In the Field: Sony A7R IV & A7 III for Music Photography

On a trip to Coachella Music Festival, NYU Law student and music photographer Deanie Chen put the Sony A7R IV and the Sony A7 III to the test. Deanie has worked with some of the most famous record labels: Interscope, Warner Records, LiveNation and iHeartRadio to name a few. Read on to discover how she felt using these cameras during California’s iconic festival. Over to you, Deanie.

My setup varies a bit when I shoot festivals since there are a variety of factors that affect the way I shoot versus when I’m touring or doing a one-off concert. Festivals are inherently more stressful — shorter sets, higher stages and faster turnaround — so the primary tip I have is bringing along a second camera body so you have less lens swapping to do. Coachella, in particular, is notoriously dusty, so minimising the times I swapped lenses was necessary to protect their sensors. 

Gear

In this case, I had the opportunity to test out the Sony A7R IV and to bring along with my own Sony A7 III. The Sony A7R IV stood out to me since it’s double the megapixel count of the A7 III and is just overall a solid camera. 

In addition to these camera bodies, my gear for the weekend included a Sony70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS, Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 DG DN L, Tamron28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD FE and a Godox flash. I also shoot film, so I brought a Polaroid Impulse camera, an Olympus Stylus Epic, and plenty of film. And, of course, plenty of extra batteries and SD cards. 

The two-body setup ended up being essential for me throughout Coachella. I was mainly using the 70-200mm lens on the Sony A7 III body and the 14-24mm lens on the Sony A7R IV since the A7R IV’s larger megapixel count made it much nicer to crop in for a tight framing. When making my final selects, I love having a range of both close-up portrait shots, as well as wider shots that show off the production and the audience. 

Throughout the three-day festival, I was photographing specific artists including Overmono, Kaytranada, Romy, Jai Paul, Chromeo, Yaeji and Jackson Wang. 

Overmono

When shooting EDM, I find that the photos are often very wide, highlighting the environment and production, so I always try to get some close-up shots of the artists. The image below is one of my favorite images from the set because the angle catches both Tom and Ed from the side, which adds some diversity to all of the other shots that have the LED wall in the background.

Kaytranada

I always love to photograph artists I’ve worked with before because the extra familiarity (vs. going in completely blind) removes a level of nerves and makes me more familiar with how an artist moves and their tendencies, giving me more room to play.  

The image above is one of my new favorite images of all time. I probably looked ridiculous, basically lying down in the photo pit to get this angle, but it was worth it. The below image is another favourite, as I think a slow shutter speed photo can capture some of the energy of a performance in a way that conveys movement in a softer way than a sharp action shot does.

Yaeji

This was one of my favorite sets of the weekend. This was my first time seeing Yaeji live, and it was an incredible performance. I also love that above shot because it was the perfect golden hour moment with her silhouette.

Chromeo

And to close out the second day of shooting Coachella, I photographed some of my dear friends, Chromeo. This one was also really special because I had been talking with Dave 1 about their prep for this fest for a while now. I had seen the setup at rehearsals a few days prior, but seeing everything come together so beautifully was so wonderful. Such a dancy happy set, and they brought out La Roux. Getting to hear Bulletproof live was a top moment of my weekend.

Romy

This was my fourth set shooting at the Gobi stage of the weekend, so it felt much more familiar than it did with Overmono on the first day. Romy is so sweet, and I loved getting to snag a little backstage portrait before she went on.

Jackson Wang

I’ve photographed Jackson in the past and I knew it was going to be an incredible show. This was no exception. The dancers, the choreography and the theatrics of it all just made it an incredibly dynamic and interesting set to photograph. This was one of those sets that made it key to have two camera bodies, as the rapid changes with every song made it so I could get both wide and close shots within a 20-second span. AND he brought out Ciara?!

Jai Wolf

I didn’t know I was going to photograph this set until the day before, but I’m so glad this set was the one that closed out the festival. After submitting some deliverables in the 15-minute changeover between Jackson Wang and this set, I remember running out to the pit and seeing the entire crowd dancing. The above photo is one of my favorites because I think it captures how I felt being in the crowd with all the attendees.

Sitting on the red-eye back to New York, writing this, it still feels so surreal that taking photos has brought me to this point. Working for the artists at Coachella, I feel lucky and thankful that they have trusted me enough to document a special day for them. Beyond being a photographer, I have always been a fan of music first, and that’s something that, looking past composition, framing, coloring, etc, I hope always comes through in my photos.

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