David Polston Freelance LLC: "Soap Box Shot"

Saturday, September 17, 2011

"Soap Box Shot"

I have to get up on my soap box a little for this. As you know, I shoot 90% of my work at concerts and live shows. This particular concert was the loudest I have ever heard and I use industrial ear protection. This little girls parents chose to bring her to the show and it looks like she enjoys it. However, this image makes me angry every time I see it. PLEASE be responsible and make her (and other children) wear ear protection when you come to these things. If you are an adult, you should too but she can't consciously make these decisions for herself. Put ear plugs on your list to bring! She wasn't wearing them but should have been.

Thanks!

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Biography

Biography

It’s a little strange for me to write my own bio… I’d rather you just see my photos. But I grew up in the Hampton Roads Area of Virginia and I had no real dreams of becoming a photographer. I actually wanted to be an architectural designer. But oddly enough, I can tell you the exact moment that I realized I had a natural passion for photography.

I was dating this girl when I was 16 and we went on a retreat with a large youth group one weekend. I had a cheep 110 plastic camera with me. Remember those? I had, over the course of the weekend, taken a roll or two and when I had the prints processed, I notice one particular image. It was my girlfriend, walking away from me on a landscape timber that lined a pathway. As she balanced herself on the side of the path’s barricade, the sun shown down through the trees and to me, looking at that 3x5” print was magical.

In 1993 I turned ‘pro’ by managing and photographing in a studio in Nashville Tennessee. This was a portrait studio that catered to an all female client base. There we used Mamiya C330 film cameras with a 6-light setup to capture formal, casual and boudoir portraits plus everything in between. During this time in the early 90’s I started freelancing a little here and there for the local newspaper, church, the occasional weddings, party and pretty much whoever would hire me.

The past 25 years I have balanced my family life, social life and business life with my ever-present freelance photography work. I photographed part time weddings, portraits, architectural and stock photography and a lot of school sports with my kids. But in 2010, I was inspired by another photographer to rebuild my concert photography. I contacted a local arena and asked for a photo pass so that I could shoot ‘concerts of the rock stars’! I had planned to do this for one season. After 3 or 4 weeks of my ‘rebuilding time’, I had landed house photographer positions for 6 major venues in my area and have been working for them ever since. This has led me into the theater market and local government event photography as well as expanding my other portraiture.

Through a little rejection and a lot of persistence, my photographs have been internationally published in places I have never heard of. I was passionate about the girl on the timber in the woods path. I am just as passionate about style in which I photograph today. I am a freelance photographer based out of Norfolk Virginia. I shoot big, noisy, high energy concerts… and I love it!

Oh, by the way, you know that girl in the photo I mentioned? We’ve been married for 24 years now and have 2 wonderful daughters!