Miguel @ Verizon Center

I’ll be honest (I usually am), Miguel’s set opening for Drake on Halloween night really blew me away. This was the perfect example of an opening act making use of a limited amount of space and lighting but still delivering his show for his fans. Miguel was ELECTRIC. He kept his performance (at least for the first three songs) contained to a small platform surrounded by a pretty impressive lighting set up in the middle of the stage, but he worked the shit out of that spot. It was mesmerizing.

Jumps, spins, high kicks, it’s not like Miguel just stood there. The lighting was also pretty great as far as backgrounds go. The entire crowd was watching him. This was no “Oh, we’re just waiting for Drake” crowd. They were all in on Miguel. He was great at making himself bigger than he actually was. His tasseled jacket and mic stand definitely helped.

SHOOTING NOTES: First three from the soundboard. I rented a 400mm/2.8 for this and still had to crop these images down a bit. Try and get as close to the middle of the soundboard as you can, as that’s the best angle to shot Miguel from. I was a bit too far over on the right (stage left) but was too worried about missing something good to move. Lights are a bit tough because they are basically pointing right at you, so just meter accordingly.

 

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Miguel @ Verizon Center – Images by Kyle Gustafson