Touring with Phil Labonte of All That Remains, Killswitch Engage rocked the Pageant in a spectacle of calculated chaos. With the stage free of monitors, mic stands, and any other distractions, the expansive stage became a playground a little metal mayhem. At any given time, most of the members of the band seemed to be jogging around the stage while at least one was rocking a powerstance in a twisted game of musical metal chairs.
Photographer’s Notes:
With nothing on stage to get in their way, Killswitch Engage basically run around like chickens with their heads cut off. Luckily, there is a system to all this madness, as the band members do make stops at the front of the stage at intervals to rock out. These moments of pause are the best opportunities to catch the guys, so keep your eyes peeled.
Out of all the band members, Adam Dutkiewicz is easily the most fun to photograph since he’s mugging for the crowd the majority of the time. That, and the fact that he’s probably likely to be wearing a cape any given time he’s on stage.
Overall, lighting was spastic, but generally pretty bright, and largely flooding in from the back and sides of the stage. The kind of big, bombastic treatment that looks great from the crowd, but which may give photographers a little headache at times.
Due to the stage setup previously mentioned, this show was made for wide-angle photography. The 14-24mm f/2.8 and 24-70mm f/2.8 dominated this concert.
End Notes:
Great show – plenty of challenge and the time went by in a flash, but also really fun to photograph. Want more Killswitch? You can see the guys from their 2008 tour here:
Photos: Killswitch Engage @ the Pageant
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 18th, 2010 at 9:37 am and is filed under Music Photography and tagged with 2010, all that remains, killswitch engage, live, metal, pageant, performance, phil labonte, tour. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Photographing Killswitch Engage was like playing a game of Whac-A-Mole. Nail one powerstance, they just make more: http://bit.ly/963hy5
RT @toddowyoung: Photographing Killswitch Engage was like playing a game of Whac-A-Mole. Nail one powerstance, http://bit.ly/963hy5
Dude great job! I love the first image and your work! Keep it up!
Hey Alen, thanks. That first one was one of my favorites from this set, it shows a bit of the chaos with basically all the guys [magically] in the frame.
The second last one really stands out to me; I love how stark it is, not even any amps or anything.
Thanks – that’s my favorite shot of Phil – super clean stage setup, it felt like photographing a much larger amphitheater show. No Doubt’s setup was like this – no monitors, everything was wireless.
My favorite band to shoot at Mayhem Fest last year. Great shots, Todd… the 14-24 is the perfect lens for them.
Hey Tasha,
Thanks for the comment! Yeah, Killswitch are always fun to photograph – that reminds me, I don’t think I even posted my shots of these guys at Mayhem last year. Gotta get on that.
They are a BLAST to shoot – loved them for Mayhem Fest last year: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dianaguay/sets/72157621870683545/
Soo looking forward to shooting them with Phil this weekend. They are total hams for the camera and it’s awesome!
Nice pics, and glad to see that the stage is nice and clear.
Hi Diana,
You’ll have fun – Phil was a nice substitute for Howard – the fans seemed to love it anyway, it was like a big sing-along. Yes, the clear stage was a very nice surprise, makes for great shooting, I think.
RT @toddowyoung: Photographing Killswitch Engage was like playing a game of Whac-A-Mole. Nail one powerstance, they just make more: http://bit.ly/963hy5
Another great set. I love that their stage was so bare! You’re right about the power stances, if you missed one, there will be another! Looks like you mastered that backlighting pretty well. Nice set.
Hey Eric,
Thanks. There were definitely no shortage of powerstances at this show, that’s for sure. Or at any metal show for that matter. Thanks for the comment.
Really good pics Todd!
my favourite is the singer plus drummer one. I like the second shot too, but the white light coming from behind, for my modest opinion, brings the mood a little down.
It also looks like they had a cool stage/lights.
Hi Donnie,
Thanks for the feedback. The production on this tour was very good overall, and while not the easiest lighting to shoot, the lights probably looked amazing from the crowd.
