Dance Photography: The Nutcracker Through the Years

With the holidays approaching fast I hope everyone is getting into the spirit of the season.

I thought I’d try to get in the mood with a bit of a trip down memory lane with some festive images from the North Carolina Dance Theatre’s (NCDT) performances of The Nutcracker over the years. This year’s staging kicks off next week so I jumped the gun and gathered a few old chestnuts from our photo vault.

My first exposure to NCDT’s amazing dancers was in the early 90s while working for The Charlotte Observer. Dance photography has remained a passion for more than 15 years and it’s been a pleasure documenting the performances of this incredibly talented troupe.

Another interesting aspect of assembling these images was seeing the progression of photo technology during the span these photographs were taken. After starting with film, I moved through a variety of digital cameras and the improvements in technology is noticeable. I included some technical information for photographers. It’s evident that upgrades in camera technology now allow images that just weren’t possible before.

The biggest change has been the improvement in the high ISO ranges of the newer cameras. While I once had to shoot very slow shutter speeds just to try to get an image, I now have the option of using the slow shutter speed for aesthetics or I can change to a higher shutter speed to freeze motion. The reduction in noise in extremely high ISOs and the overall color saturation of the images is also vastly better.

But enough technical talk. It’s the holidays. Crank up some Christmas music, grab some eggnog and enjoy!

I’ll be photographing the 2009 version next week so check back for some fresh images. Hey, you can’t have too many Nutcracker photos – right? That would be like having too many Christmas presents.