Happy 29th Birthday, Kendrick Lamar!

I had the distinct pleasure of photographing Kendrick Lamar three years ago. It was a disgustingly hot day at Mesa Amphitheatre, so it's pretty timely to revisit this show as Phoenix's temperatures are nearing 120 this weekend.

This show was amazing. I went in knowing little more than "Bitch Don't Kill my Vibe" and was blown away by Kendrick's stage presence. Now I'm obsessed with To Pimp a Butterfly and can't wait to see him perform at FYF Fest this fall. 

Just a friendly reminder to all other photographers out there- always save your RAW files. I'm amazed at how much this picture pops with three additional years of editing experience. This was a somewhat challenging show to shoot because Kendrick was backlit, but with the right timing and the proper amount of crouching, it made for a halo effect.

See you in the photo pit.

Happy Birthday to Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem

It's pretty rare for me to get nervous in the pit. If I'm shooting a band I love, I'm usually smiling ear to ear, but I can count the times I actually felt nervous and giddy on one hand. One of the best examples of that is The Gaslight Anthem's Brian Fallon, who celebrates his 36th birthday today. 

I had the pleasure of shooting the band at Marquee Theatre a few years ago. This was at the height of my Gaslight Anthem adoration- who would have known that I would end up with a '59 Sound tattoo on my forearm a couple years later. I suppose that's the benefit of having a mom born in 1959. 

Here's a shot from the band's co-headling tour with Rise Against in 2012. It's not my best work, but it's great to look back and see how I've grown over the last four years. 

View fullsize

The Gaslight Anthem at Mesa Amphitheatre, 9/28/12

I suppose The Gaslight Anthem is as good a band as any for waxing nostalgic. They are the first band I saw live after turning 21, shortly after Sink or Swim was released. 

I don't expect TGA to get back together any time soon, so sometimes it is nice to get lost in the nostalgia of their music. If anything else, it will definitely put you in the mood for some Bruce Springsteen.

See you in the photo pit.

R.I.P. Glenn Frey

2016 is off to a rocky start. The Eagles' Glenn Frey is the latest addition to recent celebrity deaths, along the ranks of David Bowie and Alan Rickman.

I photographed The Eagles at Gila River Arena in 2014. Most big arena shows like that allow the photographers to shoot from the soundboard for the first three songs. This was a rare exception where we were granted four songs. The songs were all pretty long since the musicians loved what they were doing. You can see that in Glenn's face here. 

Here's a link to the full slideshow if you would like to see more.

If there is one thing I've learned over the last couple of years, it's to see the bands you love live. I have a good recent example of this-- a friend and I went to Yucca Tap Room a couple of years ago to see Iron Chic. We didn't feel like watching the openers (yeah, I know, faux pas), so we snuck some rum into Robocop instead. We got back to Yucca just as the concert let out. Now Rob McAllister is dead and Iron Chic is no more, all at the expense of watching a mediocre movie. 

Don't do what I did. Get off your butt and go to a concert. You won't regret it, unless of course, you're seeing the revamped "Dead Kennedys" or "Black Flag."

See you in the photo pit.