Pierce The Veil at Observatory North Park Jun 25; photo Lauren Ratkowski

Pierce The Veil headlined a sold out show to 1,200 people Saturday night in their home town of San Diego playing The Observatory North Park, which made it all the more special.

In 2008, I went to the now defunct Bamboozle Left, the west coast edition of The Bamboozle Festival (R.I.P to both). Before I went, I checked out all the bands I didn’t know on MySpace so I could plan out my festival day. I came across a band named Pierce The Veil on the line up, gave them a listen, and penciled them into my schedule.

I don’t know what I was expecting standing out there on the grassy hills of the Irvine Meadows Amphitheater (almost R.I.P), but 15 year old me was in love. Any band that sounded better live than their recorded music had my heart.

Eight years later, almost 23 year old me found herself standing in line waiting to get her press badge to photograph that little band she fell in love with on that grassy hill. Except, they’re not so little anymore.

I shot Pierce The Veil back in 2014, so I knew they would have great production and lighting wouldn’t be an issue. My goal this time was to capture the sheer energy the band brought every time they played.

Halfway through the first song, I could literally feel the floor beneath me shaking from the crowd going nuts. I found myself dodging security pulling crowd surfers out behind me as I photographed. I got pushed into the stage at one point, but I was too focused to care. Confetti was flying. Air canons were firing. Everyone was screaming lyrics back to the band. It was too much fun.

Pierce The Veil at Observatory North Park Jun 25; photo Lauren Ratkowski

When the first three songs had passed, I left the photo pit with a smile on my face and that feeling I get in my heart when I know I’ve captured something good. I flipped through a few shots on my LCD just to confirm. I try not to judge too harshly as I know things can look totally different once I get home, but I was pleased with what I saw. I then proceeded to find a good spot in the crowd to shoot from. I wanted to capture at least some of the full theater as a conclusion to my set of photos just to emphasize the feeling of the show.

As I left the venue that night, I was still buzzing. Not only because I felt I had a good session, but because I love seeing good bands grow and succeed. And that’s exactly what Pierce The Veil has done!

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!

FLOGGING MOLLY photo: Lauren Ratkowski

The best way for some to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day is by wearing green (to avoid getting pinched, of course) and to drink copious amounts of green beer. This year I went against the grain and shot Flogging Molly at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater. After all, there is no better way for a music photographer to celebrate any holiday!

I had never shot at this venue, so I arrived a little early not sure what to expect. Being it was a Thursday night, not many attendees were present, which made parking and getting inside a piece of cake. I had 5 minutes until the first band, Hepcat, got on stage, so I went straight to the photo pit.

One other photographer was waiting, but I arrived just as security was telling him that our yellow wristbands didn’t grant us access to the pit. Great. As we waited, Hepcat made it through their entire first song. Double great. We were finally let in just as the second song began.

Irvine Meadows is outdoors, so when Hepcat was playing, I was able to use natural light. This is a luxury I often don’t get. And it was nearing sundown, which is one of the most perfect times to be shooting – everything has a great golden hue that just can’t be beat.

Next up was Gogol Bordello. I made the ultimate mistake of not checking them out before the show, but as soon as they stepped on stage, there was magic in the air. Each member of the band was theatrically dressed and their front man had that energy that is required to create the best live music shots. The sun had gone down by this point, but one thing I love about amphitheaters is that they ALWAYS have great stage lighting. Flowers were shot into the audience, two women in the band flipped around stage, that crazy front man bounced all around, and each of the seven members had the spotlight at some point during the performance. I left the photo pit still trying to process what just actually happened, but I was so in love with their performance, I was perfectly ok with my slightly confused state.

Flogging Molly entered the pub…errr, I mean, the stage they had decorated to look like a pub…to be greeted by screaming fans covered in green attire. With a Guinness in hand, front man Dave King welcomed everyone to the venue. Although not as energetic as Gogol Bordello, Flogging Molly brought their own excitement to the stage. Their pub-like backdrop on stage gave my photos a different look, which I’m always searching for. Their lighting was spot on, which allowed me to stay within a small bracket of shutter speeds and focus on creating rather than worrying about constantly checking my settings.

