I was so stoked to shoot this concert. In fact, it was suppose to be my day off, but I volunteered to work to cover the concert. I could have gone to the concert, but I have seen Trent Reznor live several times and it isn’t too often you get the chance to be closer than front row and shoot from the pit (the area between the stage and the wall or front row).

I have been a huge fan of Nine Inch Nails since the debut of the album Pretty Hate Machine in 1989. The song Head Like a Hole with lyrics like “Head like a hole, black as your soul. I would rather die, than give you control” became a mantra of mine in during my formative teen angst years (keep in mind, I spent much of my teenage years recovering from a serious near fatal brain injury).

Through out the years, the sounds of Nine Inch Nails have accompanied me through so many experiences. Be it racing dangerously fast across the desert, getting ready to play a soccer game, rampaging through the city at night or coping with … well, just coping.

When there is a time to get aggressive in competition, songs like -Wish- with opening lyrics like “This is the first day of my last days” are perfect to wage war in one’s head. Or when dealing with the drama of a teenage break-up that only a 15-year-old wannabe thespian could understand, songs like -Something I can never have- with words like “I still recall the taste of your tears, echoing your voice just like the ringing in my ears, my favorite dreams of you still wash ashore” are perfect for someone that has no responsibility yet but still feels the world is crashing down on them. — I am so glad I made it out of my teen years intact.

I got to the venue early enough to check in was able to visit with a couple fans on my way in. Once in, it wasn’t clear which songs or what restrictions were in place. Most shows we get the first two or three songs to shoot from the pit. However, according to event staff, Trent Reznor hadn’t decided what songs myself and the two other photographers were going to be allowed to shoot and that decision would not come until just before the show started. The other shooters and myself were held in an area backstage as the concert started when the tour manager came down and briefed us on which three songs we were going to be able to shoot. He also gave us the list of rules for the covering the show. One of which was that if an event staff came up to us in the pit and told us to move … do it immediately because it meant someone was being thrown from the crowd over the wall into the pit and we were about to be hit.

Once in the pit, it was amazing to shoot the show and watch one of my music idols through the lens. I was right there. I would occasionally turn and quickly shoot the fans right behind me who were going completely nuts. I only had three songs to shoot so I needed to work fast but smartly. I took two cameras. One with a wide angle and the other with a telephoto on it. I had already set my cameras to what I guessed would be the neighborhood of the right exposure. Once in and shooting I made a couple quick tweaks on the exposures and let it rip. I quickly realized Trent Reznor holds the mic with his left hand and uses his right hand to gesture so I quickly moved to a position where I would be able to get clear views of his face and worked most of my angles from his right. I don’t chase the lights for exposure too much. Instead I tried to anticipate light flashes and use the shadows and silhouettes they create for my composition. It helped that I knew the songs that were being played and was able to anticipate some of the action on stage.

Then the end of my three songs came way too soon and my time was up.

While leaving I realized I realized I have absolutely no Nine Inch Nails gear. Not even a sticker for my car. I haven’t had one since I was a teenager. All that stuff about growing up, being part of society has caught up with me, I guess.

Tomorrow, I am going to get a small sticker for my car.

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