I Do It For The Bands.

Back when I started recording bands, my goal was to bring the madness to the masses.  I would be all over the place while attempting to get a few seconds of footage. I wanted it to be raw and In your face,

Sometimes I paid for the event and had no pass.  Other times I was allowed because of reputation. Otherwise, I showed up with a camera to do as I please. There were many cameramen at these events.  In a time where folks were making DVD's and selling them. I was posting online.  What secured that for me was, everybody knew me and exactly where my footage was going.

I used my notoriety to my advantage;  In 1998, If you waked between a band, you got beat up. In 2005 I broke many ranks, nobody stopped me.  There were also times I've gotten stopped before entering events because my camera was "Too High Tech" and I didn't have a pass. I've even had to talk my way out of a hater attempting to get me kicked off the field.  That was due to a guy thought I was ranking on his hustle.  My notoriety saved me.

Over the years, the number of people with Passes has grown.
I've seen Media teams come about and I Love it.  I've also seen people with passes doing absolutely nothing.  Some stand there with their phones out, getting in the way of those of us trying to capture the greatness in action.

 Every big SU game, 40 people are on the sideline with passes watching SU's band. Gerard, Barry, Spiderman and myself are the only folks recording from the field while Kevin Robinson was snapping pictures. Guys like Eddie Rideau were recording in the stands. I wasn't very knowledgeable of what I was doing. But I stood among the few, the proud.
For us, there were unofficial rules among our ranks that we followed.  Sometimes I broke the rules to get exclusive footage. That footage is still hotter than some of my better quality footage to date.

Individuality mattered. I showed up to do events to capture things nobody else would record. That's where I found my audience. I wasn't directly doing it for hits. I was doing it for the people in the band to see themselves online.
With youtube allowing more clip length. I began trying to tell a story with my footage.  My goal was to capture not only the bands but the essence of the band community.  I think I accomplished that.

Eventually, it became a game of "Who could upload fast enough to get the hits, then it became quality over everything, which is GREAT! Now when I go to events, there are  20 Monopods in the air at similar angles capturing the same thing. That itself is a double-edged sword. Quality isn't a problem because we're all using the same equipment. The big difference takes place in the handling of the camera and when producing the videos.

There would be nothing wrong with that if folks weren't trying to impede on others.  We are all in the same gang.  Individually, you have to find your niche.  Yes, you can capture the essence of the event without trying to outshine the next man.  Know your role, do your part.

Most of the guys today provide visually stimulating footage, and I love it.
It's way better than anything I've ever done. I don't even have to do it anymore because I've done my part.  I have learned that this Video thing has never been about me. So I don't do it for me. I don't do it for the hits. I do it for the Bands.

- Book