Aura, Portland, Maine: A Documentary Photographer’s Field Guide Entry

It had probably been years since I’d been in this room. Back then they called it Asylum. I remember the stage being oriented in a completely different direction, low, almost like a fashion catwalk. A different era, a different room.

They redesigned it. New look, new name. Aura.

I walked in early, the way I always do. Empty, quiet, just like every other venue before the show. Everyone sees the final product. Nobody sees the load in, the sound check, the backstage stories. A bartender cutting fruit and staging glasses for the rush ahead. Security on patrol. Other bands having a few drinks, loosening up before their set. The machinery of the night being assembled piece by piece.

The control before the chaos.

Aura is the biggest room in the Portland market. National acts, local acts, and everything in between. A 1,000 capacity venue with a big stage, maybe thirty to forty feet across and deep enough to hold a full production staged toward the back, moved forward as the card progresses. Each band breaks down after their set and clears for the next. The room is tall, tiered, stadium style so everyone has a sightline. Bars on every level. The only open floor is stage front. Everything else is seated.

For a local band, filling Aura is a statement.

I had spent a little more than a week on the road with Moments Of. Six cities down the east coast in six days: Philadelphia, Baltimore, Raleigh, Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville. This was the last tour date. The homecoming. The cherry on top, if they could fill the room.

It was winter 2024 into 2025. A long day after work, but it was worth it. Local band, local club, local crowd. Time to get the bangers.

Getting In

Dan, the drummer, let me know my press credentials were waiting. Added to the guest list; check in with security on arrival.

Parking in downtown Portland is free after 6pm. On a weekday it’s tough. On a weekend, practically impossible. Find a garage. Save yourself the time and fuel of circling the block. It’s possible, but it’ll cost you.

I grabbed my camera bag and headed in. Security was already processing photographers for the other bands. ID checked, 21+ wristband, press badge issued.

I texted the band. Where do I go?

We’re in the greenroom. I’ll come get you.

Dan walked me through the main floor, past the stage. The greenroom is behind and below the stage on the ground floor. A second backstage security check: credentials verified, led by a performer. Greenrooms, plural. The headline act gets the largest, most well stocked room. Moments Of in the one directly adjacent.

One thing worth knowing before you try to get access to Aura: the house handles all of their own in-house photography. I found this out after attempting to become their house photographer. Don’t bother trying to get hired by the venue. Get hired by the band. They are your access.

The Scout

An hour or so before showtime. I’m scouting: checking sightlines, angles, obstructions, testing where I can and cannot go.

I had access to backstage, the stage itself, the press pit, and the balcony. As the opening acts played I dug deeper, testing the angles that felt compelling during the walk through. The balcony. The wings. The elevated positions.

They didn’t work. Not because they were too far or bad angles. They just didn’t feel right. My instinct is always to get close. It’s a concert. Feel the breath of the lead singer. Feel the drum beats percuss the air into something physical. I needed to get closer. I had to feel it: the blood, sweat, and tears. Fill the frame.

The photo pit. That’s where I was going to get it.

I picked my go-to lens: a 50mm prime equivalent on APS-C. A natural look that mimics human vision. Tight but not too tight. Wide enough for nearly full body at that distance.

The Show

Bands love a crowd with energy. This crowd, the biggest Moments Of had played to yet. The vibe, the best yet.

House lights down. Here we go.

It’s dark. Really dark. The kind of dark where your camera struggles to find focus. Not enough light to lock on. Spotlights splash beams across the stage, dynamic, color-shifting. The smoke machine makes everything hazy, highlight bloom across the frame, multi-colored laser beams dancing to the music.

First song. I moved from bandmate to bandmate, covering everyone, getting the heroes. Second song, same. Then get artsy. Mid-set, lead singer Benny got the crowd riled up, told a short story about a friend who inspired the song, urged anyone who needed help to get it. The message landed. Then he opened it up. If you know the song, sing along.

The crowd went wild. Lighters up. Phone lights substituted for the same effect. I turned my camera on the crowd: the berserkers up front, the quieter ones toward the back not quite sure what to do with themselves. Everyone rocking. Everyone in it.

Aura is tiered almost like a playhouse. Stage floor for the hardcore fans, bowling up through the levels, balcony overhead with its own world up there. Moments Of, final show of the tour. Biggest crowd yet. Biggest energy yet.

The final song. The band, sweaty from the lights, the crowd, the instrument work, crushed it. Best performance of the tour. I hopped on stage for the last shot. Moments Of, interlinking sweaty arms in front of the crowd. Portland to Tampa, and back again.

I felt proud of them. And proud to have been a part of it.

Shooting Live Music: The Technical Reality

Live music rooms are dark. With rare exceptions, all of them, dynamic lighting that never makes the same move twice. Various colors, or one dominant color. Usually red.

An APS-C camera will work. I used one the entire tour. But I’d recommend a full frame body with fast glass. The exposure math works out to more light, and you’ll need every photon you can get. Fast primes or a fast standard zoom. 35mm or 50mm equivalent as your anchor.

Your autofocus will struggle. There is nothing you can do about it. Your shutter speeds will be slower than you’d ideally use to freeze action, but chase fast shutters and high ISO and your images will be grainy in all the wrong ways.

Get close. Work the light. Learn your camera so you can operate it without seeing it. It’s going to be dark. Make it muscle memory.

This was the final stop of a six-city run. Read the full tour Field Notes in On Tour with Moments Of. Looking for coverage of your own band or venue? Start here.

Aura, Portland, Maine. This is an entry in A Documentary Photographer’s Field Guide to Maine: firsthand accounts from inside the work. Built for photographers, musicians, business owners, and anyone who wants to know this state from the inside.