Photographing a holiday show was something new for me, but it was a great experience!

MICHAEL MONROE photo: Lauren Ratkowski

Nothing screams rock-n-roll more than watching a teased haired, flame-leg pants wearing front man parade around a stage while wielding a red saxophone and a harmonica all during one single performance. Wait, I lied. It is more significant considering that I was photographing all of this inside the famous Whiskey A Go Go on the Sunset Strip. I was photographing Finland’s Michael Monroe, former lead of glam rock outfit Hanoi Rocks.

Arriving at the venue after the show had already started, I immediately tried to find a decent spot to photograph from. The venue was already half filled, so there were not many great places left. I opted for the right side of the stage, set up my camera, and waited.

A moment after the show began, I knew I would be photographing some full energy performers. I was happy about this, but I was not so happy about the lighting. I’ve never shot at the Whiskey before, so I had no idea what I was really getting myself into. After trying a few different settings, I found my happy place. After all, I didn’t have the advantage of shooting from the comfort of a photo pit. I was shooting from the crowd, which meant I was also battling hands and phones being raised into the air at unpredictable times.

Typically if the lighting is going to change during a set, it’s going to happen after the first song. That didn’t happen this time. I knew I had to try and get closer if I was going to get anything good. I weighed my options in what was now a fully packed room. The only real open spot was about two feet from me next to a steel support beam.

This spot was better than what I started with, but I found myself pressed up against the beam, shooting around whichever side was better at the time. It was certainly one of the more odd shooting conditions I’ve ever been in.

I can honestly say I was a little worried when I’d check my LCD screen to see how the shots were coming every once and awhile. But I was happy to leave the venue with some images that at least captured the energy and great performance that Michael Monroe displayed.

MAYDAY PARADE: Tale From the Photo Pit photo: Lauren Ratkowski

When I finally made it into House Of Blues in Anaheim, I knew Mayday Parade’s show was going to be full of energy. Fans packed the venue and had already been treated to two up-and-coming openers on this year’s annual AP tour.

Although I arrived a little late, I jumped into the photo pit to catch the third band of the night, Real Friends. I have shot them before and knew how crazy the audience would get once they took the stage. Crowd surfers and screaming fans did not let down my expectations. Security lined the photo pit, so we photographers were finding ourselves courteously climbing over each other and security to get good shots. Of course, security is doing their job and we are doing ours, but we’re both operating in what can basically be described as a 3-foot-wide trench. Sometimes things get…close.

Once Real Friends finished their set, I jumped right back into the photo pit and waited. I had a feeling that more photographers would arrive to shoot the band, so the earlier I got there, the more time I’d have to get a decent spot to shoot from. Again, security remained in the pit, but there were now about 9 photographers reporting for duty.

Another photographer gave me the heads up that Mayday Parade’s set was all backlit, which is not good news. When the band stepped on stage, we were also greeted with incredibly bright, white LCD lights. Once the intro was over, the LCD panels became red. I knew this was going to be a challenge.

Despite a red light saturated set, I managed to get some good shots. The secret is trying to catch onto the patterns in the lights and then being ready to fire at the right moment. It also paid off to zoom in closer on the band members, wide shots would allow for more red light to blow out the photo I was trying to create.

The time in the pit went fast, but the energy Mayday Parade brought to the stage carried on through the whole set. It had been awhile since I shot a sold-out show, but it was refreshing to be surrounded by people truly excited to experience a night of amazing bands!

THE DARKNESS at The Glass House photo: Lauren Ratkowski

I love The Darkness. I have since I saw their music video for their first single “I Believe In A Thing Called Love” when I was only 10 back in 2003. Although they did disappear for a while, I was happy to hear they were returning to the rock scene a few years ago. At that point I had set my sights on doing music photography, so naturally, I put them on my list of bands I wanted to try to shoot.

My dreams came true when I was asked to shoot The Darkness at The Glass House in Pomona!

