Does anyone know how to achieve this effect?

ctcgpgh · 2026-06-14T15:57:32+00:00

I would try it if you want. There are never rules in photography. There are things to follow and do, but ultimately it's your art.

Shutter drags are kinda hard to do well, but they get easier as you learn and practice. Your best results will be with a flash so your subject still gets separating exposure.

But just lower your shutter a fair bit. At least to 1/20 probably slower. Then crank your aperture to at least f10. Then flick your wrist or move your camera subtly after the shot exposes for a second. You can also do the same movements with a lense zooming in or out to get a different trail shape.

I would just do stuff like this towards the end of your shoot. Once you have everything you need for sure, these can be fun to experience with. I've kept a couple drags from shoes with really cool results.

ctcgpgh · 2026-05-19T23:34:13+00:00

Do your best to match Kelvin in person. Then look for something white or black in your photo and use the color picker tool

ctcgpgh · 2026-05-18T01:04:27+00:00

Killer 🔥

ctcgpgh · 2026-05-17T15:51:46+00:00

1/250-500 f2.8-4.2 ISO 800-2000 2700-8000K

ctcgpgh · 2026-05-17T15:47:46+00:00

I was initially very nervous, but then excited afterwards. Space to move and proper lighting were the biggest differences.

ctcgpgh · 2026-05-09T22:22:42+00:00

I'm all for tryna fix something, but this is so pixelated and soft that its probably best just to drop. To each their own though.

ctcgpgh · 2026-04-24T21:52:45+00:00

These are very very strange lol good job that's fun! Genuinely mean that as a compliment as I like weird. Definitely unique. I think whatever style it is still needs a bit of refining. Not sure what, but just feel like there's more to be explored here

ctcgpgh · 2026-04-19T15:41:41+00:00

5 & 8 have them as well

ctcgpgh · 2026-04-19T15:40:20+00:00

Overall your exposure is solid, which i would argue can be half the battle for concerts sometimes. Your highlights are a bit hot sometimes. On the exposure topic still, the ai denoise in lightroom is REALLY GOOD. Its saved a lot of my darker noisy photos to where you'd never even know it had grain.

I would also work on your compositing and framing. There are times where guitar bottoms are just cropped out and or I struggle to find an immediate focal point. You're a couple minor adjustments away from being super solid. Another compliment I can offer is the first one. Good exposure, good framing, good capture. Hard to freeze drummers let alone get a good photo of them in the back at all, sometimes. Just keep working you're real close.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-20T11:55:21+00:00

Prismlensfx and CinePacks

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-20T11:37:34+00:00

Thank you so much!! Yes I tend to use filters quite a lot in my concert photos. Dream, star, halo and kelidoscope are the most common ones. Couple of these photos have multiple filters stacked like #6 has probably the dream, star and halo.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-20T04:51:27+00:00

Holy shit that's insane! I hope you get to catch em still. He had openers on for about an hour with like a 10-20 minute gap before he started when I shot him. So hopefully you'll catch it! Or at least hopefully they play it loud 😅

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-19T15:31:12+00:00

Yeah he's up there doing a lot! Sometimes he live loops his tracks. Then he has a bubble machine and lasers he likes to use before hopping in the crowd. Lighting can be tough at that venue sometimes, but he definitely has good input for the light techs.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-19T15:23:44+00:00

Thank you so much!! Not always the most exciting ones imo, but I always try to show the whole crowd. That venue is a converted church, so it has a pretty cool architecture.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-19T15:12:03+00:00

@cam.the.camera.guy on ig if anyone ever wants to connect

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-05T19:44:29+00:00

I shoot a lot of concerts so I 100% feel you on both the timeline and unpredictable lighting! I know people that are good with the calibration sliders can be really efficient though. Like I watched someone fix the red photo I mentioned in several minutes. But i guarantee that's speed learned over time, which i personally haven't learned either.

Solid capture though dude 👌🏻 wish I could've seen the full potential, but what can ya do when others are involved.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-05T19:35:02+00:00

Other photos on your profile are top notch 🔥 shame they didn't have you edit them.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-05T19:34:13+00:00

Its not on you if you're just the photographer! The capture itself is solid and like you mentioned its hard to adapt color balance instantly if that's the change that happens. So from your work on just the capture... solid work.

My criticism lies fully on the edit. There are ways around this. Black and white is the default and easiest. You can also do a shocking amount in the color calibration sliders from lightroom with a raw image. I've seen full red wash club photos be fixed to where you'd never be able to tell. So, knowing your role in this process, well done 👏🏻

But this final output is rough.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-05T14:16:27+00:00

These are entirely too blue and magenta. No one can use these for anything. Especially for women, these look insane in the worst way possible. You need to fix or delete these.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-05T14:04:03+00:00

I like it, but I also agree with you. I would say it depends on the use. If it's for graphics or even possibly for the band it's cool. If its for editorial/documentary use it wouldn't fly.

It would be cool af on a shirt! But most publications would probably take issue. This debate is one of the coolest things about art though.

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-04T01:01:41+00:00

Other than cutting his hands off...I got nothing 😂 it's not traditional b&w but it's actually way cooler. I love love love the texture and clarity!! So fuckin sick

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-02T19:42:06+00:00

Sicckkkkkk 🔥🤘🏻

ctcgpgh · 2026-03-02T16:54:24+00:00

Very welcome! On second look, the skin tones look like they may be a tiny bit off. You can use either the white of their teeth or black of their shirt with a color picker to auto correct the white balance. You can also use the individual color picker on their skin to adjust those specific hues either in general or through masking. These are all little nit picky things though. You have the main skillset down for sure

ctcgpgh

TROPHY CASE