U2 + G10 = Noisy Fun

Llywellyn

Anyone here who knows me reasonably well has likely learned at least three of my "vices;" things that make me drop everything else and go on a little mental break because I'm spazzing in my head for a moment: photography (of course), kittehs!, and U2. I have been a U2 fangirl since high school, when my supercool dad quietly wooed me away from the country music I'd been engrossed in (I lived in Texas, okay?) by playing U2 in his truck whenever he took me somewhere.

The strategy worked.

The first CD I ever bought was Achtung Baby. I quickly scrounged up every other album they had released and began rummaging in CD store bins and racks for B-sides and bootlegs. I was obsessed. When my father asked if I'd like to go to their Pop Mart tour when it swung through San Antonio, I fairly leapt at the chance.

Thus began a long-running father-daughter ritual. I have now been to four U2 concerts, and I attend each one with my dad. Yes, I am a total daddy's girl. But my dad is supercool, as I've said.

I'd never brought a camera to their concerts before. One, because I wasn't as nuts about photography then as I am now. And two, it technically isn't allowed. So while I would have really loved to have snuck in my D700 and a telephoto lens, security would have none of it. I was lucky to bring in my G10 because I was stopped when a security guard felt it in one of my pockets. (I opened the other pocket and pulled out my winter hat and gloves when asked what I had in there...)

So the noise is awful. The zoom sucks. But the feeling is there, and I just wanted to share a little of my fangirldom with you all. :wink

1. Anticipation! Lights are up and smoke suddenly begins to fill the stage.


2. Since my zoom could only take me so far, I really enjoyed photographing the video screen above the stage.


3. Rockin' out!


4. Larry Mullen and The Edge walk their 360º.


5. As does Bono, of course.


6. Meet the luckiest kid in the world: stayed on stage for about two full songs, ran the 360º with Bono, AND got the glasses off Bono's face for a souvenir. (Amusingly, Bono's stage hands had another pair ready for him so his signature look would not be interrupted too long. )


7. The "Milky Way" of cellphones.


Full gallery here.

Thanks for stopping by! :thumb

adbsgicom

Nice shots, and the noise levels are impressive. What ISO did you have it set to? I assume you pp'ed these with NoiseWare or something like that....

Awais Yaqub

Wonderful job, i like the smoky shot a lot

Llywellyn

adbsgicom wrote:

Nice shots, and the noise levels are impressive. What ISO did you have it set to? I assume you pp'ed these with NoiseWare or something like that....

I capped my ISO at 400 because I know the noise really, really sucks above that. I figured images would at least be usable at 400, and I was pleasantly surprised. I used Noise Ninja on only a couple (on 1 and 2 in this set). The rest of the time I left the noise because it looked enough like film grain and trying to fix it hurt more than helped.

Llywellyn

Awais Yaqub wrote:

Wonderful job, i like the smoky shot a lot

Thanks, Awais!

pyry

Good stuff

I think at least in this size the noise is fine.

I suppose the gig itself was good too, not just the photography of it?

pathfinder

Great thread, Kerry and a great family story as well! Your father is a lucky/smart guy!

You did great with your G10.

sara505

Canon's G-series truly rocks, as proven once again.
Great series, great shots, looks like it was a great concert.

Years ago, when teaching music to a group of pre-schoolers, I asked the children what they wanted to sing. A two year-old called out, "U-2."

(the child's father was from Ireland, and was obviously intent on getting his kids off to a good start, musically)

tortillatorture

cool shots indeed, the nr6 looks sweet! also the video screen shot worked out nice.
i didnt pay much attention to nr 7 until i read the title The "Milky Way" of cellphones.
with the camera quality in the phones today i guess there was taken quite a few nice shots.
i enjoy your story and pictures.
(about the noise, nothing here bothers me at all)

Richard

Anyone worried about noise shouldn't go to rock concerts.
:hide
Nice work, Kerry. 5,6 and 7 really appeal to me.

Llywellyn

pyry wrote:

I suppose the gig itself was good too, not just the photography of it?

Thank you! And yes, heh, the gig itself was awesome. Unfortunately, getting to it was excruciatingly painful. Traffic was very poorly handled. At the end of the concert, in fact, as everyone was walking back to their cars, one aggressive driver got annoyed with waiting and intentionally sped into a pedestrian, lifting her onto the hood of his SUV before braking to throw her off. The woman was physically okay afterward, but the planners seriously mucked up traffic guidance.

pathfinder wrote:

Great thread, Kerry and a great family story as well! Your father is a lucky/smart guy!

You did great with your G10.

Thanks, Jim! I consider myself lucky to have great parents. My mother once bought a plane ticket for my dad and two concert tickets for us so he could fly out here and join me for a U2 concert.

sara505 wrote:

Canon's G-series truly rocks, as proven once again.
Great series, great shots, looks like it was a great concert.

I've seriously been impressed with the G10. As a Nikon shooter, I freely admit Canon has the upper hand on point and shoots. Really awesome.

And thank you for the kind words! It was a fantastic show. For anyone who's curious, the band collaborated with YouTube to stream their live performance at the Rose Bowl Sunday night. The video is available for a while here, for anyone who wants to experience it.

tortillatorture wrote:

cool shots indeed ... i enjoy your story and pictures.
(about the noise, nothing here bothers me at all)

Thank you!

Richard wrote:

Anyone worried about noise shouldn't go to rock concerts.

Thanks for the feedback, Richard!

HoofClix

The experience of the evening comes right out..

But I don't see a street...:D :cry

Llywellyn

HoofClix wrote:

The experience of the evening comes right out..

But I don't see a street...:D :cry

Their street has no name.

And thank you. The experience is what I wanted to share.