were told in the morning we would be shooting from the wings but just before the show they changed their mind and we were taken to the sound board. Always take a long piece of glass with you.

Add Ricky Martin to the list.
Just got the info this morning.. soundboard (or behind it) first two songs only..

Not a mega surprise, that one. We really need to get a one-stop-shop Google Doc going for this.

Even if it's just:

Artist Name / Restrictions / Last Updated / Other Comments

So we have a database of who allows what.

even though i was turned down for this concert - I heard Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae are from the S.B. - i think the publicist "did me a favor" by turning me down. NO GREAT LOSS...

James Taylor and you basically end up with two shots, him standing and playing guitar and him sitting and playing guitar. If you're lucky you can get a shot of him walking out onto the stage for a total of 3 different looks. =)

Taylor was WORSE last summer with Carole King - because the stage rotated and you were STUCK in one spot at the soundboard!!

Shot Janelle twice, not soundboard, but I hear Bruno Mars is, even in tiny venues - if he was headlining, presume he was the problem there.

Sade was SB last night in Zurich, first two songs. Arena was seated so not such a drama. Bring a long lens...

Brian May & Kerry Ellis was back of the room last night, but this might vary by venue.

Anyone shot Kid Rock? .. Know if its pit or SB?

Just confirmed: Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers is soundboard tomorrow.

I believe Kid Rock is not from the sound board BUT off the the side of the stage. So you will be looking at the back of his head for 3 songs.

Thanks Nelson. Might go with Boyz II Men that night then.

Can anyone comment on U2? I see it listed above as a sb shoot, but want to confirm. Shots on agency sites are misleading as there is a circular platform around the stage. It's hard to tell exactly where the photos are being taken. Thx.

U2...full frame + 300 = perfect match

My understanding is that there were two photo spots for U2 - the wide pit and the long pit if you will, but even the "wide" requires a significant zoom.

Looking at Getty, it seems the current Glee live tour is soundboard. Anyone shot who can confirm?

I saw Glee on Getty also and that is 100% the SB - I guess they want the entire cast in the shots and not just 1 or 2 actors.

Just wondering what the restrictions are (I'm guessing some cast members are on for some songs, but not others etc...) - there's some vague possibility I'll shoot it when it comes round this way.

Cake
Tiesto wasn't soundboard but required final approval of images and denied all closeup shots of him.

(Decemberists in Mpls were not soudboard, there was a pit.)

go to gettyimages.com and search 'glee concert' to see the concert shots - nothing to jump up and down about

Bruno Mars / Janelle Monae was from the back of the sound board last night. Not even worth shooting with a 400mm lens. LAME!

you can choose between pit and soundboard for U2, field tested. and their publicist is great.

Shakira is mostly soundboard, but depends on the venue. We shot from the pit in Zagreb, but that might be due to the fact that they pushed the concert an hour early on short notice, due to the airport being closed after 11pm for reconstruction, so the arena was half-empty when the show started. so the pit shooting was more damage control I suppose.

reading the thread further, I'd also like to mention that the distance from SB to stage depends on the venue for Shakira. The soundboard was very close on this show, and since the first three songs were made to be shot from the SB, I think we'd actually get better shots from there.

Eric Clapton at the Norwegian Wood in Oslo tonight is soundboard.

I own a 70-200 f/2.8 IS L lens, plus a TX 1.4x. I can also borrow a 2.0x, but I have to check the light first, plus it gets a bit soft. I sold my Sigma 150-500mm, should maybe have kept it?

To add a few more

Dolly Parton is soundboard, and from the EXIF on Devu's excellent shots, Avril Lavigne can now be added to the list.

www.flickr.com/photos/devu/6138071438/

That Avril Lavinge shot was taken with an 800mm ouch!!!!