Nikon Photographer

Where have I been?

May 06, 2024 in Concert Photography

Soooo…… Kevin, where have you been?

Honestly, I’ve been in the same place, sort of. This blog took a nose dive because when I looked at the analytics Squarespace provides me, I noticed that no one was reading it; actually, no one was even visiting my website. Part of that is because I left it in limbo. I never updated it, I stopped writing blogs, I actually almost deleted it all together because it just seemed like I was paying for something I wasn’t using and no one was visiting. I realized I had not quite set it up right and I didn’t have any links to it via Google like I should have so it wasn’t receiving traffic like it should.

Kevin… Is your website receiving traffic now?, are people reading your blog?

* Shrug * I seriously couldn’t tell you. What I've learned being a photographer in these crazy social media times is… it doesn’t matter. Everyone is a “Photographer” everyone has a website and competing for “likes” and followers is draining and over time it will beat you down so damn much you may even want to completely walk away from photography because you feel like a failure. That was me! I watched people start photography years after me, get way more successful, end up with thousands of followers of socials and end up with a ton of opportunities that I wished I had and that made me feel like I was a failure and I should just give up. I stepped away from doing photos for people for a bit, but I kept shooting, just things for myself and slowly my love for it all came back. Here’s where we are today.

For those of you, if there are any of you, who have followed along the entire time, Might have noticed that my photography kind of changed. A lot of the conventional portraits disappeared, The Family Portraits disappeared, all the model work went away…. this is because I took a 5 year long dive into the music industry. Photographing live music is where I started in photography years ago at The Embassy Hotel in London Ontario, Canada. In those days you could just walk into a show with a camera and no one would care at all.. no applying for shows, now getting escorted around, very different from today.
So 5 years of my life dedicated to doing live music photography and band portraits, photographing Single Release Images for bands and website work, Promo work and it was incredible. Guess what happened next? after 5 years of busting my a** off, staying out till 11pm then driving home, going to bed and getting up at 5am for work…. the world broke down because of a virus that was played up 1000x worse than it was… maybe you remember that? you know.. the reason why the world is completely destroyed now and almost impossible to afford.. yeah… After that happened, it seemed like the music industry took a step back, re-evaluated the need for 10 or more photographers to be at shows and made some changes. Can’t say for sure that’s what happened, but I was getting into a lot of shows before, and now it’s very challenging to get in, almost like starting over from the beginning again, like those 5 years had zero merit. Recently, I decided that battling it out to try and get into concerts which I wouldn’t be paid to photograph was not a smart business plan and I have stepped back. Focus shifted from Live concert work into working more one on one with musicians to create their website imagery, Press Kits, Single Release work etc… This is where we are at…

Kevin… Are you still photographing other things though like engagements, Families, Couples etc…. ?

Oh hell yes! of course! I know you haven’t seen those kinds of images on socials because I wasn’t focusing on those, but I also wasn’t getting any requests for those bookings. So to clarify, YES! please reach out through my Contact Form here on the site and get booking.

So i’m going to leave you with some of the work I have been doing over the last 5 years with musicians .. most of these are Country Bands because honestly.. the rock bands don’t seem to want to be photographed or make it very challenging to be able to photograph them and Country, they love it! such a wicked family, they understand how important a photography is tied in with their music. I make a face for their music and I try really hard to match the image with the mood of the song and the title or the story behind the songs… that’s what gets me excited.

I'M BACK!!!!

April 27, 2024 in Concert Photography

If you don’t want to read everything below, that’s ok, images are at the end of the post.

Here we go! The blog is back…. Honestly, I really missed writing these blogs, even though my website really doesn’t get any traffic and no one really reads this stuff.

What to Expect:

Well…. not quite sure.. I’m sure you’re going to see a lot more Music stuff because that has been a huge focus for me over the past 5 years, but I will say, the music world has changed, from my perspective at least, since the world shut down. Rumour had it that Live Nation could possible be axing freelance photographers or at least limiting their access to shows… after the stupid C19 scandal, I have not been able to land one concert through them, when before, I was getting approved for almost every show I applied to.. maybe it was all just a coincidence, who knows. I have also noticed that Venues I was constantly getting approved for also fell off and stopped responding to email.. such is life.. C19 changed the world in a way I never thought would be possible, but here we are.

I am very thankful, however, for wicked venues and festivals that are holding true and still granting access to those who love live music and who work their asses off to capture the live acts the best they can and provide quality work.. festivals like ROCK THE PARK in London, Ontario. Rock The Park has been a staple in my life, not just as a photographer, it actually took me 6 years of hard work and writing emails year after year to gain access, and it finally happened 6 years ago, but it also was/is a staple for me as a fan of live music.. I’ve been going to RTP for as long as I can remember. Harris Park is where Rock The Park is held, it’s a lovely little park on the outskirts of downtown London tucked away beside the Thames River and amongst some trees and tall apartment buildings. This festival has been working their asses off to bring in HUGE and amazing bands for years. If you go check out their website www.rockthepark.ca you can see the incredible bands they have brought through year after year.. big acts like: Ice Cube, Mumford & Sons, The Glorious Sons, Ludacris, JaRule, The Tragically Hip, Journey, Our Lady Peace, Alice Cooper, and many many more… This years line up is wild as well: Nickelback, The Glorious Sons, Tea Party, Tyler Childers, NAS, Lil Jon, Neil Young with Crazy Horse and more! I am very thankful to be accepted to Photograph this event, not as an official photographer but as my own outlet and lover of live music.