As usual, I grabbed my credentials and waited for one of our writers to arrive. We went inside and I did my typical venue survey to see where the best points to shoot from the crowd were, where the entrance to the photo pit was, and beyond. The crowd for this show was filled with enthusiastic rock lovers of all ages. It seems that The Darkness truly is a unique band that has the ability to appeal to both classic and modern rock fans.

According to the venues site, another band was supposed to open. However, the only band that played was The Darkness themselves.

I jumped into the pit 15 minutes before they went on. I’ve never shot at The Glass House, so I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of lighting and how big the pit was going to be. I was happy to find that the pit was a great size (some venues have very tight photo pits)! I got situated and set my camera to my usual pre-concert starting point.

The band came on about 10 minutes later. I must say I was a little awe struck because I’ve loved them for so long, but I had a job to do! Going into this shoot, I knew that lead vocalist Justin Hawkins is quite the character. I enjoy shooting bands with a presence because it genuinely gives a great dynamic to the photos. Needless to say, the band didn’t disappoint.

During the third song of the night, I found my lens pointed directly up at Justin Hawkins. I watched through my viewfinder as he pointed the mic out to the crowd, encouraging them to sing along. I snapped a few, then he pulled the mic back up to his lips. A moment later, it was back in my lens. He looked down at me and smiled- he knew he was creating a great photo opportunity and left his mic pointed at me as I snapped 5 more frames before pulling away again.

I was excited to know that I had hopefully just got something good. I wanted to check my LCD to be sure, but I knew if I did, I may miss another great moment. So I fought my urge to take a peak and kept shooting.

I stayed to the end of the show knowing that in the past, Hawkins usually jumps into the crowd during “I Believe In A Thing Called Love.” I found a spot that I knew I’d be able to get something if he did so during this show.

Although Hawkins did not jump out into the audience during that particular song, it happened during the bands 3 song encore. Sitting atop a crew member’s shoulders with guitar in hand, Hawkins was toured across the venue. I ran from one side of the venue to the other and followed him through knowing this was a moment that I needed to have. This paid off-I was able to capture some of my favorite photos of the night!

Shooting concerts is truly a labor of love. I love being able to appreciate bands I love with my art. I can’t wait to knock another band off my list!

FKA TWIGS at FYF Fest 2015 photo: Lauren Ratkowski

Festival season is always exciting and challenging as a concert photographer. Festivals usually mean long days, incredible artists and tons of planning. FYF Fest in downtown Los Angeles was the end to my festival season. The festival itself was two days and packed an interesting array of artists on four stages.

First things first- Concert Guide Live writer Kaylee Johnston and I arrived at the festival and went to pick up our credentials. This process is usually pretty standard-we show them our I.D.’s and they give us our passes and line up schedule. This time I was handed a contract. As a young photographer, I’m always looking out for ways to protect my creative rights. But after reading their terms a few times, I understood that it was only to stop me from being able to sell the photos I would be creating at the festival. With the rights to my photos still with me, we moved forward.

The first day of the festival was about mapping the place out and planning our attack for which artists we’d like to cover. The first day was light in terms of shooting. I started with Canadian band Alvvays on the main stage, then jumped over to Denver indie pop rockers Tennis. Both bands played in the afternoon, allowing me to shoot in natural light. Sounds silly, but at this festival I realized how much I prefer to shoot concerts either indoors or at night. Natural sunlight is great and does make things easier technically, but I feel as if it doesn’t give the same WOW factor to the photos.

As night fell, we closed out day one with dance band !!!. Their energetic set was a sharp contrast to the laid back music of Alvvays and Tennis, but this is why we love festivals! We would have ended with headliner Kanye West, who replaced Frank Ocean, however a no photo policy was requested from the artist.

Kaylee and I began day two early, but were set back when the first two bands I planned to shoot also had requested no photos. I arrived to the photo pit to cover Mac Demarco early. Based off all the fans I had seen during the day, I knew there was going to be a large crowd and tons of interested photographers. The photo pit ended up being pretty full, but we were all still able to move around freely and photograph from different angles.

