In the interview: Helge Roewer
You meet them at almost every musical event. Some hate them, others want nothing more than their attention: concert photographers. A mysterious and thoroughly strange bunch, standing there in the pit with their larger-than-life cameras and lenses, right?
Lousy light, lots of movement on stage, or none at all, and no space in front of it in the crowd between all the other people - concert photography is not the easiest genre to choose. Nevertheless, many diligently hold up their snaps from the audience or go into the pit as official photographers.
There is hardly an event where you don't meet him. Helge Roewer (HR-Pictures, one of the scene photographers par excellence. We talked to Helge about his work.
Hello Helge! Thank you for taking the time for an interview. First of all, tell us a little about yourself and what do you do besides photography?
I'm actually an aerospace engineer and work in the software field. So screen time adds up at the end of the day when you're still working on umpteen pictures in the evening.
What are the subjects and motifs that interest you and what was the most unusual assignment you have ever taken on?
Oh, there is actually nothing very unusual. You've seen a lot over the course of time, but you don't necessarily have to capture it and no one should see it any more 😉 .
Band shootings or weddings are always very special. In contrast to concerts, you have to give instructions for the most part, which you don't have at concerts.
A very special one was a shoot by and with the band V2A, who invited me to England especially for it. The shoot was in an old bunker, where the power was partly out and we had to work with torches. Nevertheless, we got some great pictures. The whole weekend was marked by little sleep and lots of drinks.
Concert photography now takes up a lot of your time and work. Do you remember the first concert you photographed? Which show was it and what was the situation like?
It actually started quite small. Back then, when I was studying in Munich, I already had a relatively good digital camera and friends of mine are/were disco and concert organisers and asked me if I wanted to take some photos. The first shows were And One and Melotron in 2005.
How do you prepare for a show or the respective artists?
I've had a lot of bands in front of my lens before and I usually know how people behave on stage. I often check beforehand whether the singer is left- or right-handed, so that I can make sure there's not always a hand in front of my face.
From time to time I look at new locations on the internet to see what the situation is like for the photographers and whether you can take nice pictures outside the pit.
Apart from that, most things are more spontaneous, like back then with the "Leben in der Lage" (Living in the Situation) alliance.
Yes, that's the good thing, so to speak, you don't have to give any instructions and just have to live with what's happening on stage and what the light man is conjuring up.
Through clever positioning, you can then actively try to make the best of the scene or use beautiful light. That's why I prefer concerts with a pit, where you can move around a bit, rather than having to squeeze through the people in the audience or only being able to stand in one place.
What was the most beautiful moment for you during a concert photography?
There are actually so many moments, be it before the concert, during the concert or afterwards, or sometimes in the backstage area. So there are actually a lot of great moments that you like to remember, so it's difficult to specifically list one now.
In general, the appreciation of the "work" is always nice, be it from the bands or the organisers, locations or from the fans, especially in the front row. When you are recognised and greeted. Some bands like to play with the photo people and pose extra or thank you and even say goodbye to you when you walk out of the pit.
Is there anything during work that keeps you busy or annoying?
As I said before, concerts without trenches, when you have to squeeze through everywhere with the bulky and heavy equipment. You just get old... 😉
Apart from that, so many people know me now and know that I'm gone again after a few minutes anyway, so there's little stress or annoyance.
Which of your concert photos did you particularly like?
Phew, after about 15 years there have been quite a few good ones, but it's hard to pick out one.
At the moment I'm rebuilding and streamlining the homepage a bit, which takes much longer and is more work than I thought and I have to touch every gallery again. From time to time, I notice very beautiful (but also rubbishy) pictures that have almost been forgotten.
It's hard to say, sometimes concerts are great right from the start, others need the spark to fly and a certain atmosphere and interaction between band and audience to develop.
But I'm not a fan of standing in the audience with my mobile phone the whole time to capture a "perfect moment".
What does the creative work after the concert look like? How much time and energy do you put into post-processing and what is the success rate of your pictures?
It takes a lot of time just to choose from umpteen pictures and to consider whether each selected picture looks better in colour or black and white. The actual editing is quite quick with a few saved presets.
Depending on the band (number of members), light and location, the proportion of pictures that end up in the gallery varies between 10 and 20%.
How important are concert or tour photographers for artists and artist management?