This post will be to focus on Last years ROCK THE PARK. Let me tell you, it was a wild time, it always is! let me first start out by saying, the people who put RTP together work so hard.. its months of gruelling work to get these bands in, working schedules and budgets, getting a huge amount of volunteers together to make it all come together.

2023 Line up was pretty stacked:

Ludacris, Ja Rule, Cypress Hill, Papa Roach, Mumford & Sons, Vance Joy, Volbeat, Halestrom, Chingy, Billy Talent, Alexisonfire, Silverstein, The Trews, The Dirt Nil, T.I., Bahamas, Default, Ashanti, MYA. I have to let you know.. I did NOT get to attend all of it which made me so upset because the night I really want, the bands I grew up going to see and listening to, the main night my heart lived for I had to miss due to car trouble…. it killed me, and that night was Billy Talent, Alexisonfire, Silverstein, The Dirt Nil. I spent months pumped to have them on the bill and get to photograph them after all these years and I missed out.
None the less, the nights I did get to photograph some of it and it was a blast as always. There’s something about being out in that hot July sun sweating to death, legs shaking from the long days and all the squats you end up doing trying to stay out of fans line of sight and get good angles that just makes life feel so damn good. Those moments I’m in “The Pit” as well call it ( That area between the fans and the stage where security is ) is when I feel like a really full time photographer, just working hard to get those shots and make the bands look great on stage, capturing the emotion, the movement, waiting for the right moment to get that shot that makes you smile when you know you’ve captured it…. accomplished, amazed, and living in the moment.. that’s what it’s all about.

BAHAMAS

MUMFORD & SONS

THE TREWS

VANCE JOY

West Coast 2020

September 07, 2020

5000 kms total in 5 days, 1000kms a day from Edson Alberta to Tofino British Columbia traveling through Jasper National Park and Banff National Park.

Let me tell you, the time flew by as it always does when you’re on the road with great friends and cameras. We covered a HUGE distance, saw a lot, but also missed a lot with travelling that far.. either way it was still and incredible trip. My first 4 days of vacation were spent just relaxing at Jmac’s home outside of Edson Alberta as he had to work those 4 days. We spent a few nights after he got home from work driving over to Hinton and photographing some of the RAM’s up on the hillsides and touring around through some of the mining towns down through Robb Alberta. Our buddy Dietz came from Edmonton to meet up with us at Jmac’s on the friday so we could go hit Jasper on the Saturday.
Jasper is one of my fave places.. something about all those mountains and the way the water makes little rivers all through the trees at the base of the mountains.. how clear the water is, how fresh the air smells… how free you actually feel as you drive on through such a beautiful place. We saw a momma brown bear with two cubs down by the highway feeding off all the barrie bushes but thanks to some very stupid tourists yelling at them trying to get some pics.. they took back off up the hill into the woods so we missed the shots. Oddly enough this whole trip was super weak for animals.. the Eagles had taken off North to drop off their young so we only saw 3 the entire trip, we saw a few Elk crossing the road… no other bears, some deer.. that was about it… at the end of the trip we saw more in Jmacs backyard than the entire trip.. Two Moose, Some black bears, 3 Grey Owls.

Sunday was the start of the big trip, we fired back through Jasper and worked our way across Alberta and into British Columbia, making our way to Vancouver Island. We crossed on the ferry landing in Nanaimo where we stopped in to FOUR CROWS BARBER SHOP, a friend of Dietz owns it and Jmac use to go there to get his beard trimmed up when he lived on the island. Four Crows is wicked.. amazing barbers, great vibe and the owner Mike is a great dude… got to know him over some beers.. did a little video for them and shot some images around the shop while Dietz was getting a cut and shave. We spent the night in Nanaimo and made our way onward all the way out to Tofino. I still love Tofino, but I have to admit… this time out will probably be my last.. It’s sad to see how Touristy it has become.. they are turning it into a place like Muskoka here in Ontario.. use to be quiet and relaxing and so beautiful.. but this time when we were there it was packed.. 2 hour waits to get into restaurants and the brewery .. more condo’s have gone up, people all over.. it was so bad we were there for maybe 45 mins and got back in the car and left… we spent a few nights on the island and I have to say this trip… my fave spot was probably Nanaimo.. not for photos or anything but just the place that made me feel like I could move there and it feel like home. We ate at this place… can’t remember the name but you eat outside right by the harbour, otters were swimming up as we ate delicious food. In the morning we ate at this little all day breakfast spot that was kind of simple and hipster but the food.. my god the food was great and I had freshly squeezed Orange Juice and it was one of the most glorious things I’ve ever had.

