Jimmy Cliff in concert
I am one lucky guy. I got to photograph a living legend last week. Jimmy Cliff has been one of my favorite performers since I first saw him in concert. Last week he performed at the belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach to a sold out crowd and I was lucky enough to be there. All images were...
Lukas Nelson concert sh...
I have had the privilege of photographing Lukas Nelson three times now. Each time was decidedly different from the previous. The first time was with his dad back in 2007, the second was with his band at Stagecoach in 2011 and the third was on Wednesday night where he performed solo and...
ALL ACCESS: Your Backst...
I am very happy to announce the release of my new book ALL ACCESS: Your Backstage Pass to Concert Photography. This book covers everything from requesting a photo pass, shooting the show, dealing with equipment, post production and pro tips from other concert photographers, musicians,...
Camp Freddy, the end of...
Friday, December 23 was the final show of the 2011 Camp Freddy Residency at the Roxy. Each week had brought an eclectic setlist and great group of guests to the stage at the legendary Roxy in Los Angeles. Week 4 would be no different. The curtain went up to the now familiar Frankie Goes...
Are you ready for some ...
I get asked how I get to shoot the concerts I do all the time. Many times it’s about who you know. Never has that been more true than the story behind how I got to photograph the Poinsettia Bowl here in San Diego on December 21, 2011. The short and honest answer is that a friend...
Camp Freddy rocks the R...
Camp Freddy kicked off their 2011 residency at the Roxy on Friday night and it was a rocker. Camp Freddy is a cover band. They play songs they like and the set list ranges from Frankie Goes to Hollywood to Ozzy Osbourne and even an acoustic Oasis tune. And while the music is really fun...
The Devil Wears Prada C...
Sunday in Los Angeles was the American Music Awards and the MLS finals, both taking place at the LA Live area. I was there but not for those events, instead I was photographing The Devil Wears Prada at the Club Nokia. This show was a blast to shoot. The band looked like they were having...
Steel Pulse in Concert
If you have read this blog over the last few years, there re certain bands that come up time and time again. Steel Pulse is one of those bands and I feel very fortunate to be able to photograph them when our schedules allow it. I have been a huge fan of this band from when I first...
Rise Against
What a great show. Lights were fun to shoot under and the band really put on a show. Again, the only downside were a couple of the other photographers who seemed to have their own idea of photo-pit etiquette. All images shot with a Nikon D700 and 24-70mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8 and a 16mm...
Bad Religion
A few weeks ago I got to shoot Bad Religion when they were on the bill with Rise Against. It was great to be back shooting at the UCSD RIMAC Arena. I had shot there previously for the house and this was my first time shooting there for SoundSpike. On the plus side, there was really nice...
Linkin Park
A couple of weeks ago I got to photograph Linkin Park when they played here in San Diego. Great show and some really fun images. All shots taken with a Nikon D700 and 24-70mm f/2.8 and 70-200mm f/2.8 . The only downside was that we were not allowed to shoot any crowd shots at...
Win a Nikon D300s
I have been waiting to make this official for some time now. We will be giving away a Nikon D300s and a 35m lens at Photoshop World in Orlando next week. The camera will go to the attendee who takes the best shot during the “Live Concert Shoot” portion of the concert pre con...Nikon Updates D3x, D3, ...
Nikon has posted firmware updates for the D3X, D3, D700 & D300S DSLRs. The latest firmware allows all four cameras to use the new 64GB CompactFlash cards. Other changes are as follows: D3x When some memory cards were inserted in the camera, “CHA” was displayed in the top...White Rabbits
First band up at the 94.9 FM Holiday Hootenanny was the White Rabbits. Not bad lighting but a photo pit filled with what seems like first time shooters. No consideration for the crowd, no consideration for the other shooters and no consideration for the band. White Rabbits
Lens for sale
I have being going through my gear and came across a lens that I have used maybe once or twice. I have decided to sell the lens so if you want it or know someone who does, let me know by emailing me at alan@alanhessphotography.com. The lens in question is the AF Zoom-NIKKOR 80-200mm...
Nikon D3s
Well, it is official. Nikon releases the D3s. This is the new top of the line DSLR from Nikon. The big news is that the camera reaches new levels in ISO performance and this is a big one for me because I shoot in low light situations all the time. The question now becomes, are the ISO...Nikon roadmap
There has been a great deal made of a (faked) Nikon roadmap that outlines the releases of camera and lenses through 2010. Some of the details include: Nikon D4 15.7MP (more sensitive and with less noise) Up to 16fps with “double exposure” ISO 200-12800 (plus extended range) 61-point...
Nikon D500 semi-officia...
It looks like an Israeli website Dtown has leaked the first official photos of the soon to be announced Nikon D500. I know there will be a lot of talk about what is good and bad and new and old when this camera is officially announced but the one thing that struck me about this...
Robin Williams concert ...
On February 12th I had the opportunity to photograph one of the legends of comedy, Robin Williams. He was performing for a sold out crowd at the Rimac Arena on the University of California, San Diego college campus on his “WEAPONS OF SELF-DESTRUCTION” tour. It was one of the more...
