Rolling Stones: Shooting the Voodoo Lounge Kickoff
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09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 51 Rolling Stones: Shooting the Voodoo Lounge Kickoff ust prior to the Rolling Stones announcing their worldwide Voodoo Lounge tour, I got a call from a colleague of mine ask- Jing whether I would mind shooting during the DC show at RFK Stadium. The tour was to kick off in DC in August of 1994, and this show was important. Although I’ve never been a huge Rolling Stones fan per se, I recognized the historical importance of the band, and since it had been widely suspected that the previous Steel Wheels tour might have been their last, I jumped at the opportunity to have full access to cover the entire show. 51 09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 52 Photographs from the Edge of Reality When shooting concerts, we often are limited to the first three songs, so the opportunity to shoot the entire show arises only on occasion. The beauty of being able to shoot the entire show is that you have the opportunity to make images of multiple wardrobe changes and light and effects changes, and you’re able to really move around the venue and work the entire scene. In situations like this, I’ve always preferred to use fixed focal length lenses because of the purity of the glass, and my lenses of choice have always been 35mm f/1.4 and 85mm f/1.4, along with a 135mm and/or a 180mm f/2. I’ve found that these lenses—often referred to as fast glass—are the most optically pure and provide a clarity that far surpasses any zoom lens. Perhaps I’m being a stickler, but when I’m also shooting on Kodachrome film, I am trying to arrive as close to technical visual perfection as possible, in the hope that it will carry me if I don’t quite make a “creatively perfect” image. I arrived at the stadium by way of the crew entrance tunnel in the back—for sound check, not necessarily to make great images. I have covered many an all-day festival, and I have often found that the images made during the daylight hours lacked the mood and feel that I wanted to convey in my images. It was always the act that performed during the evening portion of these all-day festivals that benefitted from an amazing mix of shadow and light that really made the images come to life. Because of this I opted not to shoot much during the sound check; instead, I wanted the various members of the road crew to become familiar with me and comfortable with my presence. During the actual show, with crazy fans and deafeningly loud music, any questions posed by a crew member or an overzeal- ous security guard unfamiliar with me could not be rapidly addressed by those who had blessed me as an authorized pho- tographer for the entire show. Thus, as I encountered crew I would make eye contact with them and nod or say “Hey” so that they would be aware that I was authorized and approved (since no one else would be in the venue during a sound check). 52 09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 53 Rolling Stones: Shooting the Voodoo Lounge Kickoff In addition, when the lead security for the event held their muster meeting for all the yellow-shirted “Event Staff” guards who seemed to be posted every 20 or so feet, I made a point of being nearby, organizing my gear and otherwise silently demon- strating my authorization to be there. Even though I wore a “Working Crew” credential that was lime green and visible to all, doing these preliminary demonstrations wherever possible serves me well and helps me avoid headaches, questions, and a loss of shooting time when peak action is occurring. I cannot stress enough the importance of knowing everyone you can before the high stress and adrenaline kicks in as the concert starts, causing many of the crew to make split decisions that don’t go your way. As the last rays of sun slipped past the top of the stadium rim and dusk settled, I knew that the lights would be coming on soon, and I relished the opportunity to cover the show. I could feel my creative juices begin to flow as I started to see some of the stage lights coming on. The Counting Crows did the honors as the opening act for the tour. They were rotating with Tori Amos for various dates, but for the first show, they were the openers. The two-and-a-half- hour show was to be a tour de force aurally, and I wanted to cap- ture that essence in camera. After a brief changeover, the Rolling Stones took the stage with a light show and oversized screen as a backdrop to their per- formance. The light was amazing, and I was literally standing at the feet of the master, Keith Richards, as he worked his magic with guitar licks that roared out of the sound system. Much of what I did from the photo pit, I did with my 35mm f/1.4, and the clarity shows. The photo pit is the steel fencing that is the buffer between the front-row fans and the stage. This is the area where the Event Staff security works, as well as any TV cameras recording the show for future use or as IMAG—image magnifi- cation—so that the fans in the “cheap seats” can see a larger- than-life version of the performers on the big screens. 53 09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 54 09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 55 09PhotosfromEdge_RollingStones 9/19/10 6:15 PM Page 56 Photographs from the Edge of Reality For the first three songs, I was amidst my colleagues, who were furiously working to make their images before getting the boot. As the Stones neared the end of their third song, I left the pit and decided to roam in the audience. This allowed me to avoid being swept up by the publicists corralling all my colleagues and shepherding them out the door. My earlier efforts paid off, as all of the crew and security I encountered as I walked the path that was about 20 rows back recognized me and let me do my work uninterrupted. I switched to a longer lens and one that wouldn’t be so “up the nose” so I could get some other really interesting angles. Mick Jagger on stage during the show. The show wound down close to 11:00 as the band came out to the front of the stage and took a bow. Although reviews were less than favorable for this particular show in the days following the event, I, for one, remember the show as one I’ve had the most fun at—being free to make great images, unencumbered by the typical restraints of an increasingly constrictive PR machine. 56.