...and now for something completely different (2)

So following on from my previous post about trying something different with gig/music photography I thought I'd share some of the shots from the recent massive freeparty put on just outside of Manchester. This was an epic night, where an alleged 5000 people turned up to dance through the night.

I had a camera on me but it wasn't mine. Bearing in mind the sometimes dodgy goings on at events like these, and the value of my usual equipment, I borrowed my mate's Nikon D40- the same camera I started out with- as it was much cheaper to replace if anything unfortunate were to happen.




 So with the fairly basic kit involved I decided to shoot the whole night in B&W. It lent itself better to the quality you can get from that camera in really low light. One I was going through the pics they were pretty grainy- this reminded me of bad CCTV stills. Combined with the attention the police ended up paying to the event, I decided to make up the pics as if they were taken from police surveillance. I stuck a time/date stamp in the corner and some branding in the others.

As a final touch I decided to 'anonymize' everybody in the pictures with the classic black-bars-over-the-eyes look. I was a bit unsure whether to do it & whether everyone would get it, but it went down pretty well in the end- and I think about half of the people that went are tagged in the big group shot now!

Example Magazine

I have recently started writing and shooting for the Manchester based online magazine, Ex:Ample. We are aiming to force our way to the forefront of the Manchester and UK music scene, through quality reviews, features and photos!

Sounds like fun!

http://www.examplemagazine.com/

Heres my first article too..

http://examplemagazine.com/features/post/608/Drum-Clinic-1st-Birthday-@-Jabez-Clegg

Sub-Tech- Jabez Clegg- 23/2/11

Putting on a successful new night is difficult. Putting on a new night in a room the size of jabez clegg would be thought of as suicide by many a promoter. Still this was the challenge taken on by the Sub-Tech crew and boy did they rise to it.

Integral to any night- regardless of size and the acts playing- is the crowd and the atmosphere, and thats what Sub-Tech got right. Even thought the room wasn't full there was a great crowd and togetherness therein, united by a love of Drum & Bass, Dubstep and skanking to the wee small hours. The main room saw a jump up rinse out from Levela and Dub Zero going back to back tearing through tunes ranging from stonewall classics through to brand new dubs cut exclusively for the night. The headliners were ably backed up by local talent including Raasclarke and Yesi, going absolutely relentlessly all night, and showing the future is bright for our fair city.

 Room 2 for the night was, as is a staple of most dnb nights now, the '140 bpm zone' with sets filling the whole spectrum of the slower tempo played by Sub-Tech residents Dark Elixir, Totoro, Slim and others. This room had a good-size crowd all night, testament to the diversity in the 'Bass Music' we all know and love.

Sub Tech kept the energy levels high and the speakers loud from start to finish, and many established drum and bass nights could learn a thing or two from these guys. If I had one gripe it would be that, towards the end of the night, I couldn't see the DJs due to the swarm of MCs which had gathered on stage, vying for the mic. I can put this down to youthful enthusiasm and wanting to perform, which is nothing to complain of, but maybe two or three max at a time would've eased the overcrowding and allowed more DJ-crowd interaction.

I for one will be looking forwards to the next event to see where they take it from here. On chatting to the promoters, I can instantly see theres a hunger and ambition to suceed, which is vital. Add in bags of enthusiasm and a good solid fanbase and I can see big things coming, and deservedly so.

Sanctuary Festival - 28/08/10

I spent August Bank Holiday weekend shooting at Sanctuary Festival at Catton Hall, Derbyshire. Its a pretty hardcore festival as far as dance goes. Im pretty sure the Metropolis Tent I was working was about the most chilled out and thats saying something!!

Still, I got to see Jack Beats, who I've been dying to see for ages and they didn't disappoint, they took the roof off the tent! Also got to give a special mention to Break, who also rinsed it with a filthy set! The security were brilliant (for once @ a festival!) and I had so much access I could go anywhere. The lighting was very good and the pics did me justice (I think!).

Top to bottom: Sanctuary Crowd, Toddla T, MC Serocee, Skream