To make connections in the Brown County community— to find out who’ s who— she volunteered and used her business acumen on the arts commission for strategic planning. She got to know people at the Brown County Music Center and volunteered to photograph some shows. Her work impressed, and she was hired as house photographer in January 2020.
She said she wanted to get to know the community and figure out her place.
“ I don’ t try to fix a problem,” she said.“ I try to find a solution or fulfill a need.”
How long she gets to shoot during shows at the Music Center usually is determined by the artist. Often, she gets the first three songs to shoot up close, but some artists don’ t allow even that. The work can require research. For the Halestorm show, for example, Wedel watched recent concert footage and learned that during the second song, singer Lzzy Hale, stands close to the guitarist. Wedel made sure to capture the moment.
She said she enjoys combining her artistic talents and technical knowledge of photography to capture people during a performance and then share those photos to elicit viewer comments such as,“ I remember when they did that song.”“ It’ s really rewarding,” Wedel said. She now is a full-time photographer thanks to the work at the Music Center; senior, engagement, and product photos; and gallery nature / landscape shots. She primarily shoots with two Nikons, a D800 and a D750, mostly using 24-70 and 70-200 mm lenses.
She also enjoys astrophotography. One of her favorite photos shows the Milky Way and a seemingly endless number of stars in the top 75 % of the photo, but at the bottom, a group of people is illuminated. Wedel explained that she hit the shutter on the camera and left it open for about 20 seconds, during which she crept up close to the group and used a flashlight to“ paint them with light” so that they could be seen in the photo as
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Brown County Music Center
Jan. 22 The Mavericks Feb. 2 Emmylou Harris Feb. 5 Wynonna Judd with the Big Noise
Mar. 5
Chris Janson with
Ray Fulcher & Shane Profitt Mar. 12 The British Invasion Mar. 13 Little Feat Mar. 18 Tower of Power
Mar. 19 Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros
Featuring The Wolfpack Mar. 27 Graham Nash Apr. 21 Classic Albums Live
Performs Led Zeppelin II Apr. 25 Willie Nelson & Family May 20 Gordon Lightfoot May 21“ Weird Al” Yankovic
For additional shows and tickets visit: www. BrownCountyMusicCenter. com Health check required for all shows
Jan./ Feb. 2022 • Our Brown County 31