The Green Room

Sometimes you have to improvise. I was at the Duncan Garage Showroom last week to grab some shots as there were a few bands playing that night. I like to grab the behind the scenes pics that you don't get to see when you're in the audience. Well this didn't really pan out as there wasn't enough time for the bands to set up so they just sound-checked one set of instruments and everyone was going with the same setup.

I was walking around wondering what to do. Then I realized the green room! Normally a "green room" is a room where a band can sit down and relax before their show and in this case the room actually had a vibrant green wall.

Naomi Middlemiss (top) was there picking up a photo CD I had for her and I noticed her hair was reddish and her clothing was complimenting the green wall... I had a plan!

I went back to my van and grabbed one flash and a softbox. Always bring more gear than you think you'll need! After the fist shots of Naomi (top photo) the other bands were lining up to get their photos taken. It was a really fun way for them to kill the time before their show and I got some great photos, some of which are being used by the bands.  To avoid over-doing it with the green, I have made a couple of the images black & white which works out well as the wall had a nice texture to it too.

As a photographer, one has to be flexible. You may walk into a different situation than you are expecting and you have to come out with something useful or you're just wasting time!

http://www.kurtknock.com/

One thing leads to another.

My last post was of the pre-gig photos I got of Kathryn Calder and band. While at the Duncan Garage Showroom I was already thinking of my next self-assignment. I wanted to get some photos of Longevity John Falkner, the proprietor in his environment.

Anyone who knows John understands he is a bit of a character. He stands out from the crowd as he's well over 6' tall and has long flocks of grey hair. I love taking photos of characters. They don't get any better than John. His showroom is really a museum of curious tidbits from the past 60 years or more. Everything from a belt-drive dentist drill to his prized nose flute... You have to stop by to check it out.

At any rate, as a result of my interest in taking photos at the Garage, I've been asked to come back and be the photographer for upcoming music gigs. Sweet. Sometimes putting yourself out there really pays off. Aside from this I had another great offer this morning which I'll post more about in the days to come.

This last photo was a mistake. My camera was set to a super slow shutter speed and I knew this as soon as I hit the trigger but I think it turned out pretty cool, especially if you take the subject into consideration.

Thanks John!

Show time.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to take some behind the scenes shots of Kathryn Calder and her band setting up and doing their sound check before their show at the Duncan Garage Showroom. Some of you may know of Kathryn from her other band, The New Pornographers, as they've had a lot of play on the radio and have been featured numerous times on late-night TV shows like Letterman and Jimmy Fallon.

I was aiming to catch scenes that the average show-goer doesn't get to see and do this while trying not to get in the band's way or trip on all the cables that were snaking around on the stage. The other challenge was the lighting. Or lack of it. I didn't dare use a flash as that would be most annoying for a band that is trying to get a job done without being bothered. So this was a good test of my camera's low-light ability and my ability to keep a steady hand. The shutter speed never exceeded 1/40th of a second and the ISO was hovering between 2500-3200. Sorry for the tech stuff...

Any way, the band was quite welcoming and Kathryn was super nice. If you have not seen them play or heard them, you've got to! They are great! Nice indie-rock that is really best seen live. I actually first saw them at a pub in Crofton of all places! Kathryn and band are using these smaller venues to fine tune their set for their upcoming tour of the USA. From what I heard, they're definitely ready.

And that's it. Off they went for their dinner break before taking the stage.

Thanks Kathryn and band!