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!
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!
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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!
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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!
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