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!
WOODSTOCK TRUCK SHOW 2019
Do you ever just ‘POP’ into a moment where you all of a sudden you realize how amazing that moment really is? How lucky you are to be there? really feel the opportunity? That’s what happened to me at the Woodstock Truck Show.
A few good friends at my side, some amazing bands, which one of them I consider the members all good friends, a hot day/warm night, cameras in my hands and a huge smile on my face. There was a point when Andrew Hyatt was on stage, he was performing one of my fav songs “Habit” and all of a sudden it was like a title wave of realization came up and slapped me in the face. All day I was out in this glorious weather (until the typhoon hit.. more on that in a minute), two people who I really get along with and enjoy being at concerts with (Lisa & Jodi), I was backstage most of the time with the bands.. some I knew, some I didn’t, some I’ve photographed before, some I haven’t but I was able to be back there and talk with them… it just all came together into this amazing experience that I’m so grateful for and in that moment I just stood there and smiled listening to this amazing song.. I remember leaning over to Lisa and saying “ Do you ever all of a sudden just realize how amazing a moment really is? “
So … if you read all that .. I bought up a Typhoon… here it is. Buck Twenty, one of the incredible bands that played, they actually opened the show and were awesome as I knew they would be.. first time I’ve seen them live.. they were playing an amazing set when all of a sudden the sky got really dark.. we all knew it was coming.. it had rained a lot in the morning and more was expected in the afternoon and it was rolling in quick. I can’t remember how many songs in they were but I remember smelling rain and felt a few drops so I went running for my car… camera gear doesn’t like rain much.. Just as I got to my car it just poured! the wind was so strong the Rockstar Energy tents blew over.. Country 104’s tent was wrecked, it bent.. my car was shaking.. Thunder and Lightening.. I didn’t see it but apparently Buck Twenty’s gear got wet so I’m really hoping it’s all ok.. I would hate to see anything get wrecked, those guys are so nice and gear is so expensive but someone said they packed up very quick. We weren’t sure if the show was going to continue or not but I mean.. it’s a Truck Show! with Country music .. a little rain and mud isn’t going to stop us! half hour or so went by and everything cleared up, sun came out and we were back in the game!
Of course this “truck show” isn’t just concerts… there’s Trucks!! a lot of people thought pick up trucks that were jacked up and all that but they were wrong! TRANSPORT TRUCKS! a few dump trucks as well. See the guys that put the truck show on, Scott and Kevin Verbruggen come from a long line of trucking! so of course including the trucks and a calendar competition just made sense. All proceeds from the truck show and calendar sales go to the Special Olympics Ontario so it’s all for an amazing cause and we have such a great time every year.
Performers this year were: Buck Twenty, Kelly Prescott, Danielle Bourjeaurd, Kelsi Mayne and headlining Andrew Hyatt
This was such an amazing line up, every year it gets better and better, the crowd is getting bigger and bigger, I am so thankful this event exists, especially for Woodstock, we don’t get a lot of this kind of thing here, we’re a small town and it’s so incredible to see bands like this coming here and putting us on the map! Huge thank you goes out to Scott and Kevin for putting this great event on and including me year after year.. HUGE thanks going out to all the bands that came out to help raise money for the Special Olympics Ontario and putting on such amazing performances it’s just outstanding!
AND NOW…. THE IMAGES!!!!!! Ps.. if you read all of that.. well done, you’re a champ!
BUCK TWENTY
KELLY PRESCOTT
DANIELLE BOURJEAURD
KELSI MAYNE
ANDREW HYATT
TRUCKS
Again… HUGE THANK YOU, goes out to all the bands, trucks, vendors and individuals that came out to perform and make this event what it is.. such a special day/night.
Left - Kevin Vebruggen (event founder/Coordinator) Middle - Andrew Hyatt (Singer/Songwriter) Right - Scott Vebruggen (Event Founder/Coordinator)
Globemaster C-177 London Ontario Airport - Publication
Word got out that a C-177 Globemaster out of Trenton Ontario would be flying into the London Ontario Airport YXU to pick up some very lucky Cadets who would be going up for a flight. Media had said that the Globemaster was scheduled to arrive at YXU for 9am, however, it was said that the Globemaster ran into a mechanical issue that needed to be addressed before they left Trenton Airforce Base. With only 4 hours of Sleep, I woke up at 7am and headed on out to London, I arrived around 8am.. thank goodness I had my coffee with me but should have brought some food with me too. After hearing about the Globemasters delay, it was now said it would be at the airport around 10:30am - 11am, more waiting and by now, the coffee was starting to work and I needed to relieve myself but there were so many people around.. thank god for fields and bushes lol. 11am rolled around, still no Globemaster, rumor had now spread that it was still on the tarmac in Trenton and wouldn’t be arriving until 12:30pm - 1pm.. at this time a lot of the people that were there waiting were getting in their cars and leaving.. me however.. I didn’t have plans and had already waited 5 hours, no point in leaving now. Around 1:45pm we heard that the Globemaster was in the air and on it’s way to YXU… my time line might be a little off but I remember it was somewhere around 3pm when we saw it on approach out of the east. Over this website I had on my phone where I could listen to the Control Tower I heard “ Bison5, you are clear to approach and land on runway ONE FIVE “ I quickly grabbed the camera and ran up onto this mound that was directly in line with the centre of runway 15 and it put me up high enough I was up over the fence and knew this was the best angle to get an amazing straight on shot.
