Black Wall Street Legacy Fest 2022 — Capturing Legacy and Celebration with the Sony A1

Tulsa, Oklahoma | May 2022

Overview

In May 2022, I was in Tulsa, Oklahoma to document the Black Wall Street Legacy Fest, a multi-day celebration honoring the history and resilience of the original Black Wall Street community. My role was to provide comprehensive event coverage—from intimate portraits to high-energy concert performances—that reflected both the heritage and the joy of the community.

The festival’s mission was to commemorate the past while celebrating the present. My goal was to create imagery that embodied that dual spirit—authentic, cinematic, and emotionally resonant.

“I wanted this to feel like a movie—alive, textural, and true to the spirit of Tulsa.”

Creative and Technical Objectives

The objective for this shoot was simple but demanding: capture the energy of the festival as if it were unfolding inside a film.

Live events like this demand flexibility, precision, and instinct. I chose the Sony A1 for its combination of speed, low-light performance, and dynamic range—a perfect tool for fast-moving environments with unpredictable lighting. The camera’s stacked sensor offered unmatched responsiveness, ensuring that fleeting moments of emotion were rendered cleanly and without motion distortion.

Gear and Setup

• Camera: Sony A1

• Lenses: Sony 24–70mm f/2.8 GM, 70–200mm f/2.8 GM, 24–105mm f/4 G

• Storage: Profoto CFexpress Type A cards

• Software: Adobe Lightroom Classic for culling, editing, and delivery

The Sony A1 was configured with a custom control layout that allowed for quick manual switching between the electronic viewfinder (EVF) and the rear screen. This setup made it easy to adapt between portrait sessions and on-stage performance coverage.

Every night, footage was backed up, culled, and edited within hours, ensuring rapid turnaround for festival organizers and media partners.

On-Site Experience

Shooting at the Black Wall Street Legacy Fest meant navigating a range of environments—from sunlit outdoor gatherings to dark, flicker-heavy concert stages.

The A1’s stacked CMOS sensor was crucial in eliminating banding issues from LED monitors and stage lighting, even during intense performances. The camera handled transitions from daylight to deep color lighting with ease.

A highlight moment came during David Banner’s headlining performance, when he playfully threw water at the crowd. The A1’s 30fps burst rate and real-time AF tracking captured every droplet midair—an image that perfectly encapsulated the joy and energy of the evening.

Portraits with Nikole Hannah-Jones

One of the most meaningful portraits captured during the festival was of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Nikole Hannah-Jones, creator of The 1619 Project.
Using the Sony A1 paired with the 70–200mm GM lens, I created an environmental portrait that balanced natural light with the ambient tones of the festival. The A1’s color accuracy and tonal flexibility made it possible to render her presence with both intimacy and gravitas.

“The A1’s color science and depth allowed me to capture the richness of tone and story in a single frame.”

Color and Post-Production

All images were processed in Adobe Lightroom Classic, using a film-inspired grade designed to emphasize warmth, tone, and cinematic depth.

The Sony A1’s 50MP RAW files held up beautifully under grading—offering wide latitude for exposure recovery and skin tone refinement without noise or artifacting.

Compared to my Sony A7R IV, the A1’s slightly lower megapixel count delivered superior responsiveness and file efficiency, which proved essential in an event workflow demanding both quality and speed.

Results and Impact

The resulting imagery became a visual archive of celebration and legacy, shared across the festival’s social channels and community platforms.
The Sony A1’s real-world performance reaffirmed its reputation as one of the most capable cameras for concert photography, event coverage, and editorial storytelling.

From crowd energy to personal portraits, the camera enabled a consistent narrative—one that balanced technical precision with emotional truth.

Behind the Scenes

🎥 Watch the full breakdown:
Shooting a Festival with the Sony A1 — Real-World Performance

In this video, I discuss the gear setup, camera configuration, and workflow used throughout the Black Wall Street Legacy Fest—plus real-time examples of the A1 handling complex lighting and rapid movement.

Key Takeaways

• The Sony A1 is exceptional for festival and concert photography, offering flicker-free performance under LED lighting.

• Its stacked sensor and burst rate make it ideal for capturing fleeting live moments.

• The film-inspired edit benefited from the A1’s robust RAW files, maintaining detail and color integrity through heavy grading.

• For photographers covering cultural festivals, live performances, or fast-turnaround editorial work, the A1 delivers a rare blend of cinematic quality and speed.