From Soundcheck to Same-Day Delivery — Turning Around a Grammy-Nominated Performance Overnight

Location: The Barns at Wolf Trap, Vienna, VA

Overview

When Grammy-Award winning artist Chandrika Tandon brought her Divine Ecstasy Tour to The Barns at Wolf Trap, our team at CreeseWorks was commissioned to capture the emotion, intimacy, and grandeur of her live performance — with a next-day turnaround for digital and press use.

Our goal was clear: deliver cinematic photo and video content overnight without compromising artistry, color, or accuracy.

The Challenge

Capturing live performances in intimate venues means navigating fast-changing light cues, limited shooting positions, and silent-shutter restrictions.

This project required:

• Silent, unobtrusive coverage during a classical fusion performance

• Exposure accuracy under mixed tungsten and LED lighting

• Edited photo + video assets delivered within 12 hours

The stakes were high — the artist’s team had early morning media deadlines and planned to publish content the next day.

The Approach

We built a minimalist setup around Sony’s FX3 and a7R IV, with the FX3’s running S-Cinetone to maintain consistent skin tones and a cinematic dynamic range.

During pre-show testing, we verified all lighting cues for exposure consistency — ensuring the setup was flexible enough that any under- or overexposure would remain recoverable in post.

While the main footage was correct in-camera, our secondary footage required color correction due to unexpected intensity shifts between spotlight transitions — a useful insight for refining future fast-turn workflows.

Results

The final deliverables — featured by @chandrikatandon and @wolf_trap on Instagram — showcased the performance’s emotion and energy, captured in a way that felt immersive yet unobtrusive.

By the following morning, photo and video were edited, exported, and delivered — turning a live event into a next-day publication.

This project proved that fast-turn content production can meet the standards of luxury visual storytelling when the right systems, preparation, and creative mindset are in place.

Technical Specs

• Primary Cameras: 2x Sony FX3s, Sony a7R IV

• Lenses: Sony 24–70mm f/2.8 GM II, Sony 24–70mm f/2.8 GM I, Sony 24mm f/1.4 GM, Sony 70–200mm f/2.8 GM I

• Support Systems: DJI RS Mini 3, Manfrotto 502AH Video Head & MT055XPRO3 Aluminum Tripod Kit

• Recording: Atomos Ninja V, ProGrade Digital SDXC and CF Express Type A cards

• Audio: Soundboard direct via XLR feed to the Sony FX3 and Zoom F6 for redundancy

• Turnaround Time: 12 hours

• Deliverables: Photo selects, video reels, and next-day contact sheet

• Location: The Barns at Wolf Trap, Vienna VA

Takeaway

This Wolf Trap production demonstrates the power of creative readiness — pairing Sony’s hybrid reliability with strategic lighting and a deep understanding of live-performance rhythm.

Even under tight deadlines, storytelling through light and movement remained uncompromised — proof that fast can still mean fine art.

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Washington DC event photographer Christopher Creese captures Grammy-Award winning artist Chandrika Tandon’s live performance at The Barns at Wolf Trap using the Sony FX3 and a7R IV, delivering cinematic photo and video content overnight.

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Hire CreeseWorks

If your organization, foundation, or media team needs editorial-quality event photography that reflects your values and story — let’s connect.

📧 christopher@creeseworks.com
🌐 www.creeseworks.com
📸 @creeseworks on Instagram