Thursday, September 29, 2005

Queens of the Stone Age, NIN

qosa5238
(Right off the bat-- this photo is from the Queens of the Stone Age Show at the Empire a couple months back and not of them opening up for Nine Inch Nails last night.)
A memorable moment from last night was when the QOTSA lead singer Joshua Homme stopped the band mid-song to unleash a neverending fiendish barrage of obsenities at one stinker in the crowd he saw fighting. Okay, maybe 98% of the arena audience didn't blink an eye when it happened but my jaw dropped, I burst out laughing, incredulous. I'm still wishing I had a pad and pen in hand.
Did not get a photo pass, boo hoo. It was a tough one too because the stage lighting was at times really striking. In my head I'm saying "There's a picture, ooh! Damn! There's another one, oooh, UGH!" On and on and on.
Trent Reznor (looking super good) and the entire Nine Inch Nails bunch were amazing and they put on a helluva show, all would agree. I have it on good authority though that the sound was bad if you were in seats, but great if you were on the floor. I was in both places and just remember it being loud enough to make me feel it hours afterwards and wishing I had remembered to keep ear plugs in my purse. But luckily in my purse were my binoculars! And through them I watched the guitarist kicking and whirling like a crazed maniac so full throttle it was truly awe inspiring... until he got himself caught up in the cords, fell into the drum set, taking half of it out, tumbling down and down across the side of the stage till he landed on his butt and had to be helped up. Meanwhile a roadie is scrambling to get the drumset back together while the drummer played as if nothing had happened. Just another night on stage! :)
So I'm thinking if they can make cordless phones, cordless microphones, wireless computers that can let you chat with London at any local Starbucks then why can't they do the same for the musical instruments? Hmmmmm.....

Saturday, September 24, 2005

This Marion is no librarian!


mstudio
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
But she is a wildly fun, super smart, sexy woman I photographed some months back and just recently began to look at the images in search of a new art piece. This is one of my favorite kinds of jobs to do. Just go into the studio, have fun, meander through it seeking moments of truth... and later looking through what we have done in search of inspiration for the post production artistic expression. I like to experiment and have a few more shoots under my belt I'll be looking into next... :)

Friday, September 23, 2005

The Unseen, recently seen

unseen
The Unseen performed at The Empire Tuesday night and there were loads of mohawks to marvel at. But clearly the most beautiful one of the night was on the lead singer for The Unseen, pictured here in the lamp light at the merchandise table. His was medium height and blunt, but thick, black and glossy!

Monday, September 19, 2005

George Thorogood Rocks my world!

thorogood
Wow, holy cow, yikes, yippee, zow, whoop whoop, ina gada da vida, $%#@*&! Gotta tell you, I was completely blown away by the George Thorogood show at The Empire tonight. This is one of those rare times when I was (almost) glad to have to put the camera down after the first few songs because I got to just enjoy enjoy enjoy. But the real treat was that during the set he smiled at me, he winked, he pointed at me, he talked to me, he flirted, he gave me his damp towel and after a particularly thrilling few moments on guitar, crouched down just inches away from me, he reached out and deliberately touched the top of my head with his guitar. "You've been annointed" someone behind me said.
We are encouraged to live in the moment to fully appreciate our lives as they unfold. And tonight there was a moment. I was so moved by his skill, watching his fingers racing over the guitar strings, the sweat of intense energy pouring off his face, his body so close you could feel the heat, that I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes-- the sweet kind-- when you know you are witnessing something remarkable.

Friday, September 16, 2005

Our Govenor, Health Summit 2005


summit
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger greets dozens of children at Cal Expo when he makes his first appearance at the Health Summit today. Also in the crowd was "The Subway Guy" , press/media by the dozens and later in the day big-time household name kinds of speakers on health and nutrition.
It should be noted that chef extraordinaire Alice Waters was there and is credited with preparation of the brown box lunches provided to participants. It was beyond any shadow of a doubt the finest box lunch I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying. Thank you!

