Earlier this month I shot a handful of concerts for Avril Lavigne. She’s currently on tour to support her album, “The Best Damn Thing” and is putting out a live DVD from the Toronto show.

I’ve worked with Avril before but had not seen this tour. She really knows how to work an audience and her fans love it. The last time I photographed her she was just a kid, but now at the ripe old age of 23 she really seems to be having fun on stage.

 
 

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On Sunday I flew to Grand Rapids, MI for the afternoon to photograph Mayday Parade.

The band picked me up at the airport in their rental RV. It’s a major step up from the beat up van that most bands travel in when they’re on tour.

I immediately hit it off with Brooks the guitarist because he was reading a book about how to properly play and bet blackjack. I learned the game by playing a video game when I was a kid. I still enjoy playing whenever I find myself in Vegas or Atlantic City. Not big money – just for fun.

Good luck Brooks and let me know how you fare.

I took the guys downtown near the river and we spent a couple of hours shooting. I always like to make people scream for photos and it was easy to get the guys into it. I usually scream first and then they follow along.

I’m surprised that no one called the police as we were right in front of the Gerald Ford Museum.

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For the last 4 or 5 years, Sports Illustrated has assigned me to cover the NFL draft. On the days leading up to the event, they take some of the top prospects around New York City and I’m granted exclusive access to ride around town with the guys.

It’s a bit like Groundhog Day considering that they pretty much do the same 6 or 7 events every year — the network morning shows, football drills with local kids, visiting sick children at Mt. Sinai Hospital, etc.

I’ve posted a few images of #1 pick Jake Long:

 

- Having makeup put on with his mother for the Today Show:

- Getting destroyed at Wii boxing by a 10 year old at Mt. Sinai:

- Looking at cheap handbags on the streets on NYC with fellow draftee Chris Long (no relation):

 

It’s pretty funny to see them checking out the wares on the street because Jake signed a deal with the Dolphins for almost $60 million. I’m sure Chris, son of hall of fame player Howie Long, won’t do so badly either since he was the #2 pick on Saturday.

Overall, this group of guys was great to deal with and didn’t seem to mind me being in their face for two straight days. I spent some time chatting with Boston College QB Matt Ryan and was really impressed with him. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders.

He’ll need it because he was the third overall pick and will be taking the reins for the Falcons someday soon. Their last star quarterback (2001 #1 draft pick Michael Vick) didn’t fare too well.

At the draft itself, I put a lot of pressure on myself to make unique photos each year at Radio City Music Hall. This time I set up a couple of remote cameras including one with a fisheye lens behind the stage.

 

Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. I’ll let you decide.

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Entertainment industry website Starpolish recently interviewed me for a feature piece. Here’s their intro:

Professional photographer David Bergman has figured out a way not to have a “job” — he loves what he does so much, it rarely ever feels like work. StarPolish Associate editor Kristina Mondo recently caught up with Bergman to talk about shooting sports and music, how he got his start, and what he thinks of the paparazzi.

Read the whole thing here.

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I traveled all the way down to Williamsburg in Brooklyn today with my assistant J. Karsten Moran. When you live in Manhattan, going to Brooklyn is like going to another country. The truth is that it was only about a 45-minute cab ride, but I digress.

We spent some time shooting three guys in the band A Place to Bury Strangers. Somehow I forgot to ask them about the name, but maybe it’s better that I didn’t.

The guys were great, so we spent some time shooting a few different set-ups with a lot of lighting.

I was just about ready to pack it in when I saw this wall with three cutouts in it. Karsten said, “Why don’t you put them with their faces in the holes?”

I shot it using only available light in open shade, and it turned out to be the best image from the day. Thanks, Karsten!

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