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Photography: Aftershock to Elton John

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.” -Bob Marley

My last week was entirely about music. It pressed my body to its limits and although I’m exhausted, I am also inspired and grateful.

My nephew, kids and I attended the Aftershock Music Festival on Thursday. If you are unfamiliar, it is a four-day outdoor concert featuring some huge metal and rock bands. This was my first time attending and it was a graduation present for my nephew. We saw some incredible performances including Stone Temple Pilots, Ghostmane, Ice Nine Kills, Evanescence, Slipknot, and Rob Zombie. It was hot, crowded, and smoky, but when the bands were performing none of that mattered. I suppose that’s the power of music.

Then, in total contrast, last night my daughter and I saw Elton John in the Bay Area. My mother gifted us the tickets last minute and when we got there a staff member gave us a complimentary upgrade to really wonderful seats. Although we didn’t get home until 2 a.m., seeing this legendary performer sing some of my favorite songs made me far more emotional than I expected.

Neither of the venues allowed my big camera, so all the photos this week are taken with my iPhone 13. I’ve got a lot to learn about photographing big events, but I do think there’s something interesting in each of the images below. Let me know what you think and have a wonderful week.

What to see more?

48 thoughts on “Photography: Aftershock to Elton John”

  2. Wonderful photos, Bridgette, Sir Elton John is a legend in his own time! I remember listening to his music over the loudspeakers at Pine Knob, a ski lodge in Clarkston, Michigan in the late 70s while skiing!

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      • Definitely… probably not the same crowd. I get that, though, I have pretty eclectic music tastes. Many of the bands I make the effort to see live draw similar crowds, but certainly not all. I mentioned Five Iron Frenzy in DLTDGB once, a ska-punk band; they’re real, and I saw them, um, four times before they broke up and three times in the 2010s after they got back together, and they definitely have a different energy than the show I went to this week or any of the old 90s alternative-pop-rock bands I saw touring this summer.

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    • Yes, the energy! While it was far different at Rob Zombie (mosh pit broke out next to us and we had to scoot to avoid getting pushed) than at Elton John (middle-aged women dressed in feather boas and sunglasses dancing)—both times I was swept up in it. I felt very lucky indeed.

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  15. What a wonderful experience you had, Bridgette. I’m so pleased. Love the photo of Sir Elton – I’ve always liked his music. Your photos are wonderful – I could almost feel the atmosphere oozing from them. For a few minutes, I could really feel as if I were there with you. Thank you for sharing your fabulous photos with us all. They’re good ones even if you had to use your iPhone. iPhones take quite good pictures these days. Xx 😘💕

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    • Concerts aren’t for everyone. There’s only been one show I really couldn’t wait for it to end and it was a band called Cannibal Corpse. My nephew wanted to go real bad and I’m the “cool aunt” and took him. Oh, boy. It was horrible! I’d do it again though to see how happy it made him.

      Thanks for always commenting on my blog. It means so much to me!

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