When the 4 Corners Folk Festival rolls around I know that I’m in for three days of work and seemingly infinite photo possibilities. There is always a checklist of photos that need to be taken when I cover an event, whether it is for The SUN or an organization such as FolkWest. My list differs from other people that might be taking photos in a lot of ways.

I take a lot of detail shots, something I also do with travel photography.  Everyone has a shot of the Eiffel Tower if they go to Paris, but I shot it with a café sign in the foreground or shot photos of every metro sign for the metros I took. I took the token shots of the ruins in Mexico, but the detail in the carvings and artist vendors made great shots too.

When it comes down to shooting a local event I try to do the same. I stay back away from the main action outside what is required and shoot the other stuff. From the Folk Festival the shots that most people enjoy are the details of the instruments that belong to the artists, the groups of artists “picking” backstage, performers warming up, or the more artistic shots playing with light. I could ask each group to stand by our mountain backdrop and take photos, but it’s much more natural if you stay on the edge and let them naturally go sit together and take in a view that many of us take for granted.

Most of the time these artists are unaware that the shot is being taken, while other people will notice but won’t care as long as you let them do their thing without interrupting. It was a great compliment to me when one such performer thanked me for being unobtrusive and capturing great photos of them without stopping them and telling them to smile for my camera.

For this shot I had already metered the light for this shot since it is one that I would shoot many times over the weekend.  When I saw the performer in his stage dress and unique instrumentation I slid in behind him up against the tent and didn’t say a word.  I was able to shoot two frames. This was the second and all he said was, “It better be a good one.”