Beware iPhone rant

[Rio]

It bugs me a little bit, but not enough to affect my enjoyment of any gig at all. If someone pays the money to go to a gig then as far as I care they can do what they like so long as they aren't abusive or aggresive towards anyone.

If someone constantly filming a gig is affecting your enjoyment then just ask them nicely to stop it.

I agree with the post about the annoying girl at Iceland Airwaves though, her snapping away was obviously affecting a large number of folk in the audience, and as was said it sounds like she was more interested in tweeting about it than actually being at it.... bizarre.

[bsolxiv]

BBC cover a tiny % of the music at Glastonbury, very interested in seeing 1080p fan footage of the rest myself, preferably from hardcore front-rowers who don't block peoples views.

[ethereal]

This is the only way I got to see radiohead at the Park last glasto.

If you could get an audio recording of the smaller gigs, then get people to upload any footage - edit it together and offer it out as a paid download of the gig I reckon people would pay for it. I know some bands are getting their fans to do this.

[tchristmas3]

Hopefully the fact that it's a festival rather than a one off gig, and the battery life of these phones is rubbish will mean that less people will have access to them?

Obviously there is the Chill and Charge tent but I think the majority won't bother with that.

I'll be happy taking my trusty little old Samsung with a week's battery life! The camera and video is pretty much non existent so there will be no threat from me!

[dondo]

I'm with the OP on this one

I'm a bit of a reformed filmer of gigs but stopped doing when a) I realised the qulaity was crap and I missed out on so much of the atmosphere etc. and probably the novelty of it wore off too.

Now I'll just take a few pictures as a monmento and enjoy the show.

But I was at OMD in Leeds last night and my 6 yr old daughter who likes OMD asked if we could take some video so I did a few 30 sec snippets but felt quite bad/guilty doing it. But I didn't do the holding it above my head bit as thankfully am tall so holding it in front of me worked OK

[cham08]

I dont really see the point in taking videos, cant see when you would actually watch them and it is a bit annoying when all you can see are a load of phone screens. Having said that I do take the occasional photo - and take more - the more I drink. Which is completely ridiculous as the quality of the pictures get worse.

Shouldn't be too much of a problem at Glasto though as all their batteries will be dead by Friday - unless the miss half the festival queing to charge them up.

Still each to there own.

[staggerlee]

The people who go to the effort of recording it, on a decent camera, and then upload it to youtube should be thanked. I've re-watched plenty of decent footage, particularly from Pulp's park set 2011.

Considering the festival is next month it would be great if we had less threads started by negative people and more for building excitement, discussing plans etc.

[Ruwise]

I have no objection to filming up to a minute or 2 of a favourite song but it does irritate me when you see people filming pretty much the entire gig particularly when they hold their phones at a stupid angle and are still singing and dancing as then I know the footage will be unwatchable and so they really are just being a nuisance.

I can't say I hate it though because if I've been to a gig and loved it I will usually go on You Tube and search for it in the hope that somebody has uploaded their footage so it would be hypocritical for me to say ban it. Personally I've filmed the odd clip but I do prefer to live in the moment and enjoy it.

[Teddington]

Really can't get excited either way.

I personally wouldn't film (maybe the odd snippet for posterity but that's rare and would have to be special).

If others want to spend the entire gig holding a phone......well that's their "problem"

Then again I am tall, so maybe that's a factor in my attitude

*shrugs*

[Midnight Man]

The people who go to the effort of recording it, on a decent camera, and then upload it to youtube should be thanked. I've re-watched plenty of decent footage, particularly from Pulp's park set 2011.

Considering the festival is next month it would be great if we had less threads started by negative people and more for building excitement, discussing plans etc.

[Zen_Paul]

To be honest, I never understood the concept of filming the whole gig using iphones/smartphone, its extremely anti-social.

I did filiming once through my iphone and I felt a bit rubbish and I barely looked at the video I made afterwards so there wasnt any point.

Although I like to film the real stars of the Glastonbury Festival... Us, me and you any tickets holders who brings a smile and personality, the festival punters who dressed up in their wacky costumes, crazy old men dancing at the stone circle, the little moments that make Glastonbury worth remembering and its worth showing to your mates and telling a few tales to them.

