I used to be one of those people, you know the ones, the rather irritating people who stand at a gig they have paid over the odds to be at taking photographs you are never really going to look at again and other people have no interest in looking at.
Then I had an epiphany of sorts. Why am I standing here filming/taking photographs of a live event instead of watching it in all it’s glory. Admittedly I had very personal reasons as to why I was taking photographs at the Girls Aloud gig but in all honesty there weren’t many of us there that were there solely for the their musical (ahem) talents. However there I was stood at Download Festival having to watch KISS through someone’s android phone. This is when it hit me. For many years I have been of these inconsiderate people and now I am paying the price. I did my usual moan and groan, talking so loudly about it that I hoped he would heard me and put the phone down. It didn’t work, he even managed to wiggle every part of his body about with the phone in hand as I tried to gain some sort of view of the stage. I am not overly sure it was right as I shimmed a little to move right in to the eye line of a MASSIVE HAT and a rucksack.
My question here is why?
Why pay money to capture the moment a band shows their true colours on the big stage to then just watch it through a lens? You could use the excuse you want to show people back home or your facebook friends list what they missed out on but here is the thing, they really don’t care. You will never capture the essence of the show on your smart phone, you will never be able to portray the atmosphere you were surrounded in and it simply isn’t the same as being there. So unless you are going to head home and watch those videos over and over, there really doesn’t seem to be much point in watching the entire show through the lens.
Now I understand that some may want to participate in such activities, each to their own, I mean I have always been someone that wouldn’t like to judge but in this case I will make an exception. I personally do not want to waste my hard earned cash by watching it through your insy winsy little camera phone screen. Watching KISS at Download Festival is pretty much a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, completely ruined by the ignorant idiots lined up in front of me. I was ready to take aim with my bottle of water to knock the phones from their hands however my bravery dwindled away the colder it got. I did however manage to muster up a few choice words here and there which did fall on deaf ears. Maybe I need to get a bit more of a back bone or I can continue to use the excuse that ‘I don’t want to get arrested for starting a fight’. Here’s the thing camera men and women of the audience, if you are having to look up to look in to your camera whilst filming, then the person behind you most definitely isn’t seeing over you.
What is even worse? When a band asks to see the faces of the crowd and up there on the big screen is a sea of iphones that are inevitably going to get smashed. IT IS A FESTIVAL after all. Rockstars want to see your faces not lenses that get pointed at them day in and day out. Is there any consideration anymore?
So this is what I ask of you all, put that camera down, embrace the moment, take in the atmosphere and consider the people behind you. They paid good money to be there too and you sure as hell wouldn’t like it if someone was doing it to you. No one back home will want to watch the videos, you certainly won’t re watch them over and over. You can’t contain those kinds of vibes in a video camera.
And if this doesn’t change, then pray that you aren’t the one filming in front of me because suddenly I feel the need to stand up for those that cannot see.