As the Globemaster approached it looked like it was to high and to far into the runway to make a landing so we all thought it was going to do a touch-and-go, or a low pass then circle around to land which would have been so cool, unfortunately, it dropped like a rock and came in for a landing.. I was surprised, figured it would need a lot more of the runway to land than what it used. Knowing that they were there to pick up cadets for a flight, we knew that the C-177 would be doing a take off which would bring it right at us. When it landed it came in from the opposite end of the runway from us and was to far away to get a decent shot of the landing, so the take off was what I was waiting for. It took roughly 35 mins to load the first group of Cadets up, then we heard over the scanner that they were getting ready to taxi passed runway 09 and down to the back of runway 15. Back up on the dirt mound I was dead centre of runway 15 and could see the Globemaster start to roll.. I could hear the 4 massive engines power up and see all the dust blow around behind it on the runway creating a large dust cloud. It’s a bit intimidating seeing something that huge come right at you, then lift off of the ground and stay up in the air, then fly right over your head. I remember looking up at one point when the plane filled my frame and I couldn’t shoot anymore and all I saw was Grey .. no sky, just grey.. it was right over my head, the sound was so loud I could feel the rumble in my chest then a massive amount of air blowing back on me… just crazy.
After editing and posting on social media it was pointed out to me that the London Ontario International Airport (YXU) had shared my image on their site, their twitter, Instagram and facebook which is pretty awesome! It was definitely worth waiting around on Creamery Rd. for 7 hours to get the shot… now it’s the long wait until September for the London Air Show!
C-177 GLOBEMASTER - take off from YXU
© Kevin Vyse Photography
Image Publication on YXU website, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter
JUNO AWARDS 2019
Never in a million years would I have ever thought that photography would take me to the Juno’s… but first I want to say, it didn’t really take me to the Juno awards themselves.. but very close and I am very thankful for the opportunity I was given. Leading up to the Juno Award night there is JUNO FEST, which is 100 different bands playing in 15 different venue’s across the city (London Ontario). Just outside of Budweiser Gardens in the South Parking Lot there was a giant heated tent that housed THE SIDE STAGE, which is where some bigger acts played and the Official Juno’s After Party was held. With the wrist band I was awarded, I had access to the Side Stage and all 15 venues in London, could cut the lines and get in early in order to photograph the bands playing in each venue. This wristband also allowed me to have access to the JUNO CUP, a hockey game between the Artists, and Professional Hockey players.
With out going through all the details and dragging this blog post out into a massive thing no one will ever read…. Side Stage was incredible. It was the first show I shot during the Juno’s and it started out with the incredible WASHBOARD UNION who I had not seen yet and really wanted to so it was amazing that I was able to see them (seen them twice during the Juno’s but we’ll get to that), but also photograph them! These guys are incredible, such a friendly bunch, their vocal harmonies are dead on and sound so good, their songs are lively and keep your feet tappin’. Up next was Jess Moskaluke who I had also never seen and also wanted to.. I was on a roll! she was fantastic sounded just like she does on the radio and knocked out all her hits. Last but definitely not least THE REKLAWS!!! I’ve photographed The Reklaws … 4 or 5 times now and they never ever get old.. seriously.. love them to death, their songs are contagious, Jenna is hilarious on stage and so fun, Stu with his smiles and for some reason always seems to look my way and give me a point his finger or his guitar and I love it!
Back to The Washboard Union. After they won their Juno for Breakthrough group of the year.. and I mean right after, they were performing again at The Bull and Barrel and let me tell you, that show was insane. The high Washboard was on from winning that Juno, the buzz from the crowd excited to see them and so very happy for them winning a Juno.. the place was so packed, I was lucky I got there over an hour early so I could be right up front because If I had shown up even 20 mins later than I did.. I was at the back of the building. Washboard Union was so happy to win and even happier to share their win with their fans in Bull and Barrel that night it was one hell of a party.. they have a rule where they do not drink if they are performing, but just once, that rule was broken to celebrate their Juno. Shots were brought out and Chris from the band says “ boys the medicine is here” … many thank you’s were said, so much appreciation from the band to the fans, to each other.. it was a moment i’ll never forget.
This post is getting very long so I’m just going to list the other bands I had the pleasure of photographing and I want them all to know I’m so thankful for their music, their image shares and the opportunities I’ve had to photograph:
AARON ALLEN
JULIA HAGGARTY
NICE HORSE
LOUD LUXURY
RYAN SHEPERD
There would be more on this list, such as The Trews, Genevieve Fisher and a few more but when I arrived to the venue’s at their set times they were so packed I literally couldn’t even get in the doorway.