On our way back we went through Banff National Park and that was a major goal for this trip.. not that I haven’t been through Banff before but I had never been to Moraine Lake and it was a bucket list item for me on this trip. First day we stopped it was around 7pm I think, we drove right in .. it wasn’t that busy but the water was choppy.. if you look up Moraine Lake you’ll see a million shots of the lake still and the reflection on the mountains in the water and that’s the shot everyone wants when they go there… after all it’s the most photographed lake in Canada. My goal was just to photograph it in a way I’ve never see it photographed.. so while I was bummed out the water was so choppy and no reflection could be achieved … that was ok.. I just needed to look and find a different way to photograph it and make it look as beautiful as it is. I believe I succeeded twice! first I went right down to the waters edge from the look out point but when I took the shot from that close to the water the extreme blue colour of the lake disappeared.. the shot still looked cool but I had to get that notorious blue colour in a shot. So I climbed back up and saw all these little weeds growing off the path down by these rocks so I decided to crouch down and put those in the foreground and kind of make this shot look tropical and it worked!

Overall this trip was a big success and as always I did not want to leave and even got to a point I was looking for jobs while I was there. I’d love to move out there, I have the opportunity, a place to stay and everything… I’d be better off than most people who move there.. however, my mom and dad are here in Ontario.. they’re getting older and I’ve built up a name in photography here over the years.. so who knows what my future holds. Anyways.. images below like always.. if you see a thumbnail you like, click on it to make it bigger! hope you enjoy them.

~ Kevin.

BRANTLEY GILBERT - FIRE'T UP TOUR

January 25, 2020

FIRE’T UP TOUR KICKS OFF IN LONDON ONTARIO, CANADA!

Brantley Gilbert’s FIRE’T UP TOUR broke loose in London to kick off the tour along with Brandon Lay & Dylan Scott and it was incredible!
Brantley comes out, down the stairs being lit up by a single spotlight then BOOM! flames shoot straight up across the back of the stage lighting up the entire stage in a nice warm orange glow, we could feel the heat down in the pit. With his raspy yet soulful voice, Brantley belted out, running back and fourth across the stage putting on one hell of a good show. So much pyro in the first 3 songs, not sure how the rest of the set went as we only shoot the first 3 songs then we’re out, but to have pyro and good lighting in the first 3 songs is pretty rare, at least in my experience. This was my first time taking in a Brantley Gilbert show and wow… he definitely did not disappoint one bit. If you love Brantley’s voice like I do, then you need to make sure you’re at a show on this tour because he sounds dead on live, I was blown away.

Brandon Lay, I’ll be honest here I didn’t know who Brandon Lay was, but that’s what I love about shooting shows. Sometimes you don’t know the openers, and sometimes those openers become music you add to your play list because you loved what you heard, and this was one of those times. Brandon was great and a good mix for the show. Now I said I didn’t know him, which the name I didn’t.. but once he started his set I realized I know some of his songs, mainly Speakers, Bleachers and Preachers … love that song.. just didn’t realize he did it. Brandon was awesome live, would definitely go see him again.

Dylan Scott, man oh man this guy looked so comfortable on stage, big smiles and you could just tell he was very appreciative of where he is in life and what he gets to do for a living. Of course in the first 3 songs he shot out his hit song HOOKED, which is such a fun, energetic song and the crowd was definitely feeling it, the screams when he finished the song were ear piercing, the crowd just loving him. Dylan Definitely got the crowd fired up for Brantley.

All in All this Tour is incredible and keeps your attention, makes your ears smile ( If they had mouths) and if you’re THINKING about going to a stop on this tour… stop… don’t think.. just go buy your ticket and get ready for a great night out.. no one on this tour disappoints.

BIG THANK YOU goes out to Budweiser Gardens & Live Nation for the opportunity to photograph the first stop on this tour, without them I would never have these opportunities and it means a lot, I am very grateful for the approvals and allowing me to do what I love.

BRANTLEY GILBERT

BRANDON LAY

DYLAN SCOTT

KELSI MAYNE - AS I GO VIDEO SHOOT

January 18, 2020

Some of you may know over the past 2 years I have been working with country music artist KELSI MAYNE. We met in my home town of Woodstock Ontario where Kelsi and her band were performing at the annual Woodstock Truck Show. Kelsi approached me as I was handing out business cards to other artists so they could see the shots I had taken that day. After sending the images off to Kelsi when she emailed me, she loved the shots and the rest was history.
A text message came through, it was Kelsi “ Hey Kev! how are ya… we are filming a new music video, for a new song in Aylmer Ontario, you should come out and shoot some behind the scene’s work for the video it’s going to be amazing, lots of explosions, fire, dirtbikes doing tricks and jacked up trucks ! “ … ok A. That sounds incredible.. that in itself I can’t miss seeing and B. being on set of a music video with Kelsi and the band having fun and creating… hell yes I’m going!

