When I heard Bret Michaels was coming to perform at Whisky River in Jacksonville, I knew I had to be there! I liked him as the lead singer of Poison as a child, and later in life his comeback reality dating series, "Rock of Love" became my guilty pleasure. When he had his health issues last year I prayed for him and cheered him on along with the rest of the country. He truly is lucky to be alive and I think he recognizes it and puts his all into his concerts. Music was what he was born to do, and he does it very well!
I decided I wanted to not only attend, but also shoot the concert... and a few phone calls and emails later, I was in! I was nervous because concert photography is a whole new field that I was completely inexperienced in and is not the easiest thing to shoot. It calls for huge lenses, very low lighting, and high ISO's. Despite these new challenges, I think I came away with some pretty good shots!
Bret rocked the stage with Poison classics, his own new material, and hits from bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and Sublime. After the show I was invited on his tour bus and got to meet Bret (omg!) and take some photos of him and the Whisky River girls. He seemed very nice and humble and I was surprised by the fact of how down to earth he was. By the way he interacted with people, I could tell Bret really was in it for the fans... he truly enjoys what he does! But enough rambling from me... here are some of my favorite photos from the night. Thanks Bret and Whisky River for an amazing time and a night I'll never forget!
Bret and the Whisky Girls on the tour bus:
signing boots:
and last but not least, me and the man himself! (Photo Courtesy of his bassist!)
think I could be smiling any bigger?