THE WASHBOARD UNION - SIDE STAGE
JESS MOSKALUKE - SIDE STAGE
Jess Moskaluke performing at the 2019 JUNO’s - Side Stage in London, On.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
THE REKLAWS - SIDE STAGE
The Reklaws performing on the Side Stage at the 2019 Juno’s - London Ontario.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
NICE HORSE - BULL & BARREL
NICE HORSE performing during the 2019 JUNO FEST at Bull & Barrel - London Ontario
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
JULIA HAGGARTY - BULL & BARREL
JULIA HAGGARTY performing during the 2019 JUNO FEST - Bull & Barrel in London Ontario.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
AARON ALLEN - BULL & BARREL
AARON ALLEN performing at the 2019 JUNO FEST in London Ontario.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
LOUD LUXURY - SIDE STAGE
LOUD LUXURY performing on the Side Stage during the 2019 JUNO’s - London Ontario.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
RYAN SHEPHERD - SIDE STAGE
RYAN SHEPHERD performing during the 2019 JUNO’s on the Side stage - London Ontario.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
THE WASHBOARD UNION - BULL & BARREL
THE WASHBOARD UNION performing during the 2019 Juno fan fest in London ontario just after they won their Juno Award for Breakthrough Group Of The Year! Huge Congrats going out to these fellas.
© Kevin Vyse | Stage Pass Media
A HUGE thank you goes out to Rock It Promotions for hooking me up with the wristband and all their helpers at each venue guiding me through, also thank you to the Juno’s for making this such an amazing event. Thank you to the City of London for being so awesome and opening up all these venues for such an incredible and memorable experience. Thank you to Live Nation, Start.ca, Budweiser Gardens, Budweiser, Apple Music, TD Bank, Music Canada, SOCAN, VIA Rail, 3M, CBC Music, SiriusXM, Jackson Triggs, Long & McQuade … with out all of these sponsors things like this can’t happen.. and when things like this don’t happen, opportunities can’t happen.. this was an opportunity I never thought i’d have or get to be apart of… the Thankfulness is HUGE!
Cheers.
Kevin Vyse.
KELSI MAYNE
You have all seen her at the mercy of my camera before, usually on stage with her fire red phoenix hair blowing in the wind as she gracefully sings out her country jams in the summer sun. Who am I talking about? .. well who else.. the incredible KELSI MAYNE.
Kelsi hit me up with a message on a Thursday saying she needed new images shot for some summer festival announcements and some other releases through out 2019. This shoot was last minute, we only had a few days to find a location to shoot in and get the images edited and out within.. I think it was 4 days. Game On!
We reached out to some people and ended up having a mutual friend (Scott), who was willing to let us use his beautiful home on the following Saturday and so the one-on-one photo session was born.
Kelsi is a very hard working woman. She is a Nurse, a Country music artists, an Actress and was a Nationally Ranked Hurdler! We first met in my home town Woodstock Ontario, where she was performing at the Woodstock Truck Show put on annually by our friend Scott Verbruggen, all proceeds from this event goes to the local Special Olympics. Kelsi saw me handing out business cards to the other bands that were performing after each set and she came up to ask if she could have one to see the pics afterwards, we got to talking and a new friendship was born! Since then I have photographed Kelsi at the Emerging Artists Showcase at the CMAO’s in London Ontario, as well as in Dresden Ontario at their Kinstock Festival, where she opened the show along with Kansas Stone, Andrew Hywatt and The Reklaws.
The ‘Mayne’ image we shot was being used to release Kelsi’s artist announcement for this summers Big Valley Jamboree in Camrose, Alberta where Kelsi will be sharing the ‘Mayne’ stage with acts such as: Toby Keith, Old Dominion, Kane Brown, Lindsay Elle, Meghan Patrick, Billy Ray Cyrus, Brooks & Dunn and many more. Kelsi will also be performing in Havelock Ontario at the Havelock Country Jamboree in August.
Also Keep an eye out for the release of Stephen King’s short story (movie) WILLA because, yep.. you guessed it, Kelsi is in the movie.. not only is she in it but has a Title Role… does Kelsi look familiar to you? .. well that’s probably because you’ve seen her as the lead female in another country music artists video.. if you have seen her in this you will know her as ‘CHERRY BOMB’. River Town Saints brought Kelsi in as the lead role in their video for Cherry Bomb where she did an amazing job.
Can’t wait to see where Kelsi goes in 2019, all I know is that it will be up.. she is on a roll and shows no signs of slowing down. It was an honour and pleasure to work with Kelsi and get to know her band over the last year, they are all amazing people and I’m pumped every time I get to run into them at shows.
For now I can only release two images that we shot from our shoot as we want to keep them under wraps until Kelsi gets to release them through out the year.