Call time was for 8am, on the outskirts of Aylmer, it was a bit chilly but really not that bad for winter, and as always, I was the first one there because I’m always worried about being late. Soon after everyone else started showing up…… oh and I forgot to mention, I was upgraded to one of the camera men filming the video, Kelsi’s brother, Cory was directing and filming as he is in the film industry. Here’s the kicker.. I don’t know much of anything when it comes to video, so of course I was a little panicked but hey… this is a HUGE learning opportunity, so I googled as much as I could about video and set my cameras up according, learnt some of the lingo and was ready to go!

“ AS I GO “ Is the name of Kelsi’s new song/video and let me tell you… incredible song and this video is going to be equally incredible. Fire, explosions, shotguns, Jacked up Trucks, Dirt Bikes, ATV’s, Fireworks and of course the band.. there is so much action in this video, it is going to be so stimulating to watch. Not only is the band ( Kelsi, Cory, Ciaran, Ryan and Annette ) so down to earth and amazing individuals, but everyone on set involved with this production were too. Cory, Kelsi’s brother, great guy with a clear vision of where this video was going, a hard worker definitely putting the time in. Eric, the guy who provided the location for the shoot, the daredevil driver, fire starter, wild man… such a nice dude who pretty much acted as the producer for this, getting everyone together, throwing some pretty cool ideas for the video. Kelsi’s Mom and Dad, who came out nice and early to lend a hand and show support, they are phenomenal parents and people, so kind, brought out all kinds of food so everyone on set had something to eat, brought all kinds of gear we needed to make this happen… loved them. Last but definitely not least…. all of Eric’s friends that came out with their trucks, dirt bikes and ATV’s who also starred in the video as the riders, stunt drivers and extra’s around the fire… these people had never met us before and were so welcoming and kind, couldn’t have asked for better people to work with.

All in all, this was a long day, 13hrs or so… and definitely worth every minute! The band was dead on with their performance, they looked incredible and this video is going to be insane! Keep an EAR out as Kelsi’s new song “ AS I GO “ Will be released Jan 31st, I believe and also Keep an eye out because this video is scheduled to be released Feb 21st! You definitely will NOT want to miss these!

HUGE thank you goes out to Kelsi and the band for including me, yet again, in another one of their endeavours and always staying true to bringing me out, can’t wait for more this summer. Also a HUGE thank you to Cory (Kelsi’s brother) for working with me and teaching me some new techniques, it was a pleasure. One last HUGE thank you to everyone else involved for being kind and opening up themselves, their “toys” and their time…. it was a lot of fun and such an amazing experience… hope to see you at some shows this summer.

Cheer
Kevin Vyse | Photographer

Here’s some Behind The Scene’s images I managed to snap in between Filming:

KELSI MAYNE - “ AS I GO “ Video Shoot - Aylmer Ontario. 📸: Kevin Vyse — KELSI MAYNE - “ AS I GO “
Video Shoot - Aylmer Ontario.
📸: Kevin Vyse

Big Wreck & Texas King - But For The Sun Tour 2019

November 24, 2019

Big Wreck was a staple for me in the 90’s and later when Big Wreck Front-man, Ian Thornley started his Solo project “ Thornley “ that was also a love of mine. When it was announced that Big Wreck was coming to London Music Hall I instantly applied to shoot it. Getting the opportunity to be that close, and in a smaller venue with Big Wreck was an incredible experience and I couldn’t be more thankful for the opportunity.
Ian and the guys came out strong, their heavy Drop D or C or A .. which ever it is, style with Ian’s soul quenching voice is so melodic and almost hypnotizing, there were a few moments I got caught up in the music and how dead on they sounded, I forgot we only got 3 songs and needed to shoot as much as possible. Ian had a bit of technical malfunction due to what looked like a faulty patch chord, but like the pro he is, he didn’t skip a note or lyric while his guitar tech quickly swapped out the chords and got Ian’s guitar screaming again. A few laughs from the band, a quick “ we got it figured out” from Ian and BAM, right into the next song, very professional. All in All, this show was phenomenal, the sound was bang on, lighting was a bit dark but hey… it looks good to the eye, and tough for photographers, but the show isn’t just for us.. it’s our job to take the light we have and make magic, which is the fun and challenge of it all.

Texas King came out with such energy and passion which, if you’ve seen these guys you know, is their thang! Being from London Ontario and after being out on the road for this tour, they came home to open arms, a sold out show and some big energy. Opening for Big Wreck on this tour is a huge accomplishment, which I’m sure is going to give them even more “street cred” than they already have, these guys are making a big name for themselves and it’s well deserved. Texas King has it.. they have the stage presence, a great sound and some incredible talent. If you haven’t seen/heard Texas King, look them up asap.. I’ve seen these guys a bunch of times now and every time I’m smiling ear to ear because they are just… gold!

TEXAS KING

BIG WRECK

Angry Erie

October 28, 2019

Every year, Mid October to Mid or late November, Lake Erie gets angry.

