Boulder Acoustic Society performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Kicking off the night was Colorado’s own Boulder Acoustic Society (BAS), who have been performing and teaching at Swallow Hill throughout their rising career. Old school but never old, they represent the new wave of American roots music, dubbed by Darol Anger as “…the future of String Band Music on a silver platter.”

Joe Pug performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Joe Pug, who is receiving widespread critical acclaim as one of the most respected songwriters of this generation, made his Denver debut at RootsFest. Pug has been on tour with the Bo Deans and is making his debut at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival later this month.

Gandalf Murphy performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Delivering music that can “heal what ails ya,” Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams took to the stage to create an enchanting atmosphere, using traditional folk instruments, tasty electric guitar, and the distinctive singing and songwriting of Joziah Longo. Their latest CD, The Great Unravel, was hailed by the UK’s Maverick Magazine as “mightily impressive and hugely original… ’tis truly an epic soundtrack.”

Tallest Man On Earth performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Selena Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Tallest Man On Earth performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Swedish singer/songwriter Tallest Man On Earth, aka Kristian Matsson, will also be made his Denver debut fresh off his tour with Bon Iver, one of the most talked-about of 2008. A mysterious figure, he has been drawing comparisons as “the next Dylan.” Pitchfork Media couldn’t resist declaring the cliché as well. In a recent review of his album, Shallow Grave, Amanda Petrusich writes “…(he) manages to embody Dylan’s effortlessness so well…infusing his songs with a detachment that, miraculously, is neither cold nor alienating. Like Dylan, Matsson is so natural a songwriter that these tracks feel predetermined, tumbling out of his mouth with an ease and grace that’s increasingly uncommon.”

Leo Kottke performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Innovative acoustic guitar virtuoso Leo Kottke‘s fingerpicking sounded amazing in the Opera House’s finely crafted sound qualities. Having survived a series of personal obstacles including partial hearing loss and tendon damage to his hand, Kottke has emerged to become one of the most masterful of modern guitar players. His performances are captivating, coupling his playing with monologues that range from strange to humorous. Unconventional in style and composition, he pushes boundaries and inspires with his art, which ranges from blues to jazz to folk and beyond.

Ricki Lee Jones performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Rickie Lee Jones broke into the music scene in 1979 with her self-titled debut that captured the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Instantly hailed by critics as a “highly touted new pop-jazz-singer-songwriter” and another critic as “one of the best–if not the best–artists of her generation.” Since that time she has garnered more Grammy nominations, winning another in 1989 for Best Jazz Vocal Performance for “Makin’ Whoopee!” Other accolades include being ranked #30 on VH1′s 100 Greatest Women of Rock N Roll list and receiving Italy’s prestigious Tenco Prize in 2001, honoring her musical career. A profoundly original trailblazing artist, Jones has connections with fellow headliner, Leo Kottke. She collaborated with him on her 1993 release, Traffic from Paradise, and produced his Peculiaroso (1994).

Hot Rize performing at Roots Fest 2009 / Photo by Allen Klosowski at K2PhotoStudio.com

Hot Rize‘s high-energy and unique sound is legendary and appealing to fans both young and old, featuring Grammy Award winners Tim O’Brien and Bryan Sutton, plus Pete “Dr. Banjo” Wernick and eTown’s Nick Forster. This event also marks Hot Rize’s 30th year in the bluegrass history book. The celebration is especially serendipitous as the original members of the band got their start by being part of the Swallow Hill community. Swallow Hill’s recording studio, Sawtelle Studio, is named in honor of original Hot Rize member, Charles Sawtelle, who passed in 1999.

It was an incredible evening, one I was glad to be a part of!

For those photography buffs out there, I did want to share a few pictures, and discuss action photography in low light of mixed sources.

Jeff Jimmo demostrates controlling your opponent for the Krav Maga class.

In a shot like that above, there is a mixed lighting source of flourescent and daylight coming in through the venue doors.  Additionally, flash photography is a big no-no in a teaching environment, because it has a tendency to completely distract the class.  So you need to be able to catch quick action, but at the same time be able to be discreet.

