Photos: Foxy Shazam @ The Pageant
I’d heard the stories about Foxy Shazam. And after photographing their live show opening for Hole, now I know. Now I know.
Photos: Fantasia @ The Fox
Kicking off the New Year on January 1, 2011, American Idol season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino rocked the Fox with big pipes after Kandi and Eric Benét opened the show.
Top 100 Worldwide Club Venues 2010
Pollstar has announced their annual lists, including the top 100 worldwide club venues list based on ticket sales. Once again, it’s nice to see the 2,000-capacity Pageant included in the list, not only in the company of some very famous venues, but in the top five venues in the world, no less. The full list [...]
2010 Photo Pass Awards
What does a year for a freelance live music photographer look like? Pretty much like the above snapshot. As 2010 comes to a close, I thought I’d take a snapshot of my photo passes from the past year. All in all, I photographed about 110 individual concerts and a handful of festivals. The above photo shows [...]
Photos: Cake @ The Pageant
Low light, fast gestures, f/1.4 primes, and the tightest photo pit in the world – piece of Cake, right?
Photos: Zappa Plays Zappa
It’s rare that the 70-200mm f/2.8 is the single perfect lens for a rock show, but I could have happy shot Zappa Plays Zappa with just this staple telephoto zoom lens.
Preview: Usher @ The OMG Tour 2010
Here are two preview images from Usher’s 2010 OMG Tour, which stormed the Scottrade Center last Friday. Though a late contender, I have to say that the OMG Tour is definitely one of the most visually compelling and most fun shoots of the year. Also: Usher can fly – hit the full post for the [...]
Photos: DJ Paul Oakenfold @ Club Europe
I recall listening to Paul Oakenfold’s double-disc mix “Resident” back in 1999 0r 2000; to me, at the time, it was one of those perfect mixes, and one to which I always compared Oakenfold’s other work. Flash forward to 2010, when had my chance to hear, see, and photograph The Guiness Book of World Records’ “most [...]
Photos: Lifehouse @ The Pageant
After Kris Allen’s performance, it was time for the main event: Lifehouse at the Pageant.
Photos: Saves The Day @ The Pageant
Hearing Saves The Day open for Say Anything and Motion City Soundtrack was a trip back about ten years. The band’s lighting, however, was challenging enough that it drew me back to the task at hand, which was shooting wide open with a trio of primes and thanking the good engineers at Nikon for the [...]
Photos: Jonsi @ The Pageant
As far as I’m concerned, Jónsi is the reason for Vibration Reduction (Image Stabilization) technology in photography exists. With the extremely low light and low level of movement in the singer, this show was the perfect – and necessary – setting for better shooting through technology.
Photos: Justin Bieber @ Scottrade Center
This show was a little insane. First of all, there are the 14,000+ screaming fans filling the Scottrade arena. Then there’s the 6′+ stage and a very narrow (single file) photo pit. And then there’s the fact that Justin Bieber could probably have a pretty good career in track if he weren’t one of the [...]
Portraits: The Secret Handshake, Luis Dubuc
Kicking off his headlining tour for Night & Day, Luis Dubuc – AKA The Secret Handshake – rocked the Firebird with A Cursive Memory, The Narrative and Speak. Before the gig, I caught up with Luis for a portrait shoot with two looks – one outside nearby the venue, and another in the venue itself.
Photos: Mountain Man @ The Pageant
Trouble comes in three. But so does beautiful music. Photos of Mountain Main opening for Jónsi at the Pageant.
Photos: Aaron Lewis @ The Pageant
Performing alone on the big stage of the Pageant on his Solo & Acoustic Tour, Aaron Lewis seemed right at home.
Photos: Motion City Soundtrack @ The Pageant
It’s amazing, but no matter how many times I’ve seen Motion City Soundtrack, they always seem to bring a tremendous amount of energy – whether they’re play a club, a festival, at the start of a tour or the end.
Photos: Say Anything @ The Pageant
Fast action, low light, and singer Max Bemis thrusting out his mic at every opportunity for a big-club sing-along. What do you pack in your photo bag? Nikon’s f/1.4 primes, naturally.
Photos: Janelle Monae @ The Pageant
Going into this show, I had a feeling that Janelle Monáe would have a pretty dim treatment. After all, Of Montreal has been touring with a minimal/non-existent lighting setup and generally relies on the house lights for the past few years, so I didn’t dare hope that Monáe would receive any special treatment (even though [...]
Preview: Aaron Lewis – Solo & Acoustic
Aaron Lewis, frontman of the rock group Staind, performing on his Solo & Acoustic tour at the Pageant. While lighting was quite low on Lewis, a combination of VR and fast f/1.4 made the most out of this treatment.
Photos: Rob Zombie @ The Halloween Hootenanny Tour
Headlining the Halloween Hootenanny Tour stop at the Family Arena, Rob Zombie and crew ripped into their set with signature zeal and showmanship. While I’d caught Rob Zombie on the Mayhem Fest tour earlier this year, I was just as excited to see what the band would bring this time around.
Photos: The Walkmen @ Off Broadway
The Walkmen rocked a sold-out Off Broadway after the Japandroids warmed the stage. After catching the Walkmen live first at the Pitchfork Music Festival in 2006 and later in 2008, I was excited to cover their live show again armed with a trio of fast f/1.4 primes. And in the dark club they played, speed [...]
Photos: Of Montreal @ The Pageant
Of Montreal were one of the very first bands I shot, back in 2006. The first time I photographed them was at a basement venue called the Gargoyle, which is literally the annex of a university cafeteria turned sometimes-performance-space. From there, I’ve shot them at other clubs and festivals, including the Pitchfork Music Festival in [...]
Photos: Skillet @ The Pageant
Opening up for Papa Roach, Skillet tore up the Pageant in a hugely energetic show that was simply a blast to photograph.
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