Andrew St. Clair

Last August, Mr. Fields joined Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings on stage during Celebrate Brooklyn and it was probably the best show I saw all year. So I jumped at the chance to shoot him again. Seeing and shooting Lee Fields & the Expressions was a good way to start off the new year. 

Before I continue. I’m going to try and update my blog on a regular basis this year (yeah, I’ll believe that when I see it) and I’m sure that more often than not, you’ll hear me complain about dim stage lighting at various venues (just like every other music photographer). The Bowery Ballroom is no exception and I’m sure I’ll be bitching about their lighting throughout the year. However, it was pretty well lit show. This made me very happy.

The opening band was Michael Leonhart & the Avramina 7. The audience stood about 15 feet away from the stage, which gave me the freedom to move back and forth. They were pretty funky and even did a cover of the Pinball Countdown song from Sesame Street.

Right after, Michael Leonhart’s set was over, the crowd started to make their way to the front of the stage. I got a spot near the front, anticipating the best angle to shoot from. I shot from the front of the horns section so i’d be out of the way of the audience’s line of sight when they would be looking at Mr. Fields. Besides, if I stood right in the middle, his microphone stand would have been in my way. He walks all around the stage, so no matter where a photographer was positioned, there are plenty of opportunities for good shots.

And thanks to the decent lighting, I was able to shoot mostly with the Nikon 17-35mm f/2.8 that I rented from BorrowLenses.com. It was my first time shooting with it and it’s a pretty fast lens. However, as you can see from the above picture, I was getting a decent amount of lens flare. I’m not sure if it had anything to do with the angle of the stage lighting or if it’s just the lens itself. My guess is the former, but I have the lens for a few more weeks, so I’ll let you know.

Now, I would have rented the 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S DX IF-ED (which I rented during CMJ) but it was out of stock at the time. I love the Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8G AF-S ED but I was looking for a little more range this month. I’m planning on shooting Tokyo Police Club when they come back to town on January 21st and want to get some wide angles that a 28-75mm or my nifty fifty just can’t handle.

Anyway, Lee Fields & the Expressions were just great. Mr. Fields has such a commanding stage presence that if he asks you to put your hands in the air, you ask “how high?”. It was a little difficult for me to photo edit into a set for BV because I got so many good shots. I try to keep it under 20 shots for a headlining band and I could have posted twice that amount.

Anyway, great show to start off what is hopefully a great year. Check out the coverage on BrooklynVegan.com