With the weather changing, the wind blowing it creates some pretty crazy waves on the lake which can make for some impressive shots as long as you watch the wave reports and know when to make an appearance. With October being pretty mild so far I’m hoping that we might get a little more time to photograph waves this year. Typically I wait for stormy days and won’t go if the wave report states that the wind is anything less than 25 knots, from past experience anything other than that the waves aren’t big enough. Key thing here.. dress warm.. yesterday it was 13ºC .. not to bad right? .. WRONG! when by a lake on a windy day and no shelter.. it is cold! Full out winter jacket with Thermal lining, waterproof.. waterproof gloves, wind proof and waterproof pants, toque, gortex waterproof boots.. all very needed while out there.

9am I woke up and checked the wave report which read Gale Force Wind Warning and immediately knew it was game on, first wave shoot of the season! grabbed the camera, put the 200-500mm lens on and hit the road. Roughly an hour later I was at the lake and could see the waves from the parking lot, they were impressive. Long story short, I was able to shoot for roughly 2 hours before the wind changed and the waves died down, which is why the wave report is important.. things can change quickly and with an hour drive it could be a huge waste of time. This day was a bit different then when I’ve shot in the past, by that I mean the wind was coming in bursts which kind of made the lake act like a washing machine… the waves were all over the place and kind of “Messy”. Most times there’s a nice roll or peak to the waves but yesterday they were few and far between.. it was mainly a lot of angry smashing and big crashes with lots of spray that hid the waves but I still managed to get a few.

ERIE’S WATER WITCH I see a witch with a cloak around her rising up out of the water as she looks to the East. © Kevin Vyse Photography 2019 — ERIE’S WATER WITCH

I see a witch with a cloak around her rising up out of the water as she looks to the East.

© Kevin Vyse Photography 2019

One other thing I want to note, just incase people live near here and want to go down and experience the waves. The pier is a dangerous place to be this time of year… I see a lot of people walking out there while the waves are doing their thing and as cool as it looks.. these waves are extremely unpredictable. While I was there shooting, pretty far back on the beach.. a few times while looking through the camera I didn’t notice the water, out of no where rushed up and got me.. nothing crazy but enough it went over the top of my boots and gave me a cold soaker. I saw a few people running out on to the pier to get closer and they quickly learnt how fast things can change. Here’s a shot just before a few got a nice little taste of what mother nature can do …

Family First

October 28, 2019

When fall arrives, the families show up for shoots!

While I’m not really doing the whole family portrait thing much anymore, I did take on a few. Scott & Lynn booked me back in the winter months for a family session as a gift for their family but didn’t want to do the shoot until summer. Due to work and weather, this summer shoot quickly turned into a fall shoot.. where does the time go?

Roth park is a go to for me, well in Woodstock, It’s a go to for every photographer here as it offers a lot.. lake and beautiful woodsy trails, a bit of a beach at the right time of year. We knew what we were looking for on this shoot and the woods were perfect for it. It was starting to get chilly out so I didn’t want to keep everyone out to long, 40 mins was the goal, which was achieved.

ParkJam Festival

September 15, 2019

7 days of glorious music! ParkJam Festival is a new festival that started this year in London Ontario. Pretty much ParkJam was born by mixing two other events together… those two events were Trackside (an all country based festival that happened annually in London at the Western Fair Grounds, and another event called Block Party. This was the first year for Parkjam and it seemed to have gone very well. This festival is a multi-genre festival, 7 nights long with genre’s such as: EDM, Rock, Alternative, Hip Hop, Punk and Country. the break down was like this:

Rock Night - Main Stage:
The Glorious Sons, Cold War Kids, Texas King, The Beaches

Side Stage: The Honest Heart Collective, Kasador, Goodnight Sunrise

Country Night - Main Stage:
Brett Kissel, Meghan Patrick, Aaron Goodvin, JoJo Mason

Side Stage: Genevieve Fisher, Melissa Megan, Patrick James Clark

Pop Night - Main Stage:
98º, O-Town, Aaron Carter, Wannabe

Side Stage: Saveria, Trading Alaska, Chad Price

Alternative Night - Main Stage:
The Offspring, MXPX, Reel Big Fish, Seaway

Side Stage: The Anti-Queens, Snacks?, The Filthy Radicals

Hip-Hop Night - Main Stage:
Ice Cube, Method Man & Redman, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Maestro Fresh Wes, Haviah Mighty

Side stage: Sum-01, Ngajuana, Lola

EDM Night: Deadmau5, Diplo, AC Slater, Feed Me, Ookay, Atilas, Frank Walker, No Mana, Eddie, No Fone

EDM night is 2 nights Long with Diplo headlining one night and Deadmau5 headlining the other.

Tonight is my last night shooting can’t wait to get some shots of Deadmau5. So far this festival has been incredible, so many bands, so many different types of people and music there was something for everyone which has made it so awesome to attend. The line ups moved fast, gates opened on time, everything was well organized .. even bathroom waits were very minimal. Really hoping this festival will continue on annually and continue to grow, but as I said.. being the first year, the turn outs were pretty good and I can only see it getting better and bigger year to year. Parkjam has a strong backing and well rounded individuals on the team to make sure amazing bands are brought in to make this festival solid.. can’t wait to see what next year brings and hopefully Stage Pass Media will have access to shoot again!