Photography: Kevin Vyse Photography
Graphic Design: BVJ
APRIL WINE - COWAPOLOOZA 2018
With South Side Park in Woodstock Ontario packed with hundreds of people under the stars on a warm summer night, April Wine hit the stage for the second time in the Cowapolooza history.
It's incredible to see a legendary piece of Canadian music history put on such an incredible show after all these years. April Wine sounded amazing playing all their hits, the crowd going nuts, dancing and singing the night away. Best part about this show was the mix of people.. old and young and everyone seemed to know the lyrics to most of the songs. April Wine ended their set with the amazing, and my personal fav song, ROLLER, shortly after they exited the stage, the crowd, without hesitation started chanting "encore" to which April Wine replied with coming back out and Blasting out their hit "Oowatanite" ... and Oowatanite it was!
KINSTOCK 2018
Dresden Ontario was happenin' Saturday 14th with their Kinstock Festival. Great food, Beer, Sun, Amazing people and of course... MUSIC! live performances from: Kelsi Mayne, Kansas Stone, Andrew Hyatt and The Reklaws, what a crazy line up and they were all phenomenal.
KELSI MAYNE:
If you follow this blog you will remember Kelsi.. you know, the beautiful country singer with the amazingly red hair, catchy songs, and phenomenal stage presence, along with her band mates who are not only incredible friendly and easy to talk to, but also very talented musicians. Like any other time I have seen and photographed Kelsi perform, this show was dead on, sounded great and her and her band mates were having so much fun on stage. 2 main changes in this set that I haven't seen yet.. 1) her friend and fellow singer Jace Cooper up on stage with Kelsi singing for one song and 2) a little Country meets hiphop.. thats all I'm going to say.. if you want to understand that a bit more.. well I guess you will have to visit Kelsi's website, look under her "Dates" section to find out when she's performing next and where and buy yourself a ticket ;) ----- Kelsi's website .. click the link ----------> Kelsi Mayne
KANSAS STONE
These dudes just kill it on stage, such a fun band with an amazing rock vibe and sound. They are the "gateway drug to country music " kind of band. Not taking crap from anyone and doing their own thing, creating their own sound and always bringing the party with them no matter where they're playing, they always get the crowd going and dancing, everyone has a great time when Kansas Stone hits the stage! ----------> Kansas Stone
THE REKLAWS
Brother and Sister duo, Stu and Jenna are blowing up! The Reklaws are so good live, high energy, super catchy tunes with crowd participation.. you just want to sing along, jump, dance, throwing in some great cover songs in their set keeping you on your toes.. love going to their shows. Dresden got a really good taste of what it's like, amping up the crowd, everyone had so much fun during their set. One of my fav moments was during one of their slower songs (can't remember which one at the moment), but I was in the crowd and right in front of me a couple started to slow dance and just as I decided to snap a shot of them dancing, they leaned in for a kiss.. pretty sweet lil' moment to capture. ----------> The Reklaws.
ANDREW HYATT
Definitely check this dude out.. Canadian through and through from Sudbury Ontario. This guy rocks! You can't help but get out there and see him perform, he has this original voice and some damn good tunes that get you going and ready to live the night. Andrew Hyatt is going places, already has and he will continue to, it's in his music, so if you don't know him.. do yourself a favour and get to know him/his music ----------> Andrew Hyatt.
CMAOntario's New Faces Showcase
They came, The Played, They conquered!
Incredible weekend last weekend at the CMAOntario's in London Ontario. During the New Faces Showcase performers who are building in the country music scene had the chance to show everyone what they have during a free show on an outdoor stage. I won't lie.. every single act who performed was incredible in their own way.
Of course.. with every concert you need to have head liners.. Headlining the CMAOntario's New Faces Showcase were two Canadian heavy hitters..
THE REKLAWS
and
MEGHAN PATRICK
I will put their images at the end of this post so people will scroll through the New Faces Showcase performers .. we want to get them out there and get people interested.
Performers:
This woman and her band.... Phenomenal! With Kelsi's phoenix fire hair, beautiful smile thats always glowing up on stage and her powerful vocals, your attention quickly focuses on the stage. Great sound great stage presence with catchy songs and they are also great people to talk to. If you get the chance, make sure you check them out.. they are based out of Toronto On.
Based out of Hamilton Ontario, The Redhill Valleys are definitely a band to keep your eyes on. With their amazing harmonies your foot can't stop tapping along with their original sound, great stage presence too.
Josh David Band.. first off.. this guys voice! amazing voice with some nice grit, and some rocking country sound. These guys put on a great show, Josh is always moving and interacting with band members on stage which is always fun to watch.
phenomenal sound coming from these guys, very catchy songs with awesome harmony vocals and some killer guitar solo's/leads, their song 'Minnedosa' is one of my favs.
Brads song 'Crazy Beautiful' definitely gets stuck in your head, very full sound, catchy, nice guitar solo's, stage presence is well done.. he does a really awesome cover of A Great Big World's - Say Something.. definitely a band to check out.
