
I never thought I would ever do concert photography because everyone wanted to do it when I was in college. There is nothing wrong with it I just thought since everyone was doing it then I should do something else. I fell in love with portrait and wedding photography and using my journalistic instincts to capture those perfect moments.
As it turns out it is something I'm rather good at. The type A personality that is part of me likes all of the details it takes to get into a venue. You see when you want to shoot a concert you can't just show up. A call to the publicist needs to happen, then if they sign off on it then band management has to be okay with it, then the tour manager has to give the okay. When all of that is done then you to make sure the venue is on the same page as everyone else.
Once everyone is okay with you being there then you need to find out what are the rules of engagement are. What I mean by that are; where can you stand to take the photos? in the pit directly in front of the stage is not always an option, what does that mean, new set of gear and the long lens. Okay now I know where I can be, but then you have to know where you can use the images once you have shot them. It depends on the band, you might be able to just use them without any restricts, this usually happens with bands that are up and coming or have had some success however have not broken out yet.
What if they have? then they tell you when and where you can display the images and if you want to use them on your own personal page then you need to get a permission to do that.
The cool thing for me is that musicians are really great animals to capture, if they truly love their craft and are not just doing it for the money, you can tell, it shows on their face when they perform. You cannot mistake that look, it is one of pure joy for what they are doing, and when a person whether its musician or athlete or anyone else who puts all of themselves into something and you get to capture it. There is nothing better.

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