ONE DROP; photo Andy Ortega

This year’s One Love Reggae Cali Fest once again, did not disappoint. The annual three-day reggae music concert festival at the Queen Mary Park from Feb 7-9 in Long Beach is SoCal’s most popular show for the world’s top reggae artists including Pepper, Dirty Heads, Matisyahu, Iration, Katchafire and more.

BLACK UHURU; photo Andy Ortega

Arriving at one of the festival’s designated parking lots was easy with clear signs pointing the way as you head towards the Long Beach Convention Center. It’s possible to walk from the parking areas, over the bridge and to the Queen Mary Park but the event offers a shuttle service to and from locations that will pick people up every few minutes.

SOJA; photo Andy Ortega

There are three stages and you’ll see signs throughout the festival with the concert lineup to show you where you can find the artist you’d like to experience. Besides music, there are lots of food trucks and several areas for alcohol. You’ll even find some shopping with merchandise tents, hemp-related clothing, CBD creams and products, etc.

J BOOG; photo Andy Ortega

Friday’s lineup included Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds, Collie Budz, Pepper, Matisyahu, Sublime with Rome, Dirty Heads and newcomer, 4th and Orange. On Saturday, I was able to cover One Drop, Half Pint, Alborosie, Fortunate Youth, and Wailing Souls, among others.

With my coveted photo pit pass in hand, I was lucky enough to enjoy these bands from the edge of the stage so I could get a few shots of each artist. Maneuvering through the photo pit can be tricky but this year there were significantly less photographers covering the show.

COMMON KINGS; photo Andy Ortega

This made getting in and out of the photo pit area much easier and I could do my job with less stress or worry. When the rain started coming down, as it does every year during the One Love Festival, I pulled out my raincoat and kept working away. Be sure to dress warm and expect rain!

Then on Sunday, I caught performances from The Green, Mike Love, Common Kings and J Boog. One of the things I love about festivals is that you’ll probably get exposed to new music or even a new genre.

THE GREEN; photo Andy Ortega

This time around, I became obsessed with The Green after their talented performance. The Green’s music is a blend of modern reggae, with a Hawaiian vibe. Their songs include lyrics about love, the islands, and religion.

During Common Kings’ set, I made a self-discovery. I can take pics while dancing in the rain. Common Kings put on a wonderful show that had the Sunday afternoon crowd moving to their music, rain and all!

CURTIS HARDING; photo Andy Ortega

I love the El Rey Theater and taking pics of Curtis Harding’s show there made my day epic. If you’ve never been to the El Rey, it’s on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, around the corner from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art a.k.a. LACMA. Getting there is fairly easy. There’s paid parking in the surrounding areas but the El Rey offers valet parking for only $10. There was no line when I arrived at the entrance, so I went straight up to the window and presented my credentials in exchange for the coveted photo pass. Security checked me and my bag thoroughly and then I was in.

CURTIS HARDING; photo Andy Ortega

I made my way into the venue and Algiers was just getting started as the opening band. The El Rey has an open floor for general admission and there’s also a balcony. One of the ushers there told me that VIP ticket holders can get access to the balcony, but they usually come right back down because it gets warm up there.

CURTIS HARDING; photo Andy Ortega

There is no photo pit, which means that photographers don’t have a special spot in front of the stage. Instead, you just need to be in the front early or work your way in. Since the El Rey has the best staff members, one of the usher/security personnel turned on his flashlight and created a path for me to get in front of the stage. Thanks bro!

CURTIS HARDING; photo Andy Ortega

Curtis Harding’s set immediately had fans dancing and moving. As I started to frame my first shot, I was happy to see that the lighting was nice and bright. This gave me the ability to turn up my shutter speed, so I can get clean, sharp pictures. When I wanted to get a different point of view, I gently squeezed my way to the other side of the stage. Once I had enough close-up shots, I moved back and took a few pictures for a wider view so that I could get the whole band. Then I put the lens cap back on my 50-200mm Nikon lens, took off my earplugs and enjoyed the rest of the show.

JAPANDROIDS; photo Andy Ortega

Japandroids at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever on May 30th was off the hook!

Normally when I do a “Tale from the Photo Pit” article, I’ll share my experience of a show as a photographer. But boy do I need to back up a bit and address the elephant in the room. I’ll just come out and say it – this concert was at a cemetery. That’s right. Now that you know, you won’t be as dumbfounded as I was when I arrived.

JAPANDROIDS; photo Andy Ortega

The guard at the entrance chuckled as I said, “I must be really lost. I’m supposed to be looking for a concert venue”.

Then he let me know that Hollywood Forever is the right place, you can park anywhere (and it’s free parking), and points to the venue entrance. “That’s where you want to go”.

I grab my camera bag and head over while wondering what was in store for me. Would there be some goth girl taking tickets and giving out media passes, or would it be a guy in a suit whispering like they do at funerals?

JAPANDROIDS; photo Andy Ortega

Well, the inside of the Masonic Lodge was a bit spooky but other than that, no ghouls, no Twilight-looking hipsters, no girls wearing all black. Oh wait, I lied. The opening band was just getting started and they actually did fit right in with the venue and vibe. The women of L.A. Witch did a great job to get the good times started.

