To be honest, I didn't know exactly how to prepare for a Kiss concert. Even up to the last minute before they came on stage I was questioning my lens/camera selections.
Right before the show started I put my 17-40mm on my Canon 5D MkII, and my 100-400mm on my Canon 20d. I felt like I would need that ultra-wide zoom lens on my full frame camera at the start. This was a good choice to start I think... It let me capture some of the incredibly energetic performances at the front of the stage.
I don't want to kill any of the illusion, but as I understand it, only Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley are 'original' Kiss members. That said, the fact that they are doing what they are doing, for as long as they've done it, is a feat in itself. The platform boots these guys were wearing were just crazy! The show they put on for the people, and if I'm honest, for the photogs as well, was amazing!
There were a few times throughout the show where I had Paul Stanley, the Star Child, 4 feet from my lens, staring me right in the face. I can't believe some of the pictures I got. I really can't give them enough credit for putting on such a show, and for making it so easy for the photogs. The stage was so well lit, and the performances and poses were so over-the-top that every picture could be great. My 5D was set to 2000ISO and I fluctuated between 1/200 and 1/400 shutter speed.
Gene and Paul both had a microphone off to their respective side of the stage, and in the middle was a short cat walk wide enough for the three axe-wielding mad men to lean over the crowd and rock in unison. Unfortunately for Eric Singer, the drums were SO high up in the air that I couldn't get a shot of his face... but I'm sure his view of the arena was amazing.
Really, the only word I could think of last night was EPIC! Even if you don't know the songs, you know the band... and the show was just as crazy as you could imagine. I'm really glad I got the chance to cover this. It was really a fun time, and it still feels nothing like 'work' to me.
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