In all these images, lighting temperature was an issue.  While I set the camera up for fluorescent lighting, even those have varying temperatures.  I shot all the files in RAW and tried to balance them with my eyes in photoshop to overcome.  While the pictures aren’t 100% consistent, they are plenty good for their respective application.

For all the shots on this assignment, I used a Canon Mk III 1D with a 24-70 EF 2.8 L lens.  I also had a Sigma F1.4 50mm on hand, but didn’t use it because the Depth of Focus is too short in action photography to capture much of anything.

Krav Maga knife defense drills.

In the shot above, two students are moving very quickly to grapple with each other to avoid a shock from the much feared “shock knife” which can deliver 7,500 volts to your neck.  Not pleasant.  The trick here is to stop action, and stay out of the way of the students.

For both of the shots above, I used the same setup, and shot mainly a F2.8.  The trick is that I used ISO 3200 for all the shots.  Some would say that this is an unusable ISO, but for indoor action, it works quite well.  I find that with the Canon Mk III 1D, shooting at ISO 3200 is not a problem, as long as exposed – or even over exposed.  The noise is not distracting in most normal sized prints, and it much preferred to motion blur or underexposed shots at ISO 1600 pushed to far beyond their limits.  However, if you severly underexpose ISO 3200, there is no way to recover a decent photo, even when using RAW.

Even at ISO 3200, I was able to slightly underexpose all of these image to help keep shutter speeds high, and then push the images 1/2-1 stop in Adobe Camera Raw before bringing them into Photoshop.

The drama is in the struggle in Krav Maga.

To convey the life and death struggles that Krav Maga training can put you in, I often focused on the strained facial expressions of the participants involved.  When shooting in a crowded gym with over 200 people drilling, wide angles can be distracting.

Shock Knife defense is no joke.

That glowing blade is the spark coming off the taser-like portion of the training implement.  Had I used a flash and overridden the ambient lighting, the blue/purple spark would have completely disappeared from the image.

Sometimes a bit of motion blurring is acceptable and shows action in the frame.

John Whitman demonstrates gun defense from behind at a distance.

This show could be better without motion blur, but it does show the quickness at which John Whitman can take away your gun and then beat you to a bloody pulp.

Remember your audience when shooting.

Even though you may want to focus on the drama of the situation, and the action, remember what your images will be used for by the organizers and teachers.  Use a variety of angles and positions to showcase those involved in organizing and teaching at an event like this.  They will appreciate being able to show others what they do.  It will also help the training schools demonstrate the level of interest in both their martial art, and the instructors teaching it.  Not every shot has to be an action shot.

So in summation, photography is almost always a trade off.  Motion blur or noise was the compromise I was forced into for this event.  Learning your gear will help you mitigate any negative consequences of the trade-off and keep you prepared for the challenging situations as they arrive.

Hope this post helps you in your low light adventures, whether it be martial arts, basketball, or even youth hockey.

The Feb. 2009 cover of the Colorado Music Buzz was shot by Selena and Allen Klosowski.

Colorado Music Buzz is high on the Pipe.

Despite the un-Funk of Disco and the whitewash of its derivatives, you can’t deny the pure Funk, and it’s oozing all over the place with the help of one of Denver’s brightest and most promising Funk-flavored outfits, U.S. Pipe.

Read the whole article here.

The show was shot with a mixture of the Canon MkIII 1D, a Canon 5D, Canon 16-35 2.8 L, Sigma 50mm 1.4, and Canon 70-200 2.8 L IS lenses and bodies using ISO 1600-3200 as appropriate.

We want to thank US Pipe and Colorado Music Buzz for having us out to the show.  It was a great time and we can’t wait for the next one.

Oh, and pics of George Clinton and the PFunk will be coming soon!

Mark Perez (@faceofbass) doing what he does best.

Ransom's metal fury brought the house down!

Even Metal has to have the groove.

Playing metal guitar is a contact sport. (Shutter speed slowed for effect)

Metal drummer's always have the best kits.

Shredding is an artform.

These images really show what can be done in low light with a Canon Mk III 1D and a Sigma 50mm 1.4 lens on ISO 3200.

We’re going to be writing a full review of the show on the Colorado Music Board soon, so I’ll let everybody know when that’s ready.

Thanks to Ransom and Mark for having me us out to the show!