During the break, a security guard tells me that someone complained about how loud the sound was. This is the second time I reach complete utter confusion today.

JAPANDROIDS; photo Andy Ortega

The time arrives for Japandroids to begin their set. There’s no designated photo pit area at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever so I make my way as close to the stage as possible. Brian King and David Prowse, the two members of Japandroids step onto the stage and the crowd erupts in cheers and applause. The music of Japandroids attracted a full house and lots of energetic fans.

Not all venues have good lighting, but the Masonic Lodge did not disappoint. I was able to get some great pictures with clear detail.

BREWFISH; photo Andy Ortega

Even in SoCal, a February outdoor concert can have its risks with the weather but this year, you couldn’t have asked for anything better at the One Love Cali Reggae Fest. As a concert photographer, if there’s any chance of rain, I’ll need to bring some plastic bags and rubber bands to protect my camera. No need for that this time!

The One Love Cali Reggae Fest was held on the grounds of the Queen Mary in Long Beach Harbor. I parked at one of the designated areas, then took the free shuttle to the event. Getting in was smooth and quick thanks to the staff and organization. I went to pick up my media and photo passes. From there, I was directed to go through the VIP line and then through security.

The first show I covered was Long Beach’s own BREWFISH at the Flav stage. Since it was still midday, taking photos was a little more tricky than usual. See, when you’re outdoors on a mostly cloudy day you may need to deal with moving clouds. Moving clouds means changes in brightness. I had to change my settings every so often but they were mostly set at f4, 1/1000th ISO 200.

FORTUNATE YOUTH; photo Andy Ortega

After that, I headed to the main stage to cover FORTUNATE YOUTH and MATISYAHU. Fortunate Youth did a wonderful job to get the mid-day concert goers dancing and moving. Then came Matisyahu. The photo pit had more photographers by now so I had to practice photo pit courtesy and carefully squeeze through them, sometimes while ducking, when I needed to change my spot.

J BOOG; photo Andy Ortega

Another challenge when shooting an outdoor stage comes during sunset. During J BOOG‘s set, I had to update my Nikon’s settings every couple of minutes. Shutter speed goes down, ISO goes up. By the time night has settled in, I was at f2.8, 1/250th, ISO 2500-3200 and stayed there for most of the night.

COLLIE BUDDZ; photo Andy Ortega

For the rest of the performances on the main stage including COLLIE BUDDZ, IRATION and REBELUTION, the photo pit was much busier. It always helps to say “hi” to other photographers and introduce yourself because we’re only able to stay in the photo pit for three songs (unless you have a coveted all-access photo pass) and it’s much easier to work among friends instead bumping and squeezing around strangers.

I’ve got to give it to the One Love Cali Reggae production team. My experience this year was perfect! No photo pass issues, easy entrance, clear and standard photo pit rules, and great security. There was no confusion from staff or security, which happens at large events sometimes.

Temper Trap at the Observatory; photo Andy Ortega

There have been times at The Observatory in Santa Ana where I could barely make it through the crowd of concert goers. This time, while it was still mostly full, I was able to move around fairly comfortably for the Temper Trap concert.

I got the sense that there were many fans of the opener, Coast Modern, in the audience, as well. During their last song, I could see and hear people singing along to their laid back tunes such as “Hollow Life”. Coast Modern was a great warm-up before the main show.

The lights were dimmed down a notch as Dougy Mandagi and the rest of the Temper Trap band walked onto the stage. They opened with “Thick As Thieves”, the title track from their latest album and closed with “Sweet Disposition” from their 2009 album, Conditions.

However, as the show progressed, the lights didn’t get much brighter. I think it’s safe to say that they didn’t want bright, or really any lights. My camera was a little sad about that because light is his friend but I was still able to get some decent shots.

Wyatt Blair played The Wayfarer Jul 31; photo Andy Ortega

When Wyatt Blair jumped onto the stage at The Wayfarer in Costa Mesa, I admit, I had to pause for a minute in shock. Wyatt Blair was the real deal. My 80’s childhood began to flash before my eyes. Was he really wearing one of those long dangling silver earrings on his left ear? You know, the ones all the cool class of 1987 kids wore? Yes, it was really happening and it was totally awesome.

The Wayfarer was previously known as Detroit Bar until 2014 when it changed owners and its name. It was my first time at The Wayfarer since the change. As I walked in, I noticed that they removed some walls which made it feel more spacious. They definitely made some great improvements that turned this venue into a modern, trendy, live music bar.

Wyatt Blair played The Wayfarer Jul 31; photo Andy Ortega

There isn’t a photo pit at this venue, which means that you’ll need to get there early if you want to get close-up photos or you’ll need to squeeze through the crowd as best as you can. The lighting here has been upgraded and it’s now top notch. I can name a few concert venues that don’t compare to The Wayfarer’s lights. For photography, this means I can lower my ISO settings and increase my shutter speed for more crisp, colorful shots.

Wyatt Blair’s music has been compared to the sound of the movie Top Guns’ soundtrack. That was the exact impression I had as they started their set. The band included a guitarist, a bass guitarist and of course, a keyboardist. Can’t leave out those synths, sound effects and electronic drums in an 80’s band, right? The entire band was clad in 80’s-style pastel colors and jean jackets, with the female bass guitarist donning a side ponytail.