Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Saturday

Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Saturday

Romey

After an amazing Friday night, I stayed on the south side of Downtown Fort Collins, starting with the Pamlico Sound at the Colorado Room. It’s always great to check in with them at every FoCoMX, and it was a feat seeing just how many people they could fit on that stage.

The Pamlico Sound

Senorita Sometimes

I then walked over to the Atrium to catch Senorita Sometimes take the stage. They gave a great performance, matching the energy of an extremely packed venue eager to see them. This was the first time taking pictures at the Atrium, which features a skylight over the stage. I found that the musicians in the back of the stage had wonderful natural lighting, but the front of the stage was extremely dark. I did manage to get some cool contrasting shots.

Leah Casper & the LuneAtics

I then drove northward to the Lyric to meet up with Amy (my friend and lead singer) and see our friend, Kimberly, play guitar for Lead Casper & the LuneAtics. They had an eclectic instrumentation, including a harp and melodica. The Lyric’s psychedelic lighting poses a creative challenge for photographers.

Atom Son Of Man

We then ventured to 830 North to see our good friend, Felix, play bass in Atom Son Of Man. This had had a ton of charisma, especially for a three-piece, and was extremely entertaining.

King Crawdad

After having dinner, Amy and I met up with some friends to watch my friends Tucker and Miles play in King Crawdad at the R-Bar. We played this venue a few FoCoMX’s back, and the stage puts all the musicians on the same horizontal plane (as opposed to the drums often being in the back). Once you get adjusted, it’s a fun play, and they rewarded a great crowd with an incredible show.

More Than Physics

Coming full circle, we went back to Wolverine Farm to watch the amazing handpan percussion group, More Than Physics. They provide one of the most unique experiences of the festival, entrancing a full room of music-lovers.

Sorry, Sweetheart

At this point, I was planning to head back, but Amy convinced me to stay out a little longer and check out a few other bands, including Sorry, Sweetheart at Surfside 7. I’m glad she did, as I got one of my favorite pictures of FoCoMX.

CHIEF OJIH

One of the best aspects of FoCoMX is discovering new music and styles you normally don’t see. We ended our night experiencing CHIEF OJIH, an EDM artist, at the Atrium. His amazing set was the perfect way to cap off a surreal weekend of music!

Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Friday – Part 2

Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Friday – Part 2

Romey
Check Out FoCoMX 2026 Friday – Part 1

Angels in Electric Chairs

I got to Surfside 7 early to ensure I could see Attack on Venus and caught a good segment of Angels in Electric Chairs, a powerful 3-piece rock band from Denver. I was blown away by the level of sound and energy they projected. It made for some really fun pictures.

Attack on Venus

Attack on Venus took the stage next and maintained that powerful energy level into their set. Having some of my bandmates and other friends in the audience made for an incredibly fun show.

2MX2

I got to experience 2MX2 for the first time when they opened for Ozomatli in the fall of 2024. I was eager to see them again on the colorful Soundbar stage. They made things well worth the wait! It was challenging to move beyond the left side of the stage, confining my pictures to that side for this show.

The Swashbuckling Doctors

As Friday night was drawing to a close, I ventured down to Avogadro’s Number to see the last band of the night, our good friends, The Swashbuckling Doctors! Their shows are always entertaining, and their music is always so catchy! It was the perfect way to end an awesome FoCoMX night 1!

At the end of the day, I logged over 17,000 steps traversing through downtown Fort Collins, but for my music-loving ears, this was one of the best ways to spend an evening. Night 2 is coming up!

Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Friday – Part 1

Photographing FoCoMX 2026 – Friday – Part 1

Romey

This winter has been extremely busy for me, sucking up time from many of my passions, including drumming and photography. FoCoMX gave me an opportunity to reconnect with both. It was a soul-replenishing weekend that reignited my creative sparks.

Heart Medicine was lucky enough to play again this year. We were one of the first bands of the weekend, playing at Wolverine Farm at 5:30 pm. We were grateful to