Movement 2009 @ Detroit, MI

23 May 2009 – The crowd is alive. With my own eyes, I watched it cease being a gathering of people and marveled as it began to come alive. breathing. moving. thinking, even.

I can’t even imagine what it was like for people who were ON drugs.

Graced with a media badge from After5 Detroit, I bounded into the festival, snapping anything that moved. 6 hours of music; 4 stages and more than 70 electronic music artists and DJs.

“Since Paxahau began producing Movement in 2006 attendance at the festival has steadily increased each year. An estimated crowd of a little more than 40,000 people attended in 2006 and nearly 45,000 attended in 2007. In 2008 nearly 78,000 attended and in 2009, more than 80,000.” reported Paxahau’s blog.

Instead of feeling like an event photographer, I felt like a marathon runner. Traversing stairs and weaving through the crowd with equipment in tow? One helluva Memorial Day weekend.

A picture within a picture @ the massive main stage

Seriously, I have no idea who this is. o_0. crappit.

Lesson 1 – Make sure you take note of who your subjects are. When the time of post processing came, I didn’t have the foggiest how to tag my pictures. Thoughts of “…who the f is this guy…?” incessantly bounced around my head. Either by notepad or event program, make sure you jot it down.

Packed in like a can of sardines. The crowd undulations were mesmerizing.

Taken near twilight. Lucky enough that the stage lights provided a beautiful key light

Fantastical.

He can control his equipment with his MIND

Front row at the main stage. What silky, flow-y hair.

Lesson 2 – Never be afraid to get the shot. At worst, they’ll snub you and you’ll get a shot of them rolling their eyes. At best, you’ll have a fantastic image that will make your night. Get in there for the real thing.

Do your thing, bald black man. Do it well.

It's the final couuunnttdoooowwwnnnnnnn