For the past handful of years I've been creating a favorite photos of the year post over at BrooklynVegan.com where I've been a long-time contributor. Click the links to see my year-end posts at BV from 2012, 2013, and 2014.

This year, however, due to a myriad of factors, I decided to stop shooting for BV once I moved back to New York in May. My last show for BV was Father John Misty for BV Chicago in April.

So, this year, I'm posting my own Photos Of The Year gallery. I've been fortunate to cover some wonderful events from South By Southwest for Spotify to Governors Ball for Time Out New York. But this year ended up being a lot of shooting for myself: go to a gig, bring the camera, make some photos. Sometimes I worked a show really hard, sometimes I made a few photos and put the camera away and just enjoyed the show.

And it wasn't just covering gigs. I flew out to California before I returned to New York. Photographed for Spotify at the beautiful Soho Desert House before renting a car to drive up Highway 1 to San Francisco. From there it was on to Portland and then Seattle - a city I've been wanting to visit for pretty much ever. I took the Amtrak Empire Builder from Seattle to Chicago, then packed up my stuff and my cats and moved back to New York. I finally saw a game at PNC Park in Pittsburgh and stood in awe at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater.

This year has certainly felt like a transition year. Valuing myself as a photographer, reluctant to photograph things for free (and being more vocal about those who continue to undervalue photographers and the craft of photography,) returning to New York with a renewed sense of purpose and a confidence that was listing before a much-needed break in 2014.

I feel I've made some of my best work in 2015. The edits tighter, the compositions perfected, instincts sharper. A lot of that has to do with my full transition to Fuji mirrorless cameras. Starting with an x100 in 2014 and then picking up the X-T1 in February 2015, these cameras dovetail perfectly with how I see the world and how I want to shoot. It's freed me up to be the photographer I used to be back when I started shooting, now 16 years ago.

So, thank you for looking, liking and clicking on all the links at my various social media outposts. if you're a band or a client I've worked with, thank you for trusting me to cover your show, your recording session, event, etc. Hopefully, we'll work together in 2016 and by this time next year I'll be thanking even more of you.

See you on the other side,

Dominick

New York, NY, December 31, 2015

My introduction to The 1975 was at SXSW 2013. Shooting my first Jim Eno Session for Spotify, I had the pleasure of spending a few hours watching the band work through a handful of songs for their session (which you can see my exclusive photos here and listen to their session here.) Every song was an earworm, full of catchy melodies, harmonies, and hooks. We had the guitar riff to "Chocolate" in our heads well after the band had left the studio.

As these things happen, I kept missing them live, but was fortunate to sort out a couple passes through a friend of the band for their . Not only did the band sort me and my friend out, but they were kind enough to give us VIP as well.

Terminal 5 is a much-maligned venue for their dodgy sound issues. As a photographer, I have less an issue with their sound problems than I do whether I can get my cameras into the venue without a photo pass. And Terminal 5 is generally the worst at getting cameras in. I still brought my cameras with me anyway and hoped for the best.

I won't give away how I did it, but I managed to get my cameras in. Two cameras, one prime lens on each, and without pit access, I nabbed as nice a spot as I could from the VIP perch on the balcony, one level up. You make the best photos you can given the situation and the gear you have with you.

The stage set up for The 1975 is brilliant, maybe a bit too heavy on the smoke machine, but the light show is phenomenal. I've been to sold-out shows at T5 before but never seen it as packed as that evening. The swaying mass of girls upfront was amazing and a little frightening because it was very much a situation where I could see people getting crushed at the barrier. At one point, lead-singer Matthew Healy even told the crowd to take two steps back, not that they were listening.

The show was mental. The band flawless. The crowd losing their shit. As always, I tried to strike the right balance between shooting and enjoying the show - especially since I wasn't on assignment. But the light show made it difficult to not make pictures. And toward the end of the show I worked my way to the uppermost balcony and was able to capture a few shots to breakup the sameness of the shots from the VIP section.

2016 looks to be a big year for The 1975 with a new record on the way. Along with it comes the graduated step up from Terminal 5 to Barclays Center in May which I really hope to be at.

Photos from the show are below. What the set lacks in different images is balanced by how creative and colorful the set design is.

All images © Dominick Mastrangelo