HEADLINERS
THE REKLAWS
If your into country music and you don't know this Brother and Sister duo... then you need to immediately stop reading this blog and head on over to their website, spotify, facebook, instagram... I don't care where.. but go check them out. The Recklaws are blowing up.. their song Long Live The Night is now the Thursday night Football theme song! stage presence is huge with these two always moving around the stage, Jenna is always dancing up a storm and getting the crowd pumped up and rowdy. If you see these two on any concert bill, just know you are in for an incredible show!
MEGHAN PATRICK
You know Meghan Patrick.. you have to... if you don't, then your Canadian Country game is weak. This power house female country artist is outstanding! Powerful vocals, amazing songs.. phenomenal to watch on stage with her high knees and leg kicks.. swinging those golden locks all over it all comes together for an impressive show. Meghan cleaned up this year at the CMAOntario's Winning 3 awards:
- FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
- MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR - ' Country Music Made Me do It '
- FAN'S CHOICE
In my opinion.. every one of these is much deserved, I love watching this woman perform! Congrats on the wins Meghan!
JUDAS PRIEST WITH SAXON & BLACK STAR RIDER
When I heard Judas Priest was coming to London there was no doubt in my mind I was going to apply to photograph this concert, it was however a doubt in my mind that I would get approval, but thanks to the beautiful people over Live Nation, approval happened.
Not really knowing who Black Star Riders was Google educated me a bit and a few of the members were in the band Thin Lizzy, which is pretty awesome. Black Star Riders hit the stage as the openers and were amazing! great sound, loud and all metal. Next up SAXON... UK's massive Metal band formed in 1977 with multiple hits.. let me tell you, they ripped the stage up with so much power, so loud and so much energy. I will be the first to admit, I did not know much about SAXON as I don't really listen to that kind of music but being there and seeing some Metal Music History still rocking out and sounding exactly like they did back in the 80's, just incredible to witness and photograph.
JUDAS PRIEST: Standing stage side listening to random people yell, scream and whistle out waiting for the band to hit the stage, I wasn't to sure what to expect. Honestly the first thing I thought about was " There's a massive sheet covering the entire stage and I know it's going to fall... do we go in the pit before it falls or after? if before is it going to fall on us and how long will it take for them to remove it before we can see the band and shoot " .... We were told we can go into the pit.... the sheet had not fallen yet.. hmmmm... ok so the lights dim, you can see colours changing behind the sheet, I could hear movement... guitars ring out and BAM!!!! the sheet drops then somehow blows off to the side of the stage very quick.. barely even touched me except for the tail end that slapped me in the face lol. There they were, Judas Priest right there on stage rocking out. Standing there taking pics, now the only thing going through my head is how many of the old great concert photographers have been right in this spot taking these images... on film.. which is insane to think about.. and now here I am doing the same thing, it's incredible. This show had amazing lighting, so much light it was tough finding exposure with it constantly changing. One guitarist with aviators on was all over the place, back and forth, up on speakers, throwing the guitar around quite a bit, so much fun to photograph and I'll be honest here, he was my main focus just because of how much action he was throwing out there. Over all this was an incredible experience, great performances by all 3 bands, I was thoroughly captivated by each band and what they were putting out for everyone. So if you're thinking about hitting one of the tour dates on the rest of this tour... don't think to long, you won't be disappointed. GO!
Big thanks goes out to Live Nation for the approval, allowing me the opportunity to photograph this concert. Also, big thanks goes out to Budweiser Gardens in London On. Canada for the great as always hospitality.
- Shutter Click.
JUDAS PRIEST
© 2018 Kevin Vyse Photography
Budweiser Gardens - London ON, Canada
JUDAS PRIEST
SAXON
© 2018 Kevin Vyse Photography
Budweiser Gardens - London ON, Canada
SAXON
BLACK STAR RIDERS
© 2018 Kevin Vyse Photography
Budweiser Gardens - London ON Canada
Black Star Riders
OUR LADY PEACE & MATTHEW GOOD
Off to the stage with 4 other photographers, hearing the buzz of everyone in the building chatting, music playing in the background, house lights half on.. that anticipation building, going over camera settings in my mind, wondering what the lighting will be like. In that moment, the lights go out, complete darkness except for a few small, dim stage lights, the crowd roars, whistling, cheering, clapping and screaming while the band walks out on to the stage .. nothing but Silhouettes.
Our Lady Peace was a staple in my upbringing, yet, it's taken me 36 years to finally see them live. When photographing bands you only get a taste of the performance as most cases you can only photograph the first 3 songs of each band. Regardless, even the first 3 songs are usually a great time, there's always one good song that everyone knows.. for OLP, for me anyways that song was 'Superman's Dead' and it was done to perfection. OLP fired it up right out of the gate with high energy, some pretty unique lighting, which was a bit challenging as there were some strobe effects going on that made timing a bit tough, but it was incredible and I am complete thankful for the opportunity which was provided to me by Live Nation.
