Lollapalooza photos

I had press access for all three days of Lollapalooza in Chicago last weekend. My first time in the photo pit, a very different but very satisfying experience - I don't think I'll ever get the chance to be that close to some of the artists ever again.

Far too many photos to embed here but if you want to have a look, you can see all my galleries - probably upwards of 600 photos of almost 30 bands - on my website:

http://www.chromewaves​.net/lollapalooza2006.​php

Nice exposure and color but you seem to clip off guitar headstocks and heads and sometimes big chunks of people. It would be nice if you would embed an image or two in your posts so we have an idea of what we're going click into.

okay, I've embedded one of Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips and John Frusciante of RHCP.

I was shooting with a 70-300 so often I couldn't zoom out to get more of them in the frame. And I'm in a frame-filling bent right now, keener to get more of the faces in there than the extremeties. Plus the photo pit was often as much of a zoo as the audience so getting any sort of decent composition was a feat. you should see the ones I had to toss...

Believe me, you have my empathy! And I don't want to come off overly critical because I know you don't pose the actors or control anything, and if you don't have two bodies it is about impossible to change lenses during a "first two or three songs" limit. And I am the champion of getting the tight cropped head shot. I work many events with two bodies, one with 300mm f/2.8 and one with 70-200mm f/2.8. That said, I really wish the microphone wasn't punching that first guy in the face ... even his expression suggests he is being hit. I am sure you felt that this image conveyed a lot of emotion but I don't think it works. And his upraised arm crops him on the other side. Sometimes you have to wait or shoot someone else on stage. And there is always the chance that you'll miss the shot you want if you wait, sigh. The second shot is much better ... perhaps a little soft but he does appear to be in just the right amount of pain!

It appears as is John is a bit "exicted".

Great shots.

I wish I could get more good band gigs like that. I also have the problem with getting the "mic in the face" You have to have the ideal positioning to eliminate that I think. I usually get the whole guitar and deal with whatever else is in the picture but there are times I think the picture would turn out better if I hadn't, such as the same style as you used. That's where the "insurance shot" comes into play.

Good sharpness on that first one, but does this guy have a red tape obsession or what? He's even taped his iPod to his guitar with it!

I got lucky on the shoot I did last night, there were three artists playing and the one I wanted to see went last, by that time some people who had come to see the first two had left, and the whole left side of the front row was empty, I took over the row and got some close ups from good angles to avoid the mic.

nice capture of #1...Im in love with That Double Neck SG

Nice timing on both, but the microphone in the first one bothers me. Got any without it 'stickin in his eye'?

It does look kinda fun to have the mike there when he is making that face.

Some artists are really hard to catch without a microphone sticking somewhere you don't want it to be, especially if you can't move around much. Most do move a bit, though, so I wait until they step back if I can. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.
I still kinda like the pic. I think if you can get a sharp pic that is well exposed at a concert it's better than half the pics out there at the least.

I do like the last shot.

Ah... but it's not an SG, my friend. It's an EDS-1275...

You got a few nice shots of Flea.