The latest generation of digital single lens reflex cameras is able to capture images in lighting conditions that would have been impossible even one generation ago. This image, for example, was captured at ISO 6400 with a hand held telephoto lens at 1/250th of a second. While a small amount of post-production noise mitigation was necessary, the clarity and relative sharpness of an image like this one, shot in such low light, would have been next to impossible a year and a half ago.

Here, Jesse Sapakie, the Performing Arts Department Chair at a local high school, conducts the school’s choir. His hands and his music are lit by an overhead spot while his face is lit by the reflection of the lights trained on the performers on stage. It’s an evocative image, capturing both Mr. Sapakie’s individual artistry as well as his relationship with the unseen singers in front of him.

These are a few of the performers he is conducting.