Matthew Good was another one of those 90's staples for me who I've always enjoyed listening to. I've only seen Matt one other time and it was maybe 2 years ago at Rock The Park in London ON and it was good... but last night's performance topped it 100%. Same deal, we only get to shoot the first 3 songs, but the first 3 were incredible and standing that close shooting made it even that much better.
After being escorted back into the photographer room, it sounded like the crowd was really enjoying the show as you could hear the screaming and clapping echo through the back halls of Budweiser Gardens. Overall, what a fantastic night. I'd like to thank Live Nation again for the opportunity to photograph this show and Budweiser Gardens for being so accommodating for the night.
until the next time
-Shutter Click!
OLP (Our Lady Peace)
London ON, Canada
Budweiser Gardens
MATTHEW GOOD
Matthew Good
London ON, Canada
Budweiser Gardens
WE WERE THAT SONG TOUR
Brett Kissel has blown up like crazy! If you don't know Brett Kissel and you like country music then you should definitely check him out, you won't be disappointed. Another great country music artist... Dan Davidson, again, if you do not know Dan Davidson check out his music.
London Ontario, Canada these two played on February 10th, a sold out show at the London Music Hall, my favourite venue in London, and then because this show sold out so quick, they decided to add a second date to the tour.. February 18th. Great things were said about the 10th show so needless to say I was pumped to be photographing the show on the 18th.
Sitting in my car in the parking lot waiting for 6:30pm to roll around and doors to open, everyone in the line up started yelling, right away I knew Brett had made an appearance outside to see the fans so I quickly grabbed my camera, jumped out of the car and started snapping shots of him from the parking lot.. he was only out there for maybe 2 mins. Fast forward; Standing in the media pit looking out to this massive crowd, the stage lit with some dark blue light, fans awaiting the start of the show, checking my cameras to make sure I have them set up properly... the worst part is not knowing what kind of light you're going to get once the show starts... all white, not so great, not enough light horrible.. all red or all blue.. horrible ... it's just a waiting game then rolling with the punches. A stage hand comes out from stage right and shines his flashlight to the soundboard, HERE WE GO! Out walk to radio hosts to announce the opening act, photographers out into the pit for the first 3 songs.. ok.. went well.. lighting was a bit dull but thats ok, expected.. give's me a good starting point. Out come two more radio hosts and BAM almost instantly Dan Davidson's band comes out on stage, they start playing and out run's Dan, first song kicks off, lighting is pretty good and I'm feeling great, happy to be there. Let me tell you Dan Davidson killed that performance, best I've ever seen him, so much energy and the fans were singing so loud.. such an amazing thing to experience and capture.
Now, a quick little tidbit of info for you.... when photographing these shows the typical thing that happens is, photographers get to shoot the first 3 songs from each artists, after that we have to leave the pit until the next artists hits the stage. Now, some places, usually bigger venues like stadiums will have a separate room we have to go sit in so we miss a lot of the show, but typically smaller venues will just allow you to step out and off to the side and watch the show, you just can't shoot, then when the next band hits the stage you're back in the pit for their 3 songs.
BRETT KISSEL!!!!!!! crowd goes insane, ear piercing screams everyone is going wild, the energy doubles, Brett comes out with high energy like always, jumps up on these wooden crates he has out on the stage and throws his arms out to everyone to say "HEY EVERYONE, I"M HERE AND I'M READY TO PARTY WITH YOU! ". From that moment on the party really grew with every song. Everyone singing back and with Brett was so loud it matched the volume of the band, it was crazy. Ok ok... no matter how I write this you just won't understand the vibe so I'm going to stop here and let the images do some talking.. hope you enjoy!
HUGE thank you goes out to INVICTUS ENTERTAINMENT GROUP for providing me with access to photograph this show, much appreciated you guys and gals are doing great things!
BRETT KISSEL WITH DAN DAVIDSON: Sold Out show #2 at the amazing London Music Hall.
BRETT KISSEL makes an appearance to his fans in line outside of London Music Hall before the show to say hi and welcome everyone.
DAN DAVIDSON
BRETT KISSEL
Photography. Travel. Time
It's amazing from year to year how much things change when you put your time into something you love and strive to always get better.
A few years ago I was asked, last minute, to get in a Ford F-150 with a buddy of mine who was going back out west to British Columbia after being home, here in Ontario visiting with friends and family. I had just taken vacation from work but had zero plans, so I figured why not? There is another blog on here called " The Great Canadian West " which covers that whole adventure.. you can think of this one as kind of a second part to that entry.
Long story short.... today I went back through some of the images I took from that trip, images which I thought were garbage but I had kept the RAW files as I normally do. Since that trip, I have spent a lot of time shooting, a lot of time studying, doing editing tutorials, paying for tutorials and teaching video's.. really learning whatever I could. Turns out, a lot of the images from that trip are still very usable.. it just took time for me to develop more skills, editing techniques.. even a new eye (way of looking at things).
