HIM: A Tale From The Photo Pit

HIM

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

Although this column is about concert photography, there is a back story which began when I was around 12, about the time my sister and I discovered the music of the Finnish rock band called HIM.

Their music was intoxicating to a young soul just learning how to explore music. Poetic lyrics about love, death, and life delivered by one of rock music’s smoothest voices, all encased in metal instrumentals. We practically watched the two music videos of the band via Yahoo Music on a loop (YouTube quite wasn’t around, yet).

Fast forward to 24-year-old me standing at the box office of the House of Blues, Anaheim on Oct. 27, 2017. With my camera ready to rock, I waited for the friendly people behind the counter to take my I.D. to receive my photo credential for that night’s HIM show, one of the first few stops on their farewell tour. Once the silver wrist band with the words “PHOTO” separated by a heart-a-gram (the band’s infamous symbol) was on my wrist, I sprinted inside to catch the first act of the night.

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

When it was time to jump into my trench-sized office for HIM, I still wasn’t really feeling the gravity of what was about to happen. When the band finally walked out on stage, I had this incredible moment where I just stood there thinking to myself “oh my god, they ARE real people.” I shoved 12 year-old-me down and raised my camera to my eye, 24-year-old me had a mission to complete, even if I was singing along as I did my job!

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

I expected the lighting to be dark, so I cranked the ISO a bit higher than usual this time. I’m glad I did, despite the risk of the photos looking grainy. Challenge one: Conquered. Next was trying to get good shots of lead vocalist, Ville Valo. Valo is a pretty tall guy to begin with, but when his black Converse high-topped feet are level with your collarbone the entire time you’re trying to shoot him, angles get pretty weird. I found myself backed up against the barrier, leg twisted around the metal supports, to get what I wanted. Sometimes you just have to get creative with your posture to get the right shot. Once I had found the right combination of exposure and viewpoints, I was on a roll. I didn’t want to waste any time looking back at my LCD screen.

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

HIM; photo Lauren Ratkowski

I knew I’d never get the opportunity to photograph this band again, so making the most of it was a high priority. After song three came to a close, we photographers expected to be kicked out. But some of us weren’t ready to leave quite yet. To our surprise, security let us stay for a fourth song. All I knew was I wasn’t leaving until I was kicked out!

I’m always grateful of all the opportunities I get to join my passion for both music and photography. However, being able to photograph HIM is something 12-year-old me would have never believed would happen. I take that back, I hope she knew deep down she’d make it to this point in her photo career and that future her wouldn’t ever give up on her dream to see that band whose CD’s had to be smuggled into her bedroom.