Amber Gregory Photography

A B & The Sea at Rock Make Street Festival

Amber Gregory — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 23:13:49 +0000

It was the most gorgeous day of the year in San Francisco, the perfect day for a street festival in the Mission (the Rock Make Street Festival, to be specific). Great music, crafts and (of course) beer flowed freely throughout the afternoon, but I have to say that the highlight of the day was seeing A B & The Sea in broad, shimmering sunlight. It was a great set, and the photos have a unique flavor to them, of summer and freedom and joy. There is nothing quite like being able to capture this type of magic with my camera. Enjoy!

Scissors For Lefty at Wente Vineyards

Amber Gregory — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 03:04:02 +0000

I would say to file this one under “once in a lifetime,” except I am fortunate enough that this might not be the case: last Friday, July 23rd, I had the opportunity to spend much of my day and evening with Scissors For Lefty, who were performing an intimate outdoor show at a most gorgeous venue—Wente Vineyards in Livermore. I was the lens that captured it all, be it the initial set up, sound check, baking in the sun, dirty jokes, copious consumption of wine, multiple pre-show wardrobe changes, and a show that ventured into “off the hook” territory and beyond.

Thanks to everyone who made Friday night possible. It was something I’ll never forget!

I took so many photos that I’m going to have to break the recap into several post. This is the first, and the photos are in approximate chronological order. Enjoy!

Stripmall Architecture at Milk

Amber Gregory — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 23:00:50 +0000

I had the pleasure of shooting one of my favorite bay area bands, Stripmall Architecture, at Milk bar on Haight Street last Saturday night, and it was an evening filled with beautiful music, awesome visuals, equally awesome people, and–best of all (to the photographer)–amazing, phenomenal lighting! I’d never shot at Milk before, but I am really excited to shoot there again. I know the great lighting had mostly to do with Stripmall Architecture’s great sound guy, but man, the layout at Milk has something to do with it as well (really, I think it does!).

Enjoy these photos from Stripmall Architecture’s show at Milk on Saturday night. I’ll be writing a review about the show that will publish tomorrow, and I’ll add a link to that review here when it goes live.

A B & the Sea at Cafe du Nord

Amber Gregory — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 23:03:12 +0000

Here is a preview of a great show I shot on Wednesday. More to come!

Dancefloor Executives at Harlot

Amber Gregory — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 22:05:12 +0000

I went to Harlot, a bar/small music venue in San Francisco, last Thursday to shoot a friend of a friend’s group, Dancefloor Executives. I went into it not knowing what to expect—especially since it was one of two shows I was shooting that night—but I was seriously blown away by this music! Andy (my friend), who you can see in the last of these “sneak peek” photos, even had to tell me to “stop raving!” at one point. I guess you can never really take all the rave out of the girl, after all.

Enjoy this preview of my photo set from Harlot!

Wallpaper at Popscene SF

Amber Gregory — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 07:43:01 +0000

This show was even more fun than I thought it was going to be–and being side stage, one of only a couple of photographers present and using a rented external flash for the first time at a show, I was in heaven. A totally sweaty, disco-fied funky heaven. Sounds like my kind of place!

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings at The Warfield

Amber Gregory — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 04:21:17 +0000

30db, Bo Carper & Friends at the Great American Music Hall

Amber Gregory — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 17:11:34 +0000

I am lucky that I generally get to cover the bands I want to cover for Examiner.com, and as such, it is difficult for this ever to feel like a job. And I am not saying that even on the rare occasions when my editor sends me to cover a band I’ve never heard of and would normally never listen to, I have a terrible time and it feels like a chore and I hate photography. To me, it may not be a band I’d listen to of my own volition, but it is an opportunity to get to know a style of music, along with its fans, and discover what they think is so great about it. On May 20th, I made my way to the Great American Music Hall to cover a pair of bluegrass bands, Bo Carper & Friends and headliner 30db.

The fans I met were fantastic–an extremely easygoing, laid back bunch who were more than happy to stand next to a photographer (you’d be surprised at how frequently this is not the case…but that is a story for another day). The bands were both highly entertaining and featured some mind-blowing guitar work. And the lighting was so great at GAMH that I turned down my ISO and, in most cases, did not have to edit the photos beyond conversion from RAW to JPEG. Enjoy!

OONA and Wallpaper at The Independent

Amber Gregory — Fri, 14 May 2010 22:12:13 +0000

My favorite shows to shoot are small, local shows, and my very favorite shows to shoot are small local shows that go off the hook. I know the San Francisco Bay Area has a remarkable talent pool (something I really had no idea existed until I started doing concert photography…and this was not from lack of trying), but there is really nothing like a packed house of sweaty, happy people who are BEYOND EXCITED to see their favorite bands–and, in many cases, their friends–perform in an intimate venue. It may not be a lucrative career choice, but I am never happier than when I am shooting a show like this. Especially when my husband any of my friends accompany me, because you know what they say about drinking alone!

The two bands that rocked The Independent last Friday, May 7th, both hail from Oakland, OONA and Wallpaper. Both were fantastic. I feel like I can’t say enough, but the truth is that I already did, and if you’d like to know more, you can mosey on over to Examiner.com and read my review of the show there. Oh, and enjoy these gorgeous images!

Salt of the Earth

Amber Gregory — Wed, 05 May 2010 23:48:39 +0000

My father’s side of the family is from Utah, and I spent a weekend in Salt Lake City’s grasp a couple of weeks ago celebrating the life of my grandfather, who left us April 13th. We like to think he is up in the great beyond right now bickering with God, telling him list form all of the ways in which his efficiency on Earth could be improved. That was just the kind of guy my grandfather was. I hate that I only seem to go to Utah for funerals, because it is one of the most gorgeous landscapes I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing, and the cemetery where my family is buried has a view worthy of several hundred photographs on any given day. My family helped found the town of Herriman, Utah, which is still fairly rural, and the cemetery is truly a place of beauty. If I have to die, and if my family has to die, then I am glad everybody gets to go six feet under together in such a reverent place. It was also really nice to visit my father’s grave, the first time I’ve been back to see him since he died almost seven years ago. It was a tough weekend, no doubt, but it did give me closure–and opportunities for photos!