Moral of the story here.. the message I'm trying to convey is, even though you don't see it now, you may in the future. Do not give up, constantly learn, if you love it keep trying, keep building.. strive to be better every day and you will see improvements!
Here are some of the images from that trip that I had discarded thinking they "were no good", "unusable", " There's no picture here " ........
© Kevin Vyse Photography
All Rights Reserved 2017
Maddy & Diesel: A Girl and her Pup!
Maddy and Diesel were something a little different for me as I haven't really photographed portraits for someone and their dog, but it was a lot of fun! We were originally going to do this shoot back in the fall with all the leaves on the trees, but due to unforeseen circumstances, we had to change the date which led us into winter .... pre-snow winter.
This time of year the "lake" where I live gets drained out, not completely but quite a bit gets sucked out through the damn which leaves a nice, sandy beach look. Later in the day as the sun set we headed on down to utilize the park area and of course out on to the sand. Diesel was having a ton of fun running around and finding sticks to bring a long for the walk, which ended up in a few of the shots because getting that stick away was near impossible lol. Over all, with the sun set, the beach vibe, the lake and a great person and dog, it was a fantastic shoot!
- Shutter Click.
Kevin & Steph: Mexico Love
Sunset on the beach, Laughing, Loving, Holding... with the ocean rolling on to the beach, these two love birds showed us all what love really looks like.
While in Mexico for Jeremy and Haley's wedding, Kevin & Steph wanted to get a few images done at some point throughout our trip down on the beach to commemorate the trip and the time they spent together. Photographing these two was so easy, as they are so good together, always holding and touching one another, no posing necessary. As the sun set we took a short walk down the beach and shot a few frames, it was that easy, that quick and we walked away with some beautiful images that will be frozen in time forever.
-Shutter Click.
© Kevin Vyse Photography
All Rights Reserved 2017
Jeremy & Haley: Mexico Wedding
From British Columbia to Toronto International Airport, to Cancun Mexico with friends and family to confess their love for one another.
Salty ocean air, white sand beaches, Swim up bar pool, Fire Shows, Dancing on the beach, amazing food, Sunny 30+ºC day's, friends and family... what a better way to get hitched!
With a traditional Scottish Hand Fasting ceremony on the beach at sunset, friends and family standing in a circle, wedding party standing in the circle North, South, East and West. Beautiful words were being spoke, the sound of the Gulf Of Mexico crashing against the beach, Jeremy & Haley speak their vows of love and devotion to one another. Passing a rope up and over one another hands to tie their hands together, the bond was created forever locking them together hand in hand..... Always & Forever. <3
© Kevin Vyse Photography
All Rights Reserved 2017
A Night With Colin James
Colin Freakin' James!
Colin was brought to Woodstock last year for the Cowapalooza Festival in Woodstock Ontario, Canada, but sadly.. he never made it on stage because mother nature decided to flood the park with a torrential down pour. Summer 2017, Colin James was asked to come back and come back he did! With clear skies, a beauty summers night, stars out and all, Colin hit the stage with powerful guitar solos, deep bass lines, technical drumming, some outstanding keyboard work and of course some powerful, strong vocals that blew me away.
With no media pass (which wasn't required anyways because it was a FREE, yes.. FREE concert in a public park ) I had to shoot from the crowd which was fine at first.. but pretty much after the first song everyone moved up and it got tight quick. Bobbing around peoples melons Colin made it pretty easy to get the shots using up all areas of the stage to put on an amazing performance. If you haven't seen Colin James, haven't heard of him even.. get out to a show, you won't be disappointed at all. - Shutter Click.
Colin James
Cowapalooza Festival 2017
Woodstock On, Canada.
Tim Tyler: Musician
Tim Tyler... honestly.. I had never heard of him before and I wasn't even sure if I was going to show up to photograph him or just show up to photograph Colin James. All I can say is that I'm damn glad I went to see/photograph him.... WOW!
Tim Tylers vocal style has been compared to great musicians such as, Sly & The family Stone, Doyle Bramhall, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Ray Charles. Let me tell you.. the guitar work, the vocals.. his band.. just amazing to see live. If you're into that blues/Rock kind of thing, this guy will blow your socks off and I'm so happy to now have him in my portfolio.
Tim Tyler
Cowapalooza Festival 2017
Woodstock, ON. Canada
THE MUDMEN
If you like music.. you like that Scottish, East Coast kind of vibe, great vocals, bagpipes, drums, bass and guitar with some funny in-between song banter... THE MUDMEN are for you!
These guys were amazing, had a fantastic time photographing them in my home town at the Cowapalooza festival. This festival happens every year and every Friday and Saturday night there are concerts. In the past we've had bands such as: April Wine, The Stampeders, Trooper and more. This year: The Mudmen, The McCartney Years which happened on Friday Night... then tonight: Tim Tyler and the talented Colin James! I will be heading back down tonight at 7pm to capture both acts.
