Great story about the art of photographing theatre performances.

Given that the choreographers and lighting designers and set designer and costume, hair and make-up people have already done a lot of work, not to mention the contributions of performers themselves, I just love grabbing 1000 or more shots during a show, and culling them down to a couple dozen of the best.

It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to take a “row of performers jumping in the air” photo, so here’s a pro’s shot for you to enjoy:

Marc J. Franklin was Playbill’s photo editor for years. Now, he’s a production photographer. Last season, he took pictures of the Tony Award-winning musical, A Strange Loop. This season, he photographed the Tony-nominated shows Some Like It Hot and Topdog/Underdog.

“Anybody can set up a tripod and click a button,” said Franklin. “There is this electric, ephemeral thing that happens in a room, depending on who is in that room, both onstage and off. And that affects your performance. That affects the energy that the audience feels. And so, when I take photos, I really try to capture that.” —NPR