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Avo Fest

Today we have a very special post, my first proper attempt at mosh pit photography. This has always been a type of concert photography that I've always wanted to do and get into but was always too scared or just didn't know when there would be a show. But this year I knew where to go, The Carpinteria Annual Avocado Festival. This family friendly event is home to one of the most surprising free concerts that I love going to. The band that played is called "The Upbeat" and they are a favorite ska band of mine, the energy that they bring and the energy of the crowd is insane. So I came equipped with my Nikon 1 J1 with a 3D printed grip and an adapted 6mm security camera lens to take the pictures.

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

This year had probably the best Upbeat show I attended. The crowd was jumping, the band was playing hard, and the mosh was getting pretty intense. Usually when The Upbeat plays at Avo Fest, it gets pretty lively and rowdy as seen in the pictures, but last night seemed very special.

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Last night was a bit of a tribute to those artist and musicians that were dear friends and inspirations to those in The Upbeat. The Upbeat lost one of their own recently, Dan Boer, keyboardist and organist of the band.

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

The whole night was filled with originals, and covers of legendary ska bands. They covered "Gangster" by The Specials, "Too Much Pressure" by the Selector, "I Can't Wait" by Hepcat, and a song by The Untouchables (I sadly forgot the name of the song). All played in tribute to Terry Hall, Gaps Hendrickson, Greg Lee, Jerry Miller, and Dan Boer respectively.

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

It was an amazing show, jumping in and out of the crowd to get these pictures and the moments of refresh when I took a break and just listened to the music along the outside of the pit. Overall an amazing show. 

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

Nikon 1 J1  - Rainbow H6mm f1.2

And to end this post, here is the camera that helped me capture these fun images. Bought originally as a gamble, it has turned into one of my favorite cameras in my collection due to its size, decent speed, and now a decent selection of lenses due to the C mount adapter I purchased for it.







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