Three Oh See’s were up next on our list. I jumped into the pit and immediately noticed that the stage was set on a dried out lawn, which only means one thing if the crowd is active-dust. Once the band hit the stage, the mini dust storm began. Between the bands intense strobe lighting and the dust floating in the air, I was only able to snag a few decent photos. Feeling slightly defeated, I began planning for my next artist of the night.

I arrived about 15 minutes before Solange was due to hit the stage. I’d been looking forward to her set all day and figured there would be a lot of interested photographers. We were blocked from entering the pit, but were let in 5 minutes before she hit the stage. There were probably about 15 of us waiting initially. As soon as I finished wiping down my lens, I looked behind me to realize that there were now double the photographers in the pit. After some sound issues, Solange hit the stage with her incredible soul. Unfortunately there was no possible way to move around the pit to try and get more dynamic photos, but Solange is luckily not a still standing performer. I was a little worried when the lighting for her first song was all blue LED’s-one of three of my least favorite lighting conditions. But the lighting changed for the remaining songs I shot and her red outfit provided a sharp contrast against the dark background.

Following Solange was another artist I’d been looking forward to shooting for a long time-FKA Twigs. Her music is extremely original and her stage presence is made to match. Again, the photo pit was incredibly packed. But arriving early always pays off. Despite being stuck in the same spot again, I had a great angle. My only worry was the fog machines. I’ve realized that too much fog during a concert typically makes it harder to get a sharp focus in photos. The haze from the fog gives off a soft appearance and no amount of post editing can solve my problem. However, the fog actually worked in my favor for a number of shots and diffused the lighting making FKA Twigs, in a red custom kimono, stand out.

Covering FYF was one of the larger festivals I’ve covered, but it was a blast. I love that with every show or artist I shoot, I not only walk away with great photos, but I always know that I have learned something new!

HELLYEAH lead singer, Chad Gray getting messy at Mayhem 2015 photo: Lauren Ratkowski

As a concert photographer, I know every show I capture is going to be different. From performances to audiences, no two shows are alike.

Photographing Rockstar Energy Drink’s Mayhem Festival in San Bernardino was no different.

My day began early in the afternoon at the Victory Records stage with Shattered Sun. Covering outdoor festivals gives us photographers certain advantages we don’t get in your typical indoor concert venue.

First, natural lighting is the best you can get. It’s predictable and allows us to use faster shutter speeds, which is essential when photographing high energy acts such as Shattered Sun. The Texas based six-piece band set the crowd’s mood for the festivals following acts.

Another great advantage to outdoor festival type settings is that the band on stage is not my only subject worth photographing- the fans interactions with the music are also photo worthy.

While Shattered Sun’s audience brought large circle pits, Swedish band Sister Sin encouraged fans to sing along. Lead singer Liv Jagrell, the festival’s only female band leader, had an energy that fans reacted to, allowing for more dynamic photos. Some may think that it’s easier to photograph still subjects, but the secret to great concert photos is being able to capture the movement and unique energy of each artist.

The Devil Wears Prada opened the festivals main stage in the evening. I have shot festivals before, but I have never shot bands on a large, amphitheater style stage before. I was a little hesitant at first- there were more photographers, we had a larger amount of people behind us, and I was shooting in a new setting.

Despite there being about twenty of us in the photo pit, we each had more than enough space to move around. A key to being a concert photographer is finding new and unique angles to capture artists. Finding these angles is what set us apart from each other- obviously, no two photographers are the same.

Hellyeah was the last band I photographed. I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but I knew their set was going to be good after the second song began. A crew member came out and sprayed fake blood all over lead singer Chad Gray’s face. The only thing better than finding angles is when bands get theatrical.

The fake blood was extreme, but it made my photos feel much more interesting. Instead of seeing a guy screaming into a microphone, there was now a guy covered in fake blood screaming into a microphone. These images were some of my favorite from the festival- they were attention grabbing and made viewers wonder what was actually happening when I shot them.

The day was long, but it was a great experience. It also reinforced that shooting in a festival setting is not for the faint hearted.

Lugging photo equipment up and down hills all day in the summer heat can be exhausting. However at the end of the day, going home and viewing photographs from the day is what makes it all worth it.