Ulstertower Photographic

(C)  Ulstertower Photographic 

(C)  Ulstertower Photographic

Above:  A DJ is captured in movement as he plays his set to a up for it crowd

(C)  Ulstertower Photographic

O what a night Saturday 13th June 2009 was for me!!  This is because on that night I had the worst ever photographic assignment appointed to me to date.

You may already be asking your-self this one little question.....  Why?  Why was it the worst ever photographic assignment that I have had yet to date?  Well to answer that question in one simple line then that would be..... I was the "Sheep Amongst The Wolves".

Before I start to tell you more about my worst photographic assignment ever appointed to me yet to date.  Please just let me point two things out to you the first being that NO it was NOT because of my photography skills ( NB:  I walked away with some fantastic looking images from the night) and NO it was NOT due to any of my equipment with regards to any faults (NB:  Again I walked away with some fantastic looking images from the night).

So lets move on.  Now would you be surprised to learn that what made this night my worst shoot ever to date was in fact "PEOPLE".  Yes, readers that is "PEOPLE" it was "PEOPLE" that made me have the worst photographic assignment ever yet to date.  So where did the problems start for me on that night in question? 

Well let's find out then, shall we? 

I arrived early at the event which I was asked to cover by a certain company who had asked me one week prior to the actual night of that event.  Now when I approached the staff of that event whom were stood at the main doors of that event, I explained to the staff that I was a photographer working on behalf of the said certain company.  With  in seconds one member of the staff told me that "They Already Had A Photographer".  Naturally I stood pondering on what exactly it was that the staff member had just said to me?  Then all of a sudden another staff member asked to look at my cards, I showed her them and then kindly asked her if it was possible to speak with the promoter of the event?  This member of staff now granted me access to the event but only on the condition that it was only to speak with the promoter of the event.  Not long after entry I quickly made contact with the promoter of the event.  However, the promoter of the event told me that she had not "confirmed" my attendance for the event with the company that I was working on behalf for.  Bascily readers to cut a long story short I managed to get into the event in the end.

So did things get any better from that point in time?  No!!  They only started to get even worse.  For example the promoter of the event came over to me and asked me to photograph her and her friend.  Thus I did, however my camera was not on the correct setting which I wished it was to be on.  But some how I got the impression that even if my camera was on the correct setting that I wished it was on, then that would NOT of stopped / prevented the promoter of the event from saying this "I don't like it, delete it".  Thus I did indeed delete it and just continued to carry on with my job. 

Now by this time I did quickly learn that I was not the only photographer who was working at this event.  As a matter of fact some of these photographers were working for a renowned company with in the club land business.  As such I don't feel that these photographers were taken to kindly to the fact that I was there to work too.  Likewise may I just point out to my readers that this renowned company that these photographers  do work for have been covering  / working with this event / possible with the  promoter of the event for what appears to be a very long time now.  Hence me being the "Sheep Amongst The Wolves".  For example later on in the night the promoter of the event approached me and informed me that "I could not take photographs here" i.e. the exact spot that it was that I was standing at.  Now this is the funny part readers, later on in the night I spotted one of the photographers from the renowned company standing taking photos from the exact same spot which was of course the very same spot where the promoter of the event had told me that "I could not take photographs here".

Through out the entire event I kept on seeing  the tell tale signs of how some "PEOPLE" were doing everything with in their power to make sure that I was being "limited & disadvantaged" with regards to what I could produce photographic wise with my work.  Moving on there are many examples that I could give to my readers here on this blog with regards to what "Tricks" it was that was being pulled by these "PEOPLE".....  But I don't feel it is necessary for me to go into much detail as I feel by now that my readers of this blog entry will of no doubt by now of built up that "BIG PICTURE" of exactly what it was that was going on that night and what it was exactly that I my-self was up against.

To finish this blog entry, I can safely say that  at the end of the night  "I walked  away  with  some  fantastic looking  images regardless".

(C) Ulstertower Photographic

(C)  Ulstertower Photographic