Todd, epic shots you got of these guys! You rock with that 14-24. I had the opportunity to shoot the show here in Seattle: http://backbeatseattle.com/wordpress/?p=17785.
I had a blast, but I could definitely have used a 14-24. NIce work!
Hey Nate,
Thanks for the comment. The 14-24mm was pretty clutch for this show, that I will say.
Looks like you had a nice show, too – always cool to see a different perspective.
Awesome pics Todd!
Me and my friend Jake were in the front row. Jake is the one pictured in the crowd shot above wearing the Killswitch shirt and kept telling you to buy a Canon instead of a Nikon. LOL. I am the guy to his left with half of my face cut off.
Would you happen to have any more crowd shots with us in it? I would love to buy a few to remember such an amazing show. I know you’re busy. Just let me know.
Cant wait to see the Prada shots!! I want to buy some of those too.
Matt Mayer
Hey Matt,
Thanks for the kind words, nice meeting you at the show. Here’s a link to one more crowd shot, which I just uploaded, and you’re front and center:
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/toddowyoung/img-show/I0000QOnbJyqBSsI
There are also some more live shots that I posted, too. Will be posting the Prada images soon.
YESSSS!! You are the man. I’m going to place an order shortly. These pics will be proudly displayed in the room where we practice and record.
I’ve been looking through your galleries and I’m truly amazed. Keep it up!!
Also, my wife uses an old Nikon D100 to shoot my band. Im going to send her to this site for tips.
Thanks again.
Matt Mayer
Looks like a huge stage! I can see the challenge in chasing these guys around.
I love when I have the opportunity to photograph the same band more than once. It gives me a tool to measure my growth as a photographer and maybe even capture some moments I missed the first go around.
Great work as always.
Hey Greg,
Thanks for the comment. The stage of the Pageant is pretty big, but without monitors and shooting the 14-24mm, it looks massive.
I always like photographing bands who I’ve covered before – it’s a nice challenge to come up with something different, and the production is always going to be different anyway.
Hey Todd,
I must say, the shot where Adams feet are off the ground is pretty epic. Just out of curiosity. How much would you pay for a used 24-70mm f/2.8? .. Is it worth renting or just buying one and paying with installments (don’t have the cash for it right now)
The reason I ask this is because I shoot Dashboard Confessional last night, but we had to shoot from a catwalk and all I could get were full stage shots (with my 18-55 kit lens). Cropping is working for now. But I’d really love the option to get more variety of shots. Plus I have to shoot at that venue again next week for Train and the venue never has a photo pit… I know its a lot to take in, but any advice would be awesome.
Thanks so much,
Kayley
Hey Kayley,
Thanks for the comment. Regarding the used 24-70mmm – first, it sounds like you’re going to want something more like a 70-200mm f/2.8 if you’re shooting from any distance that’s not the photo pit (though it will depend on the venue).
I always look at eBay and KEH.com for used prices – they are the best indication.
If you can afford to buy a lens outright and just make payments on it, that might be a good way to go. I guess it depends on the interest rate vs how much you think you’d throw away on rentals. If you only rent a few times a year, it might not be worth buying, though.
Hope this helps!
Todd
I was interested in your shots to see if the lighting would be any different, I found it incredibly challenging to shoot as well, intense lighting from the back of the stage but not too much from the front, and none stop “jogging” as you put it so well. Great set as usual.
Cheers
Hey Lewis,
Yeah, this isn’t the easiest tour to photograph, but it sure is a lot of fun. Challenging subjects and challenging lighting, but a big reward if one can nail it.
I shot these guys a few weeks ago, and I must say it was a very intense lighting show. The large light panel behind the stage really put up a interesting show with the camera.
Many red, green, and blue washes. Needless to say, I didn’t get ANY shots. Great job Todd.
Never heard of these, but absolutely love these pictures. Amazing !
You say what lens you use here, what ISO did you have on?
Jordan
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