HUGE thank you goes out to everyone at London Music Hall and Parkjam for allowing Stage Pass Media access to capture all the amazing talent.. thank you to Demetri and Mario for the hook up, thank you to all the security staff for making everyone feel safe, all the volunteers for coming out night after night, without all their help this thing couldn’t happen.. and of course.. thank you to all the bands that came out to show everyone what they do!!! feeling incredibly thankful for the opportunity. See you all next year!

The Glorious Sons

Cold War Kids

The Beaches

Brett Kissel

Meghan Patrick

Aaron Goodvin

JoJo Mason

Reel Big Fish

Seaways

Seaway Park Jam Festival @kevinv1981 - Stage Pass Media — Seaway
Park Jam Festival
@kevinv1981 - Stage Pass Media

MXPX

This is where I would put in The Offspring, but due to legalities and contracts that were required to photograph them, I am no able to post the images here as it is my personal site, Stage Pass Media does not have it’s own site quite yet.. Soooooo.. if you’d like to see the Offspring images, you will have to check them out on the Stage Pass Media Instagram account. @stagepass_media.

Redman & Method Man

Ice Cube

DEADMAU5

Festival Of Friends

August 07, 2019

Last weekend was the Festival Of Friends, a FREE festival that has been happening annually since 1976 in Hamilton Ontario. My decision to go was last minute as I wasn’t sure if I’d have the weekend off work and the drive to Hamilton, but I was approved and received my Media Accreditation the day of the festival and with nothing to do the day of, I said Sure, off to Hamilton!
It was my first time every going to this festival and I have to say… for a FREE festival it is MASSIVE.. heck.. it was massive regardless of having to pay or not. To have a stage set up that big, with that kind of lighting, full out carnival games and rides.. all the vendors and food trucks for FREE… just insane! Not only was all that great but a lot of great bands through out the day as well.

Later in the night I remember looking back from the stage and seeing people slowly start to set up chairs and blankets casually watching the bands but then around 7pm, I looked back again and there was a massive crowd. Looking back once more as the stage crew was setting up for The Spoons … my jaw dropped.. the amount of people that had gathered was one of the biggest crowds I’ve seen.. it was a sea of people as far as I could see… and if that wasn’t packed enough.. there were even more people once Loverboy hit the stage.. it took me 15 mins to travel through the sea of people to get to the other side of the park to get back to my car.

My focus of shooting was on the 4 bands leading up to Loverboy:

GOODNIGHT, SUNRISE

This band was incredible.. so much energy on stage! I mean.. there was a Keytar!! 2019 and there was a Keytar!! I was blown away. Their sound has this hint of 80’s but also a nice new, fresh upbeat alternative rock vibe that I fell in love with.

FIRE TIGER

All the way from Los Angeles California, this retro power pop band came out in full force to put on a great set! Fire Tiger has really nailed that 80’s sound in today’s day and age and it’s fantastic. Their hit song ‘Energy’ is so catchy and full sounding.. reminds me of being a kid in the 80’s sitting down watching the Goonies after our riding around on my skateboard after a full morning of playing Nintendo.. it’s so good!

THE SPOONS

After photographing The Spoons last year in my home town of Woodstock Ontario at Cowapolooza, I was pretty pumped to get to photograph them again this year. This band is so tight on stage and sound amazing every time. Throwing in all the old hits then mixing it up with some new tunes, it was the perfect old and new blend and it was well received by the crowd.

LOVERBOY

Who doesn’t know this Canadian staple? come on … we all know them because we are all just ‘Working for the weekend’ … we’re ‘Notorious’ for it. Once they hit the stage the crowd was “Lovin’ Every minute’ of it. After all these years, the guys still sound amazing.. couldn’t believe how good it was and enjoyed every single song.

Country Music: Aaron Allen

August 07, 2019

As you may have seen, most of my photography ventures this year, well.. over the past year, I’ve been returning to my photography roots. My passion for photography started back in high school and quickly became a big part of my life shortly after high school when I started photographing concerts. I’ve always been drawn to music, especially live music and for years it was all about that Punk Rock which then led to EMO and now I’m all about that Country. I love all kinds of music but there’s something about Country.. specifically country rock, I love it. Country music fans are some of the nicest people I’ve met, and I have made many new friends just from going to concerts.
So over the past year I’ve been slowly getting back into the concert photography, it’s a very tough world from what it use to be. I remember you could walk into any show with your camera and start taking pictures, the only worry was having a mosh pit fire up and you get tossed around holding onto the camera you had to save up to buy with a part time job. Now, you have to spend days writing emails … emails to bands, managers, promotors, labels, venues… anything to try and get Approved for media accreditation. It’s a grind, and I get it, everyone has a camera, everyone wants to be a photographer, everyone wants to be the ones up close to the bands in “the photo pit” so the market is flooded, but it’s flooded in every market. Let me tell you though, you put in the work, you send those emails, you make those connections and things start to flow.

