When Sarah told me she was singing in a choir at a benefit concert, my reaction was completely impulsive: I asked if the organizer wanted a photographer to cover the event. For a few years now, I’ve considered myself retired from concert photography, the digital kind in dark concert halls where I’m there just to take pictures. I feel like I had my run at it, and was okay at it, but failed to make enough of a mark, and wasn’t improving or developing. But, in the dark with a camera is exactly what this was, and it was fun. I discovered that really missed the experience: Having a sense of purpose, being close to talented people, seeing hands at work, hearing music in the most visceral way possible for a non-practitioner, the design of instruments and gear, and seeing happy people in crowds. This particular “assignment” also added a backstage component that proved extremely enriching.

This was a charity event to benefit the Portland Police Bureau Sunshine Division, providing free emergency food and clothing to families in extreme need. The event was called Sing To Feed, and it was organized by Josh Malm of the band Redwood Son who performed with choir of about 20 voices of local singers. Also on the bill: The Heritage, Tyler Stenson, Gavin Wahl-Stephens and the New Americans, and Jordan Harris a.k.a. Guy Dilly and the Twin Powers.

I used the old dog Canon 5D Classic. The camera may be on its last legs, but it can come up with a winner when pressed. Digital photography can feel like cheating, or feel too easy at times. But, shooting a concert has other challenges that are enjoyable to tackle with this old thing. The challenges are ones of anticipation, positioning, connection — ones that are not unique to digital photography, but are so pronounced in a concert setting that I don’t miss having to deal with manual focusing and guessing exposure. I’m really drawn to the feeling of extreme wide-angle shots at concerts, and I much prefer them to the intimate close-ups that most concert photographers seem to strive for. The fifteen millimeter fisheye was my tool of choice, with my fifty and eightfive millimeter primes along for the ride. I took seven hundred and thirty-three photos and got about forty three keepers. Figures don’t lie, you know.

I wonder if I could go to more local shows and start to connect with some of the people involved. I’d like to be a part of the community and help out these talented kids. Gavin Wahl-Stephens, especially, is someone I’d like to work with at some point. I was really entertained by his blues rock americana thing he had going on, and he seems like a nice fellow to boot.

By the way, if you saw the full slate of keepers on Facebook, did you notice my full on Dave Hill-style processing on this Tyler Stenson pic? No apologies for this! What it does to the leather jacket is so cool. No apologies, but I’m very amused that I’d do this.

When processing the shoot, I found myself wanted to do the whole thing in black and white, every photo! The teaser preview I put out was a black and white process that I absolutely loved. It’s just what I’m feeling these days, but fortunately I let Sarah talk me out of it.

The color really was working for me here even if I didn’t feel it at first. And, the lighting at the Aladdin is actually perfect for photography with cool blue back lights with warm front lighting, simpler than a lot of the bigger places in Los Angeles, and much more effective than the smaller venues anywhere. In fact, I’d say it was rather unique in a certain way. Whoever does it should be commended. And, I did give in and deliver one single photo in black and white, this backstage moment of a dude just doing his own thing before singing with the choir.

This pic, below, of Adam Corkery in The New Americans is probably my favorite of the night, with the face-melting rocker vibe in full effect. But, I’m not all-in on the framing I chose. I wanted the guitars along the side in there because it’s such a “guitar story,” but the balance is somehow off a little bit. I’ll go back someday and revisit these.

It felt good to be back in the dark, doing this. Even though there are thousands who are doing this, and many who are doing it better, it does feel like something meaningful to how I relate to the world.

“Want to buy a Fiat?” he asked me rhetorically as I took the picture. He wanted to fix it up, of course, but hasn’t found the time. Growing grapes for a winery will do that. He was taciturn about the charred interior. Must’ve been a fun fire. And, there was no mention of the Bug at all.

As I was perusing some of my recent rolls of developed film, I was struck by a marked lack of geometry, the kind of angles I’ve always loved. I think I’ve been striving for a certain matter-of-fact plainness to some of my photos lately, and I may have succeeded. I had been studying some composition, yet in my work I appeared to strive for anti-composition, the ultimate reality where even the aesthetic choice of the photographer gets removed. I think there is still more to pursue with this idea; the removal of affectation and sentimentality. But, it can be a dreary go sometimes, especially for an ego like mine.

So, tonight I needed to just go play. The simple pleasure of a digital SLR, an industrial area of Portland, and a fisheye. And, full disclosure: I tried out a Lightroom preset that’s meant to emulate Tri-X. Looks fairly good, especially since I can’t afford Silver EFX Pro. No apologies.

Photo Haus is a tiny photo processing chain in Yakima, Washington. That’s amazing because it’s the least-German place I could possibly imagine. And, as you might expect, they’ve made the inevitable switch to all-digital products now, so there is no need for any Fotomat-style huts. This is the last one standing*.

* possibly

While cruising Yakima, WA on a rainy Sunday morning, Sarah spotted something strange off in the distance. We skirted some fences around ground zero of the site of the old flea market to discover the remains of a McDonalds playland* out there on the outskirts of some sort of autonomous free-for-all zone of mobile homes and car hulks. Some treacherous sneaking across a decrepit boardwalk got us to the sad scene. We poked around a while before tripping the dreaded canine alarm. As we exited the zone, I noticed a lanky figure in a distant garage watching from underneath the shade of his trucker hat. I made sure to keep an eye on Sarah until we were safely past the fence.

* We believe these fixtures pre-date the horrific “PlayPlace” moniker

I took in some roller derby action on Friday. It’s a tough activity to photograph!

Getting there…

At one point on my walk through Oaks Bottom, I encountered an older couple who had stopped to rest. “Does this trail loop around?” the man wanted to know. “That’s what I aim to find out,” I told him. I hope they made it back all right.

This is a panorama of ten digital frames, merged and cropped to evoke the spirit of having an old 8×10 large format camera on my trek. The fullsized file is quite detailed. I look forward to a digital print, perhaps on metallic paper?

(Updated post with new version of the panorama) I haven’t been posting because I’ve been moving. Here’s the first shot of my new neighborhood in Portland, OR. It’s also my first time using Hugin to stitch a panorama. I didn’t spent too much time tweaking it, but it seems to be a very powerful program. The pic above was my second try. The first try is below for comparison purposes, and the dimensions for this are set to match the Facebook cover size.