I think very important. People usually get to see more through photographers than in the audience itself. Pictures from the evening or tour are also often used for reviews or thank-you postings by the bands.
In the meantime, you know some promoters and management personally and have frequent contact, so you can get an accri a bit quicker or are asked for backstage or meet & greet photos.
Would you name some examples of your work?
There are already some live pictures, but also shooting pictures on various CDs and DVDs. Several covers and booklets of Beyond Obsession, for example, contain pictures of me. I'm quite proud of the last live DVD of Solar Fake, which was recorded in February 2020 in Täubchenthal Leipzig and all the pictures in it are mine.
Which settings on your camera do you use most often? Which camera and additional equipment do you use most often?
After more than 10 years with Canon (then analogue, then digital), I switched completely to Nikon in 2015. In the meantime I have become friends with the brand. After two old digital SLRs (D750), I've now given up an old DSLR and made friends with a new mirrorless system camera (Z6II), at least for now. There are no limits to the technology and the bugdet, but it doesn't automatically make better pictures.
Since it is and remains only a hobby for me, I am still in the small to medium price range, which is quite sufficient for me.
The basic equipment for concert photography includes wide-angle lenses and standard and telephoto zoom lenses with high speed. I'm very happy about a great fisheye lens, which opens up new perspectives.
I can't list any special settings, it often varies depending on the location or whether it's open air or indoors. Every colleague finds his or her own
How important is self-promotion for you and which possibilities or platforms do you use to share your photos with other users?
I don't market myself that much, the awareness just came over many years. It really started around 2011, when I was able to achieve more interaction with bands, promoters and locations via Facebook. Besides Facebook, there's the actual homepage and my Instagram channel, which doesn't exclusively contain concert photos.
Due to the corona pandemic, you had to cut back on concert photography and resort to other options. What was the concert-free time like for you and how did you use it?
Somehow I missed the weekly concerts, events and festivals, plus the long evenings at the computer editing. On the other hand, I found it very relaxing to do nothing in the evenings and just do something else. It's been years since I've been in my flat "at a stretch" and I've seen so much of Bavaria on sightseeing excursions than I did 10 years ago... 😉 I've been in my flat for a long time.
Do you have any tips for beginners in photography? What tips would you have been grateful for when you think back to your first steps?
Nowadays there are many (inexpensive) ways to take good pictures. For concerts, very fast lenses are worthwhile, perhaps one with a f/2.8 aperture is enough at first, then you expand more and more.
It is best to start with local events/organisers and (possibly friendly) bands and then work your way up.
Perhaps we should explain the term accreditation to readers.
It's a permission to do something at an event, be it writing a report or taking photos. Literally, it's "giving credence" to the organiser, band or location. So we look closely, carefully check and responsibly judge whether the inquirers are competent, can do a good job and have earned trust.
If you have made a certain name for yourself over time, accreditations usually work out. Or you have a (digital) magazine in the background, then it works quite well.
What else do you do apart from concert photography, what interests you?
I have many interests, mostly technical, where the engineer in me comes through.
Since the Corona days, I've discovered drone flying for myself and have incorporated it into my galleries at some open-air events. Many organisers were very happy about a few aerial photos and moving pictures of the site. That's why I took the "big" drone licence, so I could do more and be safer.
Furthermore, I am intensively involved with trends and developments in the field of sustainability and renewable energies. Since the middle of 2020, I've been driving electric cars myself, already 130,000 km, and I can only recommend it.
What plans do you have for your photographic future?
I'm actually planning to do a little less in the direction of concerts because of work, but somehow I don't manage to do that. But at the moment I often forego events during the week because of work.
Privately, I'd like to go to Iceland (photographically) and take a road trip to the North Cape. For the latter, you have to plan 3-4 weeks of concert-free time, which will be difficult again.
Which artists or bands do you like listening to most privately?
There are sooo many to list them all. Most of them are electronic. I can't do anything with too much drumming or screaming.
Especially at the NCN Festival I always get to know new and interesting things.
We are slowly coming to the end of our interview. What would you like to leave our readers with?
Keep supporting your bands, events and venues, they have a really hard time keeping up in the time after Corona and the current price increases.
We will definitely see you at one or the other event in 2023!
Dear Helge, we thank you for the interview and wish you all the best and lots of fun in your creative work.
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Photos: Helge Roewer (hr-pictures.de) // Kristin Hofmann (fotokatz.de)