Aaron Allen is a musician who has been in the industry for 20 years. After 20 years of the grind, he is finally making some big waves in Country Music. His first big single ‘ Where Music Comes from ‘ was received well and played on country radio (Country 104 - London On & Woodstock On.) Spotify picked it up as well as AppleMusic. Aaron was part of Juno FanFest in London, as the Juno’s were in London Ontario, and that’s where I first got to photograph him. It was a very late night performance.. I could be wrong but I think it was lie 1am… at The Bull & Barrel downtown London. I was very tired after photographing bands all day, but I really wanted to stick it out and see Aaron’s set, it was my last shoot for the night before the 50 min drive home. Of course, Aaron put on a great show, the shoot was tough as the lighting was dim but I made it work. Next day I posted the images, tagged Aaron in them and he saw them and reached out to let me know he loved them. I’ll fast forward this story so I don’t write a book here but, months later Aaron was releasing a new song, that song was titled ‘GOOD TATTOO’. Along with a new song release artists need a new image to go with it so there’s something to see when people look for it on streaming sites such as Spotify & Apple Music, so Aaron remembered me and the shots from the Juno’s, he then decided to give me a shot. We sent some emails back and fourth, found a date that worked with both our schedules, met up here and Woodstock and spent a couple hours hitting a few locations around town, chatting about the music business and creating some album art. Next thing I know, the images we created were being used for lyric video’s, teaser images on social media leading up to the release of ‘GOOD TATTOO’ and the grand finale …. the face of ‘GOOD TATTOO’ … an image of Aaron on a sunny day standing with his guitar on a dirt road which is now published on Spotify & Apple Music!

Huge thanks goes out to Aaron for trusting me with his album artwork, it was a fantastic opportunity and I think it all worked out quite well. Now I will be photographing him in St.Thomas Ontario, Live at the IRON HORSE Festival this coming Saturday!

Check Out Aaron’s Socials for updates. Give “GOOD TATTOO” a listen on Spotify or Apple Music and don’t forget to call your local country music radio stations and request this new song from Aaron Allen!

- Cheers

GOOD TATTOO - Aaron AllenCover Photo: - Kevin Vyse - Kevin Vyse Photography - Stage Pass Media — GOOD TATTOO - Aaron Allen
Cover Photo:
- Kevin Vyse
- Kevin Vyse Photography
- Stage Pass Media

BACONFEST: Concert Series

July 16, 2019

Baconfest!! have you heard of it? In a small town named Lucan Ontario there is a fest with such a name.. not only is it a name but there is bacon! bacon everything. Now.. I don’t want misguide you anymore than I already have with the title of this blog post .. buuuuut by the time I rolled into Lucan for Baconfest, vendors had mostly packed up and the town was starting to open the street back up, so while I’d love to give you details on all the bacon goodies.. I sadly cannot other than I had a hotdog with back bacon on it and it was delicious.
A) I wanted to make you aware of the small town Lucan Ontario and B) I wanted you to know that they have an event called Baconfest that is all about bacon because bacon is delicious! Oh and I also need to mention this event is also about bikes.. Motorbikes.. yes.. this is a biker event but it’s also for families and teenagers and kids and anyone who enjoys bacon. Main street of Lucan gets shut down, vendors line the streets and so do the bikers with their bikes and let me tell you, there are a TON of people.. I read on their website they now get like 25,000 people or something like that and every year it’s growing, baconfest has only been around for 4 years so far.

So.. what is this post actually about? well if you read my posts, especially lately, you would have noticed a trend, and that trend has been MUSIC, BANDS, LIVE MUSIC, CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY.. so as you may have guessed… along with Baconfest there are bands! From what I’m told, baconfest in the past few years has had bands but they have all been cover bands or tribute bands and while that is fun and all.. sometimes they don’t bring in huge crowds.. this year however, baconfest stepped it up and brought in some class acts from the country genre! who played? well here we go:

THE RIVER JUNCTION BAND ( due to the lengthy drive to Lucan, I missed this band)
BUCK TWENTY
EAST ADELAIDE
ERIC ETHRIDGE

That right there is a pretty good line up for a small town.. it’s a pretty good line up period!

BUCK TWENTY

Buck Twenty was the second band on and these guys are phenomenal, catchy tunes, great stage presence, always smiling and interacting with one another, so full of energy and they are the nicest dudes too. With the sun setting and casting a nice golden light onto the stage, Buck Twenty comes out and takes a hold of the crowd. I have to say, a lot of people in this crowd knew B20 because I saw a bunch of people rocking their shirts. Buck Twenty does an amazing job at using the entire stage during their performance.. especially the sides where there are usually some sort of box they can stand up on and get up nice and high over the crowd and single themselves out which is awesome for photographs, which you will see in the set . These guys are doing very well and will continue to do so. I urge you to check out their music on social media, and check out their website.. if you see they are playing a show near you, go check them out.

EAST ADELAIDE

East Adelaide are an up and coming group based out of Toronto Ontario and they are fantastic, you definitely need to give them a listen if you haven’t heard them before.. their song “ You Don’t Get To Love Me “ is a fantastic one, very catchy and very powerful. Love seeing these guys perform, this was only my second time seeing them and photographing them, but i’m hooked. First time was in London Ontario at London Concert Theater on the “Winter’s a beach Tour “ with The Reklaws and I found them even better outdoors during the summer!

