One of our last stops on the honeymoon was Galway, to see Yann Tiersen live at the RóisÃn Dubh (The Black Rose). Now, I’ve always been too intimidated by band or concert photography to ever attempt my hand at it, but this was a special occasion. Yann Tiersen. Ireland. My honeymoon. Did I mention it was Yann Tiersen? Since I mostly listen to composers, I have very few people I would like to see live before I die. Tiersen was on that list. But not only did I see him live, but he shared a beer with us before the show, hugged me, and gave me a set list which he then autographed. And to top it all off, I’d like to think these photos aren’t half bad for a 50mm prime and a terrified-of-messing-this-moment-up photographer. I’m happy as a clam. My only “regret” is I wished he’d have played his actual accordion, and that he’d played La Noyee.
(PS: These photos were edited using my black and white action collection!)
20 Comments
sarah
10 Apr 2011 at 2:50 pmloving your blog, your creativity, and your original content. so refreshing. And your web layout is fabulous. I try and do the same as well, check it out if you have some time!
thank-you!
Ashling
30 Mar 2011 at 4:40 pmI would LOVE to see Yann Tiersen live. Lucky you! And as has been said many times, so well captured ^_^
Catherine
29 Mar 2011 at 4:39 pmSeeing Yann Tiersen in concert was such an amazing experience! Sadly not quite as amazing as yours, as I didn’t get to meet him, but nonetheless I really enjoyed it. I’m not sure if he had the same keyboardist/sound mixer guy in Ireland, but wow, he had almost as much of a stage presence as Yann Tiersen himself! Also, I too wish I had seen him play his accordion. Still, the way he totally ripped on the violin was awe-inspiring!
Lauren Nicole
29 Mar 2011 at 12:18 pmI would have died. He’s on my list of “must see” too. These photos are lovely. I would have been way too nervous/caught up in the moment to take photos. I’m so glad you were able to capture the moments for yourself (and for all of us to thankfully see, too).
lorena
29 Mar 2011 at 8:22 amoh, my!
this is fantastic.
I love how he plays the violin.
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:51 amMe toooooooo! I wish he’d played his real accordion! I would have loved to capture that as well. He puts his whole soul into it.
Jacqueline
29 Mar 2011 at 1:41 amwow, these are fantastic — and concert photography is so difficult! the lighting gives the perfect amount of dramatic vignetting.
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:51 amThanks so much, I was so worried they would be awful! I must say next time the opportunity arises I might not be so scared!
Alice
28 Mar 2011 at 11:03 pmthese look fantastic! perfectly moody.
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:50 amThanks, miss!
Sabrina
28 Mar 2011 at 8:01 pmThese are tremendous, no joke. And, it sounds strange, but they seem imbued with something of the character of Galway city, how it feels in my head. I love them.
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:43 amThis made me blush! Thank you so much. I wish we’d had more time here, because it’s a big city you can very easily fall in love with. It retains it’s “we’re a small town” feeling. Actually, Dublin was a little like that too. The streets were PACKED but I still felt like every store had a welcome sign and a big smile. You won’t find that in New York or Toronto.
Next time we visit we must meet up!
Sabrina
29 Mar 2011 at 12:52 pm(in reply to your comment) Sara, absolutely! And take photos 🙂
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 1:02 pmAll fixed. =}
Siobhan
28 Mar 2011 at 6:28 pmThese are great, I would have never known this was your first attempt at concert photography. I have to admit I’ve never heard of Yann but I’m glad you had such a good experience with someone your a big fan of.
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:46 amHe did the soundtrack for the movie Amelie! (If you’ve heard/seen it!) I definitely did. I think we had a major language barrier (Him: French Me: English) but he was really a genuine person. It was really refreshing. And he loves his music, it’s clear. And that makes me happy.
Genevieve
28 Mar 2011 at 5:21 pmwow! amazing pics. I am sure he would love to see them/have them!
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:49 amOh my goodness, wouldn’t that be fabulous? I’ll admit, I’d love to send them over to him but I don’t know if he’d ever get them! Wouldn’t it be cool if he Googled himself and found these and then, I don’t know, CONTACTED ME.
/fangirldreaming
Bronwyn
28 Mar 2011 at 1:25 pmConcert photography can be lots of fun! The thing you need most is familiarity with your camera to make fast changes (since lighting changes) without fumbling in the dark, and improv. You did a great job! I’m so glad you had that personal experience with him too. What a rush!
Sara
29 Mar 2011 at 10:48 amWhat a rush indeed! I only wish he’d played more of the stuff I recognized. Which is silly because he was on tour for a new album so of course he’s going to play that stuff- perhaps I will go again if he ever does a “best of” tour.