Buzzcocks: A Tale From The Photo Pit

BUZZCOCKS

BUZZCOCKS / Steve Diggle; photo Lauren Ratkowski

As I stood in line to pick up my credentials at the Observatory Box office, I found myself surrounded by fans of all ages. The two men in front of me talked about the last time they had been to the same venue to see the band they were waiting to pick up tickets for now. The band: Buzzcocks…And the venue was still known as The Galaxy back then. They continued to chat about what songs they hoped would be played excited like they were waiting to see them for the first time. Just from that moment, I knew it was going to be a good show.

Once my Concert Guide Live partner-in-crime Madison Desler arrived, we headed inside to find a good spot to post up. Unfortunately, we got inside a little late, so I wasn’t able to photograph the first band like I had planned. I was a little bummed, but I was honestly just excited to be shooting again. As we watched their performance, I noticed how packed the venue was already.

As soon as the first band left the stage, I left my spot and set my sites on the photo pit. It had been just over a month since I was last in the pit. I was so excited just to be back in my natural habitat- a trench like space surrounded by cameras, excited fans behind me and a stage in front of me. It felt good.

The Buzzcocks hit the stage and were greeted by enthusiastic fans singing along. Their lighting was a little iffy in the beginning, but soon things evened out. They had the perfect balance of colored and white light. I knew I was going to end up with a great bunch of photos. This only added to my excitement as I had dealt with some very challenging lighting situations during my last two previous shows.

It was amazing to see a band with a 40 year history play to a sold out space filled to the brim with fans that have undoubtedly followed them for that amount of time. Each member of Buzzcocks had great energy and emotion, which I was able to capture. The combination of great lighting, passionate fans, and an amazing performance allowed me to create a strong set of photos.

I’m thankful for shows like these not only because they make my job easy, but because they remind me how truly happy combining my two passions of music and photography make me. Hopefully this is an indication of how great this summer’s concert season will be!