Governor's Summit


summit2
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Photographed the Governor's Summit on Health and Obesity today and it was a real who's who in the health and fitness industry!
Can't really say what Sponge Bob Squarepants had to offer but he was there, getting hugs and offering photo ops.
Tour De France Superstar Lance Armstrong participated in the morning walk around Cal Expo with Governor Arnold, Maria Shriver and about 800 children. It was quite a sight!
Dr. Phil gave a thought provoking talk about getting healthy and the importance of diet, excercise, getting motivated and the perils of putting it off. I'm off to Weight Watchers... :)
Maria Shriver is a dedicated powerhouse, articulate, beautiful, energetic and tremendously animated in conversation-- great to watch, worth listening to.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

Flying saucer landing pad in Rio Vista?


windmill
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Someday this concrete base will be hidden by a gigantic, super techno amazing, electricity generating windmill so we can cook a meal indoors, read in bed, power our air conditioners in the sweltering heat, blow dry our hair or watch Nip/Tuck on cable TV. (and as a friend predicted the season opener revealed the death of it's lead actor to all have been a dream... hmmm, how oddly familiar... anyone remember Dallas?)
I was out in Rio Vista yesterday shooting pics of this 30 square mile project that will be host to 100 brand new high-tech windmills. My mission? To photograph the creation of the rock roads leading in and around the entire site. Saw a lot of road, a lot of rock in a four hour tour of this vast barren blonde and brown landscape! Don't let this picture fool you. This is a BIG thing in a BIG hole that will soon be all covered up with dirt and rock.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Getta look at those choppers!


xrays
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Spent the past weekend photographing all things dental for one of my favorite clients. I've been to this dental trade show several times now and am always fascinated with the x-rays of teeth. They just look so interesting to me!
Maybe the main reason I am posting this is to show the diversity of things I get to see and photograph. Most of the time it seems like it would be boring to the average person, but it isn't to me at all!
One of the workshops I went to was all about oral surgery and it was hands-on. The workshoppers were working on pig mandibles! This was a class I REALLY wanted to shoot too! Seriously. But worthy of mention-- the room had a distinct aroma-- unpleasant. Every student, and there were about thirty or more of them, had their own pig mandible to work on too. Looking at the teeth alone you could hardly tell they were pig teeth, they look so much like human teeth.

Saturday, September 03, 2005

You go-go girl!


empiredancer
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Don't ever let anyone tell you dancers don't work hard. At least the Empire dancers do! On club nights they are up on that stage giving it everything they have and they are adorable and super sexy!
Four of them worked the Sir Mix a Lot show Friday night and they are just so entertaining to watch. How they manage to go all out for what seems like hours without even breaking a sweat is amazing! I sure wish I could dance like that!

Baby Got Back


mixcomposite
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Yeah, the song we all waited for! Sir Mix a Lot invited women onstage to do some booty shakin'-- and was clear about it too... only the very serious booty shakers need apply! Women of every shape, size and description joined him for a full on wild booty shaking romp.

A lot of hip hop shows start late-- like really late! And I was rushing in at 9pm thinking I'd be late only to see an empty house. So, three hours later, downloading, editing, emailing, snacking, catching up on the news, playing with the cats, a quick trip to the co-op, chatting with friends, yada yada yada...

Of course there were DJ sets etc. but the headlining act, Sir Mix a Lot, finally went on at 12:30am with a stage so full of other rappers that the woman next to me asked if I knew which one he was. I did, but it sure took me a few to figure it out. Just one of those things kind of particular to these kinds of shows. It was raucous and fun but oh so loud. Even Mix a Lot asked for his own mike to be turned down. By the time I left my ears were ringing because I forgot my earplugs tonight! (Hearos, they rock!)

Celebrity Whore


sirmixalot
Originally uploaded by Charrmer.
Sir Mix a Lot graciously posed with me in the dressing room after his show at The Empire. Somehow I expected the place to be teeming with chicks, or loads of people anyway but it just wasn't like that... He was so down to earth. It may have gotten crazy later though! It was sure crazy onstage and when I left the dressing room the crush to get a glimpse or visit with him was hard to get through!

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