19 October 2009 – Earlier this year I shot a bunch of portraits of the guys from Papa Roach which was the first time I had ever worked with them.

This resulted in me staying for their live show which blew my mind even though I didn’t know any of their songs. During that day I became a fan of what the guys are doing not just because they are really good at it but also because they were really nice and after all the years that they have been playing together, they still seem to be as excited about it as they must’ve been during their first days. It was a really cool day which got me into what they are doing which was obviously also really easy considering how good their music actually is.

Anyway, they were in London not so long ago and I spent most of the day with them again which was just as good. The guys did a really cool thing where they had 100 fans join us all for their sound check and then they made time to meet and greet and spend time with each of those fans, so as you can imagine they were running around like crazy. I shot a bunch of behind the scenes photographs of the guys during their sound check, back stage and just general lifestyle shots which I might post up here later but for now I wanted to just get this one up that I shot quick in the VIP room. It’s a really ugly and boring room and it’s definitely not where I would normally pose a portrait but I got my lights up as quick as I could and think it works alright anyway. I just love Jacoby’s trademarked facial expression.

I look forward to working with the guys again on their next tour. The dates haven’t been announced yet so I won’t say when that is but it’s going to be just as exciting. I’ll try make up next time with a much better portrait than this one.

Currently listening to : City and Colour – Sleeping Sickness.

10 October 2009 – Today I worked with the guys from Papa Roach again and this time I was super excited because of the good time I had with them all last time.

I really was rocked by their live performance when I shot with them a few months back and since I have given their music a good listening to, waiting for they day that they would return so that I could see them live again and sing along. Tonight was that night and the only way I can describe it would be to say that it was IMMENSE. The crowd loved every single second of it and the guys made sure to connect with each fan there which is quite a hard job considering that the Academy takes about 5000 people. Jacoby is wild and I wish that I had his consistent energy to keep me going.

The set is perfect with songs ranging throughout their albums and it’s amazing to be a part of something so well put together. Papa Roach are amazing at what they do and they are just going to continue to get bigger and bigger as times goes on. I feel that anyone who isn’t a fan of their music just hasn’t seen them live yet.

These are a few photographs that I like from the ones I shot. The light was weird because it was made up of so many different colour temperatures thanks to the addition of the LED lights. It was constantly changing depending on the strength of the different lights which ended up being a little weird to work with but it was a pleasure to watch.

I shot 2 portraits with the guys before the show which I will post a bit later this week. Absolute pleasure to work with them again.

** I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT FOR SOME REASON MY MACHINE IS REALLY SUCKING WHEN I COMPRESS PHOTOS FOR WEB AND I DON’T KNOW WHY. I HATE THEY WAY THEY LOOK AFTER SEEING THEM HIGH RESOLUTION AND REALLY AM GOING TO DO SOME RESEARCH THIS WEEK TO TRY FIND SOME SOLUTION. IT’S LIKE THEY BECOME PIXELATED AND THEN IT’S SHARPENING THOSE PIXELIZED PARTS. LAME. HAHA **

Currently listening to : Mutemath – Obsolete (INCREDIBLE).

17 June 2009 – Earlier today I shot portraits with the guys from Papa Roach and it was really a privilege to work with them. A lot of friends (and bands I work with) really look up to these guys so I felt like I had a lot of pressure on me.

The shoot was interesting because as luck has it for me, I found a cool location on the roof of the Oxford Academy which was immediately pointed out as a location where ALL bands have their photographs taken so I knew that I had to make it look different so I spent a bit of extra time lighting up the scene (keeping ambient light in mind) and then when I was ready, I took a walk downstairs to get a drink and then gave the go ahead that I was ready to shoot and when I arrived back upstairs the clouds had covered the sun taking most of the ambient away and then it began raining … not slight drizzle but ACTUAL rain. I had to think quick but really thought that I could do something in the rain so I asked the guys if they would be alright with shooting some real quick shots in the rain which they were up for so I made some quick last minute (second) adjustments to all the lights and then got the guys in position and shot a few really quick portraits and then gave the clear that we were wrapped and that they could take cover back inside while my assistant (thanks Brendan) and I ran around in the rain trying to roughly gather my gear so that we could take cover in the downstairs sound shed and dry all my gear with toilet paper before packing it away. It was only then that I could preview what I had shot (hoping that I had done good) and I was really happy.

The guys were really cool and really down to earth and a pleasure to shoot. In a way I am pissed that it rained because I would’ve been down to shoot a bunch more with them at that location but I do think that the rain added a bit of something that hasn’t really been done too much before so I guess I will take it as a good thing (hoping that my gear is all alright). I really hope that I get to work with these guys again soon.

These are just 4 of the portraits that I shot. Let me know what you think.

17 June 2009 – Tonight I had my first Papa Roach experience and it was a super good one. I shot a few portraits with the guys today and decided to stay for their live show and I am so glad that I did. I am not sure if anyone else has ever had the same thing happen to them where you are at a show and everything is so good that you feel stupid for not supporting the band for the last ten years. This was one of those moments for me exactly because I felt myself tapping my feet and trying to sing along to words that I never knew.

If you have seen Papa Roach before then you know what I am talking about and if you haven’t seen them before then make sure to be at the next show near your area because it will be an eye opener and then if you are like I was before today and you have never heard a Papa Roach song, go to the CD store right now and purchase an album … Any album and I am sure you will be happy.

I got their new album from them tonight and I have to be honest in saying that I think I will wait a while before I give it a listen. It may sound like a stupid thing to do but I really was overwhelmed by the quality of their live show and I am so worried that I might be disappointed by their album work so I am going to just wait it out a bit until I forget a bit of what the live show was like although I think it will be burnt into me. It’s just that I love music and I love when bands do things well and Papa Roach can make any stage look small because they fill it and it’s hard to believe that the four members are that tight as a unit and that they can make that much noise without any additional backing tracks or anything like that.

Truly amazing and show that will go towards the top of my list of favourites.

UPDATE – You can read the live review of the show on Clink Music Magazine