[gibbin82]

I can see why having a sea of phone screens might annoy people, but for me there are things that frustrate me a lot more. Including pissing in cups or bottles and throwing it (thankfully not as prevalent at Glastonbury as it is at some festivals), people who have huge flags (especially double poled ones) and insist on being as close to the front as they can get and not give a shit about blocking others view (too get on TV?), people (mainly the blokes) who insist on sitting on each others shoulders through the whole of the set (if they are very short and it is the only way they would see it is fairly acceptable, but again it is usually just to be on TV) and people who insist on screaming during the quietest passages of music, again on some occasions with certain genres of music acceptable. But I am thinking stuff like Floyd here, take a look at some of the footage of Roger Waters recent tours of the Wall on YouTube and there is always idiot who will insist on screaming throughout the set (and I am sure there are a few on here that feel they would scream uncontrollably if they were forced to sit through a Roger Waters concert ).

[Wooly Mammoth]

I've been one of those people filming myself (although only for 5min clips.. don't understand those who film the whole gig?), but when you get home you realise you've wasted your time. I agree, it is becoming really annoying, especially iPads/tablets. Google Glass might solve this problem...?

[fur_q]

Can't say it really bothers me either way, if that's what people choose to do a gig or festival then it's up to them.

If I'm really enjoying a gig then there's little anyone can do to distract me. TBH I think stuff like this only becomes an issue if you let it, it's a festival, your never going to get a perfect view (and sometimes the sound will be awful).

[_jojo_]

I'm short so find it difficult to see over people's shoulders and heads at the best of times, never mind then there's a sea of phones being held up too.

Fighting Fiction have a song called Cameraphones and Choruses which goes "Would you deny you your first kiss to stop and take a picture? Would you record the sound of laughter to play back a certain reminder? Could you really enjoy a song staring through a 2 inch screen when you’re really in the room when the band begins to sing?"

[Dead throne]

ya this pisses me off aswell

[LondonTom]

Ah this old topic, comes up every now and again.

I think the problem is, the masses have latched onto this as the done thing now. Much like Flags at festivals, it was ok when a few people done it in the crowd, infact useful! (There are some pretty good, decent quality gigw around on youtube.) but now it seems every other person at a gig has their phone/camara out for the entire gig which does end up spoiling it.

Saying that, I think there's other more distracting habits at most gigs, with people standing around chatting and playing on their phones before shoving their way in front for the big hits. Very few people seem to be there cos they actually enjoy the band that's on anymore.

[russycarps]

I blame robbie williams and that cack advert

[Guest]

People who moan about it, what's the point? Is it really that much of a distraction to you?

[Pinhead]

People who have to live their life through a smartphone screen and are more interested in letting all their 'mates' know where they are, and how amazing they are for being there, are part of the generation of neo-narcissists that now seem to dominate the 16-24 year area of demographic curve.

A generalisation? Sure, but not an unenlightened one I hope. Not everyone is rude with this new technology, but it does seem to be breeding a race of discourteous and conceited individuals.

[russycarps]

People who have to live their life through a smartphone screen and are more interested in letting all their 'mates' know where they are, and how amazing they are for being there, are part of the generation of neo-narcissists that now seem to dominate the 16-24 year area of demographic curve.

A generalisation? Sure, but not an unenlightened one I hope. Not everyone is rude with this new technology, but it does seem to be breeding a race of discourteous and conceited individuals.

[Dead throne]

People who have to live their life through a smartphone screen and are more interested in letting all their 'mates' know where they are, and how amazing they are for being there, are part of the generation of neo-narcissists that now seem to dominate the 16-24 year area of demographic curve.

A generalisation? Sure, but not an unenlightened one I hope. Not everyone is rude with this new technology, but it does seem to be breeding a race of discourteous and conceited individuals.

[zero000]

People who have to live their life through a smartphone screen and are more interested in letting all their 'mates' know where they are, and how amazing they are for being there, are part of the generation of neo-narcissists that now seem to dominate the 16-24 year area of demographic curve.

A generalisation? Sure, but not an unenlightened one I hope. Not everyone is rude with this new technology, but it does seem to be breeding a race of discourteous and conceited individuals.

Edited May 10, 2013 by zero000

[scaryclaireyfairy]

having a camera in your pocket is handy sometimes but it's gone well past tipping point and not just at gigs - life in general. it makes people too self-aware to know they're surrounded by people with cameras in their pocket. i went on a rant at the weekend about it. you can't let loose and enjoy yourself by doing whatever daft notion comes to you unless you're willing to end up on youtube/facebook doing it.

i wonder if memory problems will hit those living through their phone screens earlier? cos they're not really living those moments, they're observing them at best. does that sort of thing stick in your head as a memory?

[Pinhead]

An article I read the other day suggested that the vast majority of all this phone generated media is simply being deleted or never even looked at again as well. Sure plenty of it goes up to You Tube and other cloud media portals, but this still accounts for a lower than 2-3% of it all.