Concert Photography Advice

Wife and I will be attending an Aerosmith concert (indoor arena) in Jan. and want to take some pics with her new Sony DSC W7 7.1mp camera. Would appreciate any advice as to how to maximize the quality of photos taken in these conditions.

I would assume that pics should be taken with flash off as distances will be at least 25' to 100' from the stage, bright stage lighting and low surrounding light. Any particular settings other than flash off to consider?

Am considering the Sony accessory telephoto lens for the camera. Any ideas as to what the impact of using one would have in these lighting and subject conditions?

Sure would appreciate any suggestions or personal experiences that might help us maximize the quality of our pics. Thanks!

Don't forget the earplugs.....seriously. :D
The last concert I shot was with a 35mm and that was years ago, so I don't know if I would be able to offer much advice. I'd say get as close as possible and try to use the ambiant lighting from the stage.

I'm 99.9% sure that a band like Aerosmith will have a no-photography rule at pretty much any place that they play - an outdoor festival might be possible, but I doubt you'd be able to bring a camera into any concert venue. Check with the venue first - they may confiscate it otherwise. I'm not going to tell you to sneak it in, but you would be the first...

Don't use flash, for two reasons. First, it'll show security right where you're at so they can come get your camera. Second, unless you're within 10' it won't do any good. Stages are very bright in some spots and very dark in others - big lighting rigs like that make for difficult situations to photograph in, and a big percentage of your shots might not turn out.

I don't know that camera, but can you use it manually and are you comfortable with taking your own exposure readings? If not, zoom in close and you should be OK on some of your shots. The reason I say this is that is because you probably have a better chance of being in a contrast range that the camera can handle (hard to explain, but you'll see...). I usually shoot concerts at ISO800, but that might give you noisy (grainy) images. So shoot a lot, try different settings and you'll see what works for you.