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The number one issue we see with images turned in to SXSW is using too low ISO settings which requires a slow shutter speed and results in blurred and underexposed photos. You can correct the noise caused by using high ISO in post processing but you cannot correct unsharp, underexposed images.
In low light settings you will typically be shooting at ISO 3200 or higher and your shutter speed should be at least 1/60 second but preferably a faster speed like 1/200 second. Even if your camera or lens has some electronic motion control (IS or VR) it will not freeze a moving subject at slow shutter speeds.
In low light situations it may be best to set your camera to manual mode or time (shutter speed) preference mode to prevent the camera from picking a slow shutter speed that will make your pictures unusable. You may choose an AUTO ISO mode or just watch you screen for under exposure warnings to let you know you need to increase the ISO or open up the aperture.
Fast lenses with at least an f/2.8 aperture are desirable for low light photography. Be careful if you use apertures larger than f/2.8 (like f/2 or f1.4) because your depth of field will be very shallow and you may have difficulty keeping everything in focus.
Say what? I thought this was about low light photography.
Concert and stage lighting often have a subject highlighted with bright spotlights but surrounded by black or dark sets. Your camera may see the picture as predominantly black and thus cause your great shot of Justin Bieber to appear as a white blob. However you are smarter than the camera and you know that you only care about the bright subject in the photo and it is OK for the background to be dark. You may have to adjust your camera to shoot at -1 or -2 EV or just use manual mode to control the exposure yourself.
Watch out for spot exposure metering. If you put the spot on the right place this will usually give good results. But if you have two brightly lit subjects and your spot is in the dark area between them you will have a problem. You may want to use a center weighted exposure method instead of the spot or shoot in manual mode since you are smarter than the camera.
Interactive Exposure Tool to understand how ISO, speed, aperture interact
Understanding Exposure - ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed Explained (article)
Relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO (video)
Concert Photography Tips (video)
Exposure for Concert Photography - Jared Polin (video)