MICHAEL W. SMITH & AMY GRANT - Two Friends Tour-Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis, MN

If you have ever been a fan of Michael W. Smith or Amy Grant, prepare for them to walk you down to the beginning and to the current stages in their careers.  Michael and Amy performed from the Historic Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis to a sold out crowd.  For this shoot I put all my trust in my 80-200, as I wasn't right up on the stage, but far enough away that the 80-200 would be just about perfect.  There was no photo pit, instead directly in front of the stage, there was a large VIP area, where people could sit and watch the show.  I would assume those people sitting there either paid good money to get those spots, or knew someone that hooked them up!  The lights were bright enough for this show, that ISO was at 1600 with Apertures bouncing back and forth from 125-250 respectively.  I was allowed to shoot the first three songs of the show.  No big barriers for this show, just the occasional person getting up, blocking a shot or two, not a big deal.  To get a copy of the set list for this show, Michael's soundman was nice enough to let me take a picture of the set list, in return he asked if I could email it to him. Nice guy! This show ran about 2 hrs and 45 mins, nearly three hours with several intermissions between sets.  Michael was pretty much stationary throughout the shoot, only walking out with Amy did he move around to walk over to his keyboard.  Amy moved around a bit more than Michael, interestingly enough the two seemed to move around more after I was done shooting!  It was great seeing two old friends perform from their hearts, the hits and songs that made them who they are today! Enjoy.

 

GEORGE STRAIT & REBA- Target Center, Minneapolis, MN

Its not too often that the King and Queen of country music tour together, so when the opportunity came up, I was excited for this shoot! Opening for George and Reba, was Leann Womack, which I didn't get to shoot due to a mix-up with credentials, I didn't get them until Reba was getting ready to go on.  I thought this could have been a great shoot other than the fact that we weren't allowed to shoot in the pit in front of the stage.  The set up for the stage was so the performers could sing equally and face and cover all sections in the Target Center, which would have been perfect if we could shoot in the pit, no such thing!



For Reba we were back almost to the area of the backstage area, which is about 600 feet, I did not have glass that would be able to produce a quality image, equipped with my 80-200.  There were other photographers who were told the same, that we would be shooting this in the photo pit.  There was one photographer who lugged around a 600mm with him on a monopod to every show.  I'm not going to start doing that, as that will be the biggest hassal! If you are a photographer and have lifted one, you will know what I'm talking about!  So I was not able to get a usable shot of Reba, although I have posted a few, they are not up to my standards! Clearances for this show, were out of this world, each artist that you photographed, before any images could be used, would have to be approved by the artists individual publicists, which that would be Reba, George and Leann's publicists! 



I was crossing my fingers that when George came out, we might be in a better position for shooting? Yes we were moved to just in front of the stage area where George would be performing.  This was about 300 feet from the stage, so I was able to get some great images.  There were about four photographers who were approved for this show.  ISO for Reba was at 3200 with shutter speeds around 120-200, George was 1600 and shutter was at 200-300 as George was well lit on stage.  No big lighting shows, to deal with, so learning the lighting didn't take too long to learn. Two spots on George, and the Ace in the Hole Band.  I was allowed to shoot the first 2 songs for Reba and George.

 

LARRY THE CABLE GUY- 'Tailgate Party' Tour Sanford Center, Bemidji, MN

This was quite possibly the most difficult shoot to date.  I was allowed 2 minutes by the tour manager to get the shots I needed.  This would have been fine, because Larry doesn't exactly jump around stage, and move from one end to the other, unfortunately the tour manager did not allow me to get even close to the stage.  My 80-200 lens did not measure up to the distance I was allowed to shoot which was approximately 500 ft from the stage.  Had I known, it would have been this far back, I would have brought a 400mm which would have been more than adequate for the job.  The images that I was able to get from that far back did not resonate a good feeling for presenting to an editor, but it is what it is!  With that said, here are the images, lesson learned, be prepared! Before the show just outside the green room, I was able to visit with Larry, AKA Dan Whitney, and you would be surprised the guy doesn't even have an accent he speaks normal, and is the most personable guy I have met to date who is in the entertainment business! Thanks for the laughs Dan, even before Larry took over!

 

Katharine McPhee Mall of America, Bloomington, MN

The only thing missing from this show were the people! Not sure if word didn't get out, but they missed out on a great performance from American Idol runner-up, Katharine McPhee, who performed to fans, in the Best Buy Rotunda at the Mall of America.  Lighting was very good for this shoot so I was able to get by with an ISO of 800, and shutter speed of 300-400.  The only barrier I had to deal with is some people standing in the very front, and if I was to go in front of them, I would have to kneel down, and the result would be some very unflattering shots right up Katharine's nose. The 80-200 was more than adequate for this shoot as my best images were taken standing back of the line. I was allowed to shoot the first 3 songs of her performance.

 

 

 

Maroon 5 'Hands All Over' Tour- Shooting Star Event Center, Mahnomen, MN

This was an interesting shoot with the aspect that, the night before, Maroon 5 performed at the Target Center in Minneapolis, and now, tonight they sold out the Shooting Star Event Center.  It's not very common for larger groups to play, smaller venues, however, with that said, that didn't seem to affect M5's performance none-the-less, as the energy in Adam Levine, and band was certainly there!  I was equipped with my 80-200 which proved to be my lense of choice for this shoot.  The Event Center does not have a photo pit, so you pretty much shoot where ever you can, even if it means blocking someones view for a few seconds of shots.  I will admit, I was a bit more bold, standing in front taking shots of the group, this time, and sometimes kneeling down.  The lighting for the group wasn't too hard to follow, as it seemed to repeat for most songs, one spot on Adam, and stage lights for the band.  ISO was 1600 and shutter speed right around 125-200. I was allowed to shoot for the first 3 songs.

 

LORETTA LYNN- Shooting Star Event Center, Mahnomen, MN

What an absolute honor it was to photograph country music legend, Loretta Lynn. She certainly has more energy than anyone I know that is her age! This shoot was one of the more relaxed shows that I have been to in awhile, don't get me wrong, hyper fans jumping around make for great shots, but its nice to get a break from that sometimes, and Loretta's show was a breath of fresh air.  Once again, the event center does not have a photo pit, so I knelt down for most of this shoot.  I was allowed to shoot the first 2 songs, opening for Loretta were her twin daughters, Peggy and Patsy.  I shot a majority of this show, with my 80-200 at an ISO of 1600 shutter speeds were right around 100-120, due to limited lighting, one spot on Loretta and the Lynns.