Capturing Coachella

This past weekend I traveled south to Indio, CA, for the Coachella music festival. It was so nice to get away from the stress of things up here. Unfortunately, the stress really beat up my immune system, so the entire weekend of music was overshadowed by some sort of laryngitis, achy-all-over, headachy, sneezy thing.

And it was hot! 100+ degrees hot. And of course the day we left, it cooled down to 80. Ah well.

What I love about music festivals is the energy. Even in 100+ degree weather, people are still dancing and singing (although much of it is under much influence of other things). For me, the music can take me over, bring goosebumps, smiles and even tears.

I love capturing those moments as well, but unfortunately, no big cameras are allowed. (Although I did see plenty around so I'm sure people smuggled them in.)

Still, there were plenty of things to take photos of with my Ai-phone. It was also a fun challenge to try and find different ways of capturing some of the scenes there.

The art installations were just fantastic. Colorful, peculiar, creative, and just plain cool.

I thought this one was fun. It was from the guys over at the Do LaB. It reminded me of Marge and Bart. 

I took a million shots of the balloons. They just made me happy.

And of course there was the ferris wheel. There are a million photos on Instagram of Le Grande Roue, some of them really creative, like this and this. I'm particularly fond of the one I took :-)

There are a lot of cool pics over on Instagram of the Coachella festivities. Feel free to follow me at ailoves to see my favs!

Instagram

Or Instagr.am. Why is it Instagr.am? Anyhow, I've had it on my Ai-phone, but I wasn't using it. Until last night. Weeeeee! What fun! It makes taking photos on a cell phone in a dark place so much more fun.

How appropriate is it that Phantogram was the subject of my first Instagram? I was pleasantly surprised with the show at the Fillmore. My sister asked me to go, but I had never heard their music. I'm a phan!

Opening band Reptar. 

Their keyboardist reminded me of Animal from the Muppets.

Music festivals

I feel like a teenage groupie these days, going to a million concerts, blasting my poor ear drums out, standing near the front line getting smooshed by true teenage groupies. Not sure if it's a midlife crisis, or that I just love music. I'll go with the latter.

Anyhow, this past Sunday was the Treasure Island Music Festival. It was a beautiful day, with the bay and the city as the backdrop. Unfortunately, my camera was temporarily confiscated as it was "too professional" to allow in the concert. Puh-lease. Ok, yes, I did have a 100-300 mm lens, but it's this cheap lens made by a company called Quantary. If you are looking to buy a zoom lens but can't afford the $500 price tag, this is a great one to start with.

Well, without my "professional" camera, it was just me and my iPhone 3G. (Obviously, I'm not a techie although I wouldn't mind getting the newest iPhone just for a better camera. But can I say that the new iPhones are more expensive than my "professional" camera lens? Am I bitter that I couldn't have my camera there. No, of course not.)

So Ai and her Ai-Phone (yes, I just went there). And Ai had my eye in the sky (oh, someone please stop me).

The Head and the Heart was just fantastic. A-ma-zing. I was singing and smiling from ear to ear. The sun was starting to set behind them, a breeze blowing their hair, wisps of fog dancing through them, and their harmonies were just luscious. It was a beautiful setting, not sure if that can even be captured on camera, professional or not.

The concert ended with Death Cab for Cutie, another favorite. I was hoping to see Zooey Deschanel (married to lead singer Ben Gibbard) up on the stage doing the chicken dance, but no such luck. There were some interesting jellyfish dancing though...

Next up, Bridge School Benefit? Tickets are sold out, but I'm going to see if I can get my hands on some...

Remember, I'm not a techie. Animated through gickr.com

Sunset on the bay

Musical happenings and other adventures

It's been a busy past few days--2 concerts, a 30-mile 1850 ft ascending bike ride, packed days at work and doing my volunteer duties. I feel like I've done a lot and yet for some reason still feel unfulfilled. Or it could be this chest cold that's bringing me down. I'm fighting it tooth and nail and will not let it conquer me. Especially since I'm starting a mini vaca today to celebrate my birthday. I'm so excited for this adventure and plan to enjoy every moment of it, no matter what happpens.

The street sign at the peak of my cycling route