ERIC ETHRIDGE

This guy right here!! Eric Ethridge, wow.. has this guy ever come so far.. From Sarnia Ontario, got his start playing JACKS in London Ontario, to a record deal with Ole’s Red Dot Label then making the move to Nashville! If you’ve ever met Eric, he’s one of the nicest people, humble and always tries to take the time to meet his fans. Even though Eric has blown up and moved to Nashville, he still finds the time to get back to Ontario often and still plays “ the little shows” because that’s where his long time fans are. Been almost a year since I’ve seen Eric perform and I was pretty excited to see what has changed and all I can tell you is that it’s better and better every damn time. Eric’s confidence on stage makes for a great show, he seems so relaxed up there and you can tell he’s doing what he loves. As soon as he hit the stage the crowd went nuts, people were running for the stage, packing in so tight, smiles all around, especially on Eric’s face when he saw the response. From “ California “ to “ If You Met Me First” Eric covered all his hits with the crowd backing him Lyrically, it was a night to remember. Eric even took the time to hunt down a bridal party he saw earlier and brought the bride to be up on stage to sing to her. Not only did Eric bring someone up on stage, but Eric took it upon himself to get off the stage and submerge himself down into the crowd while singing which made everyones night. Now, with being the short guy I am.. I quickly lost Eric in the mass and couldn’t get any shots of this but I knew he was down there making fans happy!

Tillsonburg ON Turtle Fest

June 17, 2019

Turtle Fest…. figured there would be turtles but sadly… didn’t see one, however there were turtle themed things, lots of vendors, a vintage car show, rock climbing, busking, and much more but what was I there for? …. the bands of course!

Kelsi Mayne, Nice Horse and The Abrams took to the stage for this years Turtle Fest and everyone of these bands just killed it! As many of you know I’ve had the amazing opportunity to work one on one with the lovely Kelsi Mayne and have photographed her and her band many times in the last year live. Not only is Kelsi a sweet heart but her band are genuine people, funny, and appreciative of where they are and what they have accomplished so far. This show was another success, playing all the hits, getting the crowd going, they sounded great, looked good and even played a new tune that no one has heard before “ S.O.S “ .. now that this blog is a few days old.. others have heard it.. if you were at the Sound Of Music Festival in Burlington On. this past weekend and saw Kelsi perform, you now know that song too.

Nice Horse, damn! this all female, energetic, amazing stage presence band is incredible… this was only the 2nd time I’ve seen them & shot them, first time being at JunoFest during the Juno’s week in London at Bull & Barrel and both times i’m just blown away by their performance. Nice Horse have these amazing vocal harmonies that vibrate through your entire body making you really feel their songs. Running around on stage interacting with one another, leaning on one another, guitars and basses up in the air, their drummer, Krista comes up to the front and sings, she has a stomp pedal to make sure the heart beat of the band is always pumping.. even a single snare drum on a stand off to the right of the stage so she can stand there and beat the hell out of it….. their whole performance is an incredible one to watch.

The Abrams, a name I’ve heard many times but never experienced live until now and let me tell you.. I was floored. They carry so much energy with them, also amazing vocal harmonies.. songs that are happy, are sad.. slow and fast it’s a great mix. From the Abrams I saw a fiddler jumping all over, a singer and guitarist kneeling down, almost praising a fiddle solo, a guitarist busting out crazy solos while throwing a guitar around.. it was an awesome experience seeing these guys play with such a tight sound and so much energy.

Over all, Turtle Fest was a positive experience, I think the bands had a great time, I know I had a fantastic time and from the smiles on the faces of the crowd, the people down in front dancing and all the kids running around, dancing and laughing.. I think they all had a fun time too!

THE ABRAMS

NICE HORSE

KELSI MAYNE

RAM RODEO TOUR - BURFORD ONTARIO

June 10, 2019

Horses, Bulls, Dirt, Dust, Tractors, Barrels, Men, Women and a WHOLE LOT OF ACTION!!!

RAM RODEO is an amazing event that is action packed with a bunch of tough men and women who put themselves on the backs of horses and bulls which throw them around like rag dolls. Not only Branco Riding and Bull Riding, but they also have a Stunt Rider our of New York, and Flag Riding Team.. there’s a lot going on.

With events like Barrel Racing, Poles, Bucking Branco’s, and Bull Riding there’s something for everyone. Personally, Bull Riding is my favourite .. the aggressiveness of the bulls and the power makes it crazy to photograph but really.. all of it is fun to shoot. Yesterday was a good mix of sun and cloud, wasn’t to hot but the dust was relentless .. normally they water the riding area, but it was so dry every time they watered it the sun would dry it up in minutes, so instead of wasting the water we just went with the dust.. I was covered but it was so fun. Some of these riders were thrown down hard, stepped on by the bulls and branco’s, got up like it was nothing and will ride another day.. just blows my mind. If the Ram Rodeo Tour is coming your way, do yourself a favour and get a ticket.. take the kids.. they will love it!