Salisbury Music Awards....

IF you expected a stuffy shot of someone getting a trophy when presented with such a title, you don't know me, yet!

Almost my final shot, the ska band the Intercepteurs (who picked up an award or two themselves) rounded off the night, after almost five hours, in the nightclub The Chapel, which is as its name implies, an old Chapel! The video I shot of this great, energetic band just before shows a lot more and facebook friends of mine can see it. I might try and get a link to it if it ever gets up on YouTube.

So, this shot. Many - and most of my contemporaries prefer to get nice, neat close ups of people doing their art. Me, however, being a wideangle freak (it's an official diagnosis) prefer to portray the essence and spirit of the music being played - and ultimately, enjoyed. My approach has caused me to cause some ructions with the Chief Photographer at Salisbury Journal, who most definitely belongs to the former group, as mentioned - and as he controls what pics go in 'his' paper...

Anyway, I know that the lead singer, John Martin - at the front - a photographer himself - always enjoys my fisheye shots and here I used the full-frame 16mm Nikkor that's meant for FX full-frame DSLRs on my DX cropped D7000 - it still gives some curvature but is much more easily managed and importantly, fill the frame. A chaotic shot doesn't need to be a messy one....

The dry ice had flattened contrast and so a balance was needed with the background and filled-in flash of the keyboardist. As official photographer, I sort made myself accessible anywhere, hence the angle.