Wilco - Solid Sound Festival at MASS MOCA

Truly amazing 3-day event "curated" by Wilco in North Adams, MA
All taken with 7D and 85mm 1.8 (except for #3 - shot with Zeiss Planar 50mm 1,7).

#1 Jeff Tweedy plays "Walken"

Interesting lighting compositions with strong framing... That last inch of drum stick would make some look twice... real nice set. The 85mm f/1.8 is fast enough at times to do the entire show... Real good prime to have handy.

johnstoy wrote in post #10755637
Interesting lighting compositions with strong framing... That last inch of drum stick would make some look twice... real nice set. The 85mm f/1.8 is fast enough at times to do the entire show... Real good prime to have handy.

Thanks. I wasn't happy about the drumstick either. The person in front of me was clapping above their head so this was the only shot I managed without hands blocking it. I just replaced it with a quick edit - I'll fine-tune it later.

Aside from the outstanding images ...

As a guitarist for over 36 years now Nels Cline is one of the most innovative instrumentalists on the scene. If you get a chance to hear him in one of his acid jazz styled ensembles you will hear a literal master unwind amazing sonic textures through a myriad of musical architectures. Wilco is his day job.

jetcode wrote in post #10757238
Aside from the outstanding images ...

As a guitarist for over 36 years now Nels Cline is one of the most innovative instrumentalists on the scene. If you get a chance to hear him in one of his acid jazz styled ensembles you will hear a literal master unwind amazing sonic textures through a myriad of musical architectures. Wilco is his day job.

Agreed. Cline is a true master and he's as enjoyable to watch as he is to listen to. I've played for 25+ years myself and I want to pawn my guitars after seeing him play.

The Nels Cline Singers also performed at the festival and I was blown away by their set. After sound check, Nels also graciously signed a photo I took of him playing with Wilco in Hartford, CT. He could not have been more personable. It was an amazing thrill for me.

Yeah he's an easy guy to approach. These are great photos by the way.

jetcode wrote in post #10758414
Yeah he's an easy guy to approach. These are great photos by the way.

Thanks for the compliment. I found John Stirratt to be equally as friendly. He came right out into the field shortly after the final show and was very engaging. Both John and Nels commented that they really liked the photos I brought for them to sign.

nice shots!

this is definitely one instance where shooting w/ a pass was not as easy...the lights for the 1st three songs were pretty bad, like they've been for all the Wilco shows this year. you must have been right near the rail to get those shots, good job.

i'll probably post some of my shots in a few days.

narlus wrote in post #10761971
nice shots!

this is definitely one instance where shooting w/ a pass was not as easy...the lights for the 1st three songs were pretty bad, like they've been for all the Wilco shows this year. you must have been right near the rail to get those shots, good job.

i'll probably post some of my shots in a few days.

I ran into the same problem with a pass in Hartford. The lighting was horrible for the 3 songs and as soon as I sat down, it was much better. I was better off without a pass for these. And yes, I had to sprint that whole field to get there, but I was right at the rail.

Ordinarily, I would have 2 bodies with a 70-200 2.8 is and 17-55 2.8 is, but with the subjective "no professional photographic equipment" rule, I brought my unassuming 85mm 1.8.

In contrast, I saw Tweedy at the Philadelpia Folk Festival today. I called yesterday to ask about their camera policies. They put me through to the executive director who told me there were no policies whatsoever (except for video) and I could bring whatever I wanted. I shot Tweedy, TAJ Mahal and some other acts, mostly with my 300 2.8 is and a monopod.

Looking forward to seeing your shots from Moca.

Really nice set of Wilco shots.

gotta chime in again and say that shot of Glenn is killer. that's one i've been wanting to capture for a while, and i had the best chance this past weekend, but didn't.

just going through the rest of the SSF shots now. i'll get some up in the next day or two.

blackshadow wrote in post #10765412
Really nice set of Wilco shots.

Thanks very much!

narlus wrote in post #10766255
gotta chime in again and say that shot of Glenn is killer. that's one i've been wanting to capture for a while, and i had the best chance this past weekend, but didn't.

just going through the rest of the SSF shots now. i'll get some up in the next day or two.

Thank you. I love watching Glenn play, but I almost never get a decent shot of him back there. I knew as soon as I heard the gong that the mock "rock god" pose was coming and that would be my chance. I also knew that he'd be bathed in that intense white light so I cranked up my shutter speed and got ready. What I didn't anticipate was the clapping hands screening me. With all the preparation, there was still an element of luck to get a good expression between claps.

I still have to go through my Tweedy "Solo Plus" shots from day 3, as well as the Philadelphia Folk Festival shots I took last night. I'm going to be busy!

Solid set!

Last two least: person in the BG and mic in the face.


Nice

Awesome pics. I've seen them 3 times in the past year...all great concerts.

tagvestibule wrote in post #10770128
Thank you. I love watching Glenn play, but I almost never get a decent shot of him back there.

i got a nice close shot of him during the interactive drum head exhibit