Arena - Muckelshoot Casino
I recently had the opportunity to photograph Arena once again, this time at the Muckleshoot Casino in Auburn, WA. I was genuinely excited to work with them at this venue because the lighting setup was far better than previous shows—giving me a real chance to capture the images I had envisioned. My goal was to make the stage look larger than life and get those epic, dynamic shots that truly showcase the energy of a live performance. What made this experience even better was the freedom to move around the venue. That flexibility allowed me to work with the same lens setup I mentioned in a previous post: mainly the 85mm f/2.8 for crisp portraits, the versatile 24-120mm f/4 for a mix of wide and tight shots, and a few ultra-wide stage captures using the 10.5mm f/2.8.
Prepping for the Shoot
When I’m preparing for a concert shoot like this, I follow a few key steps to ensure I’m 100% ready to capture the best possible images:
Clean the camera sensor — no dust allowed. Even a single speck can ruin a great shot.
Clean all lenses — clarity is everything.
Format all memory cards — I always start fresh with newly formatted CFexpress cards.
Charge batteries — I bring at least three fully charged batteries with me, just in case.
The drive to the venue took a couple of hours, which gave Linda and me time to chat and catch up. She also took the opportunity to read through a screenplay I started writing back in 2013, which I’ve recently been putting some finishing touches on. But that’s a story for another post.
While she read, I was mentally preparing—visualizing the shots I wanted, the angles I’d aim for, and how I’d use the lighting to my advantage.
First Impressions of the Venue
Since I had never shot a show at Muckleshoot before, I arrived early to scout the space and get a feel for the lighting rig. Walking into a new venue for the first time is always a bit of a mystery, but I was quickly reassured: the lighting setup was solid, and I knew I was going to walk away with some great images.
First song out, the lights were all red. For me, red is the worst because it washes out al the facial features and the only way to really save images like this, is to convert them to B&W and you can see in the example above.
The Red Light Dilemma
The first song kicked off—and the entire stage was bathed in red light. For concert photography, that’s one of the most challenging lighting scenarios. Red tends to blow out detail, especially in faces, making it nearly impossible to retain the texture and emotion you want in a shot. It washes out the contrast and creates a flat, almost ghostly look.
The best way I’ve found to salvage images under these conditions is to convert them to black and white. You can see an example above—what started as a red-saturated shot actually became a pretty powerful monochrome image. It’s one of those cases where a limitation forces you to get creative.
Dialing in the Exposure
At this point in the show, I focused on dialing in my exposure settings. I switched to Aperture Priority mode, set my ISO to 2500, and kept an eye on my shutter speeds, which typically ranged between 1/320 and 1/500 of a second. That gave me enough speed to freeze the action while still letting in enough light.
To help protect the highlights—especially with those unpredictable stage lights—I shot at -1/3 EV. That slight underexposure gave me a little more headroom in post to recover detail without blowing out key areas of the image.
By the second song, I had everything dialed in. The lighting was spot on, and Darlene was already lighting up the stage with her vocals.
Getting the Whole Band
First order of business: make sure I captured a solid shot of each musician. The drummer, CJ, proved to be the biggest challenge. He was tucked way back in a pocket of the stage with almost no light hitting him. Early in the set, it was nearly impossible to get a usable shot—but luckily, later in the show, I managed to grab a few decent frames when the lighting shifted just right.
Next time, I might bring a small LED light to help illuminate his face, or see if Chuck—the band’s lighting guy—can give me a hand. Drummers always seem to get the short end of the stick when it comes to stage lighting, and I want to make sure they get their moment too.
Monty Smith on Guitar
Tina Hart on Vocals
Tommy Wall on Bass
CJ on Drums
Capturing It All
The performance was fantastic, running just under two hours—and I ended up shooting over 370GB worth of images, totaling more than 8,000 shots. That number might seem high, but there was a reason behind it. I needed a wide variety of images the band could use for marketing—everything from tight performance shots to wide angles, candid moments, and behind-the-scenes energy. I was constantly moving around to get different perspectives and keep the coverage dynamic.
One of the best parts of the night was the lighting. The lighting tech at Muckleshoot Casino did an outstanding job. It wasn’t just static stage lighting—the colors and moods shifted throughout the set, giving the show a fresh look and feel from beginning to end. That variety made my job not only easier but way more fun creatively.
Top Shots + Full Gallery
Below are my top ten favorite images from the show, and beneath that, you’ll find a gallery with some additional favorites that didn’t quite make the top list—but still deserve a spot.
If you’re looking for a photographer in the Pacific Northwest to capture your band’s performance, I’d love to hear from you. Head over to my contact page and drop me a message with the show date and location, and I’ll be happy to provide a quote. Whether it’s a small venue or a big stage, I’m all about telling the story of your performance through powerful imagery.
