One of my favorite bands to work with, Uprite Dub Orchestra, played a show at a great venue here in Portland. The Goodfoot lounge ended up being the perfect spot to hear the hypnotic grooves and walking bass lines of their music. I had never done a shoot at The Goodfoot, so I was anxious to see how it would all work out.

The show itself started off fairly slow, but once the crowd really picked up on the amazing energy Uprite brings to a room, it didn’t take long until the entire place was dancing like crazy. Even people in line for drinks were moving a little bit.

The Goodfoot is a basement venue, so naturally the lighting is quite dim. I tried to get as many wider angled shots of the show, but without using a flash (which would have reeked havoc in such a small space), the only lens I found useable was my 50mm f/1.4. It was a bit long, but at least it was fast enough to catch the atmospheric light of that little venue.

Don’t miss my gallery of shots from the evening.

The Uprite Dub Orchestra contacted me soon after we connected at a common gig. I was thrilled to be asked to document their experience at an event called The Revolution Party. The concert was put on by The Russian Foundation, and the color red was very abundant through the night.

I was really surprised at the turn-out for this show. To me it sounded more gimmickey than anything. I was so glad to be proven wrong, as the venue (Berbati in Portland, Oregon) filled with energetic and lively people, ready to let loose to some great music. Although I was there to shoot Uprite Dub and their experience there, I couldn’t help but try and capture the whole experience. There were clowns, russian flags, Lenin lookalikes, and people dancing everywhere!

I was asked by my new friends Chris and Jessica Petriwsky if I would take some shots at their wedding. Since this would be my first time shooting a wedding, and I haven’t the first clue about professional wedding photography, of course I said yes!

Read the rest of this entry »