Sheryl Chapman recollects from the front row
By Max A. Herman

"A lot of people go to concerts and they just come away with a ticket stub and here I've got a couple rolls of film which have frozen that moment in time," said photographer Sheryl Chapman on her days of capturing shots of rocks most flamboyant stars.

As a regular concertgoer in the 80s, Chapman froze moments on stage of Metallica, Led Zeppelin and many others as she shot away from the frenzy of the front row.

It was at Alpine Valley, however, at an Aerosmith show, where Chapman's mission became most challenging.
"I had to sneak shots ," said Chapman. "You couldn't use a flash or anything. It was funny - this bouncer guy saw me shooting and the flash was going off. I didn't know I had a flash on and he came up to me and is like, "Give me the film!" I had an extra roll of film in my sock, so the lights went out and I bent down and gave him the empty roll of film. And at the end of the concert I had the audacity to go up to him and ask for the roll of film back. I said, Its empty, can I have it back? He's like, "Get out!""

When things weren't quite as taxing, Chapman easily glided into shows and documented the likes of her favorite acts, sometimes reaping unexpected benefits. After she shot a couple rolls of Robert Plant at a show, Plant proceeded to take Chapman's hand and sing "Custard Pie" to the audacious photographer.

Unlike other female admirers of these musicians, though, Chapman came for the action onstage, not backstage.

Today, the lights, sweat, wailing guitars and pounding speakers surround Chapman much less, but have not ceased from her existence as a photographer. In fact, Chapman spoke of a recent concert she shot at the Vic, which she describes as a "madhouse".

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