The quality of concert photography has been in decline for a number of years, especially indoor concert photography. For Shakenstir, photography is a key activity which brings to life our live reviews and provides readers with graphic memories of concerts they have witnessed, or may have missed. As Shakenstir’s photographer, my aim is always to try to capture the essence of a performer and performance on the night. However, I will acknowledge, like many ‘famous’ photographers, that live performance photography is becoming more difficult. In days gone by there were far less restrictions and, arguably, better lighting - without the complexities of modern technology and the incompetence of many overseeing the process. On the positive side, film has been replaced by digital technology (at a price) which allows people like me to take photographs that just would not be possible otherwise.

For artists, stage lighting should be made a priority, and especially for new artists. Arena shows are usually well lit, however,  the vast majority of shows are not staged in arenas but in medium to small sized venues - where many new artists begin to learn their craft. When new artists (and their management) understand the importance of capturing them in the ‘best possible light’ perhaps things will improve. Here’s a couple of suggestions: keep the light white as much as possible and focused on the key players. This would give both of us a fighting chance…. And go see some of the top acts to establish their lighting set-ups.

I mentioned earlier in this piece that the quality of concert photography has been in decline, and nowhere more than in the print media. Picture Editors appear to be happy with mediocrity and not prepared to invest sufficiently in the best live photography. Perhaps this is one reason why magazine readership is declining, whereas the Internet is becoming more popular.

For Shakenstir, 2009 has provided some of the best live shows ever seen - at all levels. For us it’s a privilege to be granted permission to take photographs at close quarters, and for us not to do those shows justice in photographic terms is unthinkable. So here’s some of my favourite images of what has been a brilliant year of music. You will find many more in our Gallery.

Elbow

Early in 2009 I photographed Elbow in Llandudno, North Wales, following the band’s Mercury Barclaycard victory in 2008. The last time I photographed the guys was at the Witnness Festival in Dublin circa 1999/2000. While the Llandudno show suffered from a rather drab set-list, Elbow proved decisively to me that in live performance few British bands can better them. The lighting wasn’t great (in fact it was bloody awful) but I was able to capture some interesting moments that could easily be mistaken for studio shots.

The following image I think really captures Garvey’s performance style which is undramatic but emotional and sincere, able to connect with an audience as well as anybody I’ve seen.