Top 10 Photo Galleries of 2011

TOP10

As with any great Top 10 List popping up in December 2011 / January 2012, I Shoot Reno’s Top 10 Photo Galleries of 2011 will count down, from 10 to 1, our most highly revered photo galleries published throughout the year.

“There have been a lot of great times I’ve shared with the city of Reno and its fine people since relocating here in 2010, and I feel that the experiences I’ve been lucky enough to capture and share with the world are well represented here in terms of good times and once-in-a-lifetime moments shared by those brave enough to leave the comfort of home and experience the world’s biggest little city for all it has to offer.” -Brian Ball ~ Founder, I Shoot Reno

Mayday @ Knitting Factory Concert House, Reno, NV 2011-06-26
Gianni Cash (L) and Bernz (R) of ¡Mayday! rockin' out in Reno...

#10: Mayday @ Knitting Factory Concert House

As the first group to open for Tech N9ne on the All 6’s and 7’s tour, Mayday performed well beyond any and all expectations.  Definitely a group worth checking out!


Trashion Show @ The Alley, Sparks, NV 2011
Veronica Coleman showcasing her (paper) threads during Trashion Show: Everyday to Obscure

#9: Trashion Show: Everyday to Obscure @ The Alley, Sparks, NV

One of the first galleries published on IShootReno.com, Trashion Show: Everyday to Obscure at The Alley in Sparks was a super-fun shoot comprised of scantily clad women adorned with the finest of recycled items, strutting their stuff and generating donations for several worthy causes.


Praying for Greater Portland @ Tonic Lounge, Reno, NV 2011
Clint Sleeper of Praying for Greater Portland with cell phone modulators in-hand

#8: Praying for Greater Portland + Spacehunter @ Tonic Lounge

Praying for Greater Portland aka Clint Sleeper was the first shoot for IShootReno.com, and actually took place before the site was erected in April.  Clint wields a cellphone modulator like no other and deserves your attention for his experimental prowess alone.


Beats Antique @ Grand Sierra Resort 2011-05-13
Zoe Jakes and guest Kami Liddle in tandem, on-stage at Grand Sierra Resort...

#7: Beats Antique @ Grand Sierra Resort

What’s better than modern day America’s finest live electro / world / dubstep group fronted by an obscenely gorgeous belly dancer?  When her friend joins in the fun and the stage is bombarded by costumed characters who enact a full on murder montage and finish, exhausted, in a lifeless bloody massacre … in celebration of Friday the 13th.


Neko Case @ Knitting Factory Concert House, Reno, NV 2011-07-05
Neko Case showing off her acclaimed singer-songwriter prowess...

#6: Neko Case @ Knitting Factory Concert House

Two words: Neko F—ing Case.  She’s in-replicable; made of one part hellfire and another holy water.  An always-evolving, red headed musical tornado that is having her way with rural and suburban communities alike, all across the world.


Toots and The Maytals @ Knitting Factory, Reno, NV 2011
Toots caught in the lens flare...

#5: Toots & The Maytals @ Knitting Factory Concert House

There are men and there are legends.  Toots is, I can proudly say, both.  With a decorated career in reggae music which spans 50 (or more?) years, this is one artist I deeply appreciate coming through Reno for a performance at The Knit.


Y La Bamba @ Knitting Factory Concert House, Reno, NV 2011-07-05
Luz Elena Mendoza of Y La Bamba caught in an energized guitar + vocal delivery...

#4: Y La Bamba @ Knitting Factory Concert House

I’ll be the first to admit that 2011 was a year of amazing headlining acts coming through Reno, but what many might not know is that the opening acts put on just as good, if not better, performances at times.  Y La Bamba might not have shown up Neko Case in an on-stage battle, but they did garner more page views on IShootReno.com.  Great music too, Y La Bamba.  Keep it up!


Reverend Horton Heat @ The Alley, Reno, NV 2011-07-10
The Rev laying down a smoking hot set at The Alley...

#3: Reverend Horton Heat @ The Alley

The Rev.  Eat steak, eat steak, eat a big ‘ol steer, eat steak eat steak do we have one here?  Rockabilly never sounded so good and this blazing summertime performance is one for the record books.


Tech N9ne @ Knitting Factory Concert House, Reno, NV 2011-06-26
Tech N9ne striking a pose for the camera at Knitting Factory Concert House...

#2: Tech N9ne @ Knitting Factory Concert House

What a crazy show Tech N9ne puts on!  I can safely say that I will be among those attending another Tech N9ne show here in Reno (hopefully in 2012) and this indie rap / hip-hop artist is showing mainstream music a thing or two about die hard fandom.  Take notes world, this is how you do it.


Swingin Utters @ The Alley, Sparks, NV, 2011-07-10
Johnny Peebucks of Swingin' Utters delivering an explosive performance...

#1: Swingin’ Utters @ The Alley

Who took #1?  Swingin’ Utters, that’s who!  There was more blood, spit and sweat on the floor of this show than I’d care to mention, and what we didn’t take with us in our heads (or hearts), we took with us on the bottom of our boots on the way through The Alley and out into Victorian Square.  What a great band, what a great venue.  What a great city, Sparks!


Well there it is.  Our first and finest Top 10 list to grace the bytes of the internet.  Here’s looking forward to the many more memories to be made in 2012!


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I Shoot Reno Featured on I-80 Digital Billboard in Knitting Factory Ad

sage francis knitting factory billboard
A recent shot by I Shoot Reno of Sage Francis' Dec. 2011 performance featured on a digital billboard on I-80...

Not a whole gallery or any fancy camera mumbo jumbo here today… Just a bit of news and explanation as to why I might be seen doing the happy dance around town this week.  Say what?  Drumroll please …. <insert drumroll> … the Knitting Factory has chosen a recent shot (Nikon D7000 w/Nikon 50mm f/1.8D lens) featured in I Shoot Reno’s photo gallery of Sage Francis’ headlining set during the World AIDS Day benefit show.  Local hip-hop / blues / funk / soul group Status-FLO were among the opening acts and the evening was a total gas … magnum condoms and all.

I know I said there wouldn’t be any fancy camera mumbo jumbo, but I would like to note that I DID NOT TAKE THE PHOTO OF THE BILLBOARD ABOVE.  That’s right, wifey hooked this one up on her iPhone 4S while out running errands this afternoon.  I needed a photo to post on Instagram for the day and proceeded to import her shot into TiltShiftGen for the blur you see at the top / bottom thirds, continued on to add a white rectangular border and white vignette in FX Photo Studio followed by filling the square with white space (Instagram only) in Squaready.

If you’ve been following my recent posts, you have probably seen several ‘photographic firsts’ mentioned since mid-November, and I am proud to state that having my work published in plain view of the public eye, in the form of an advertisement on a digital billboard, is definitely another notch in the ‘ol I Shoot Reno headboard.  Besides being one of my personal favorite venues in Reno, the Knit is proving itself more and more as time goes on to be the definitive concert venue of Northern Nevada.  Interested in catching an upcoming show at the Knit?  Check here and here for some suggestions.

Now if I can just get this picked up for some airplay in the stores / clubs here in town…