Not only is there music, but there's rides for the young kids, horse back rides, all kinds of vendors and food trucks which all takes place is the beautiful SouthSide Park, Woodstock On. Canada... so if you live in the area and want to get out of the house, or want to see an outdoor concert on a gorgeous summers day... WOODSTOCK is where you want to be! As always... if you see me out shooting, feel free to come by and say hi wether I know you or not... I'm always up for meeting potential clients ;) - Shutter Click.
The Mudmen
Woodstock ON.
Cowapalooza Festival 2017.
A GIRL & HER HORSE
When my sister-in-law said she wanted to do a shoot with my niece, Madyson and her horse Claire, I was all in.. I had not done a shoot involving a horse yet so I saw some potential for something new and challenging!
Let me tell you..... you take a horse that never gets to eat grass and you take it out on to grass to do a shoot... that horse will do whatever it takes to eat some of that sweet sweet green gold! Claire was grass hungry and we had to give her a little bit of time to chomp down some green goodness before she would even think about lifting her head up for some shots lol. Once Claire's belly had some green goodness in it she was ready to be a star.
We were on location at White Willow Equestrian Centre in Thamesford Ontario, a great facility if you're looking to learn some horseback riding, I believe they do English riding and Western Riding. It was a great place, clean, very friendly and accommodating staff, an outdoor arena as well as an indoor and a lot of grazing space for the horses. They also have a spitting Lama (keep your distance or get wet ) and a free roaming goat who likes to head butt your butt for attention.. I think her name was Lilly ... maybe..
Madyson was a natural.. she has this very model-esque look to her with a straight gaze that works perfectly for this kind of shoot, and if you've shot with me I like my clients to be themselves.. I don't tell you to smile (usually) I let you do your thing because thats.. well.. you! so in these pics you will see Madyson doesn't smile, but it works soooooo well for this. Claire and Madyson have a bond so we were able to get them with their heads together for a few shots and in most of them we just let Claire graze because thats what she does so we just roll with it. We used the driveway into the facility as it's lined with trees, some grassy area's off to the sides and did some silhouette work using the stable, which really looked nice. I was hoping for more of that golden light, but with the time of year the sun doesn't quite set until around 8pm and we didn't have the time as there were classes going on, cars going in and out and we were there at 6pm so we worked with the light as best we could.. I think it worked out well.
White Willow Equestrian Centre
©Kevin Vyse Photography 2017
Lorraine & Rachel: Engagement session
Lorraine & Rachel, these two are so much fun, so laid back and so in love!
Due to a slim window for shooting and scheduling we split their session over two Sundays to accommodate two separate locations that had significant meaning in their relationship. Session 1 : Goderich Ontario beach! Honestly, I had only been to Goderich once before on a photo drive with another photographer, it was winter so I missed all of it's beauty. Goderich is Beautiful! The town is small and built around an massive round about which I thought was brilliant, the people are friendly and the beach is beautiful sitting on Lake Huron.
We started out at the far end of the beach doing some beach walking shots, close to the water, holding hands and kissing. Time of day was not ideal, the sun was high, shadows deep but I'm use to shooting in those conditions so we just rolled with it. After a bit the sun started to disappear behind some clouds and the "good light" was allowing me some great shots. There were a set of rocks where Lorraine had proposed to Rachel so we definitely wanted to incorporate that into the session. With the wind blowing we had to make sure we were watching the water because at times it was splashing so hard on the rocks there was a high chance of getting soaked... did they get soaked... wellllllllll .... lol.. not soaked but there was one good splash that landed a few drops on their backs.
While walking along the board walk, we found another little gem spot where the trees opened up there was some sand and a tree that had fallen over, it honestly looked like we were in Mexico or the Dominican, so we had to get some shots there. Light was a bit tough as this spot was all shade, but the water and sky was bright so balancing was a bit rough... OH.. and the unexpected rouge wave that came in out of no where and soaked Lorraine and Rachel lol... honestly.. we didn't even see it coming in.
Location 2: St.Mary's Ontario.
The second Sunday we were off to St.Mary's Ontario at 8am.. the sky was a bit iffy, cloudy.. a bit chilly to start.. we wern't sure how this was going to go as they were calling for rain, but we lucked out and it held off for us. No rain, but there was bridge construction on one of the bridges St.Mary's has to offer and that meant they needed to drain some of the water out of the river. Usually there is water rushing over the dam in the middle of the river but on this day.. no such luck.. water levels were low.. so, change of plans.. no splashing and waterfall shots but, with the low water levels we could take advantage of getting out further into the water. St.Mary's is a beautiful town, small, and very old with a ton of history. Buildings were stone and looked like castles almost, it was very clean and quaint, I like that place. Over all the shoots were fantastic, these two are great clients, up for anything, so bubbly and cuddly with one another, they made my job very easy as I don't even need to pose them, they just cuddle up as soon as raise the camera. Can't wait to shoot their wedding in September.
Goderich Ontario
© Kevin Vyse Photography 2017
St. Mary's Ontario
© Kevin Vyse Photography 2017
