Boston & Rockport, MA

(June 15th-16th 2018)

I’ve been a fan of the Zac Brown Band for a few years now but have never been able to catch them live in concert. Earlier in the year I saw they announced a back to back series at Fenway Park in Boston and it seemed like the perfect time to make it happen. I had previously seen the Foo Fighters at Citi Field in New York where the Mets play and it was such a cool experience watching a concert at a major league ballpark. Boston is such a beautiful city and Fenway Park being one of the most unique and historic venue in all of sports made it a no-brainer. I hadn’t been up there in a while so decided to book a hotel room the night of the concert at the Boston Park Plaza hotel and make a weekend out of it. The location of the hotel made for a perfect homebase as it was just a few blocks from Boston Public Garden, Boston Common, and the Historic Beacon Hill area.

It was a beautiful afternoon so we decided to make the 2 mile walk through the Back Bay area to Fenway Park and grab some dinner before the concert. Walking down Lansdowne Street you could feel the energy and excitement of everyone getting ready to file into the venue. Our seats were down on the actual field so it was pretty wild to walk out to our section and look up at stands all around us. The headliners took the stage just as it was getting dark and from start to finish they did not disappoint. Zac & his entire band are some of the most talented musicians I’ve gotten to see perform and they had the crowd in the palm of their hands all night. Mixing in covers that you would never think a country group would take on with their collection of huge hits. One of the highlights was the band coming back for their encore by opening with Dropkick Murphy’s “I’m Shipping Up To Boston” and seeing the whole crowd go nuts for the hometown band’s song, with the bagpipe parts replaced by a fiddle. Even the security guard in my section danced with a few drunk fans in the aisle during the song before politely making them get back into their seats haha. Easily one of the best concerts that I’ve seen in the last year and was a great first experience to seeing them live.

The next morning I wanted to walk through the Public Garden and Common areas with my camera to see what I could capture. The light was a bit harsh but it was a great morning to stroll around and take in the views. I was able to get a cool shot of the Hancock Tower, the tallest building in Boston, framed in the distance between trees in front of the pond in the garden. Then headed over to Beacon Hill area and the famous Acorn Street, often mentioned as the most photographed street in America, which offers visitors a reminiscent ride back to colonial Boston. It was on this cobblestone street that 19th century artisans and trades people lived, and today the row houses are considered to be prestigious addresses in this desirable neighborhood. I had been to this street once before but hadn't been happy with the shots I came home with of it. So was happy to have another crack at capturing this beautiful scene before packing up to head out.

After checking out of the hotel I decided to head 40 miles north to the small shoreline town of Rockport that’s surrounded on 3 sides by the Atlantic Ocean. Lighting and cloud cover wasn't optimal for scenic shots but I had been wanting to shoot the infamous Motif Number 1. A red fishing shack on Bradley Wharf that is often called "the most often-painted building in America." I loved the composition of the shot I was able to get with the shack in the background and these vibrantly colored rowboats and fishing boats in the foreground leading up to it. Definitely want another crack at photographing it in more ideal lighting though. Walking around the marina I snapped a few more quintessential New England scenic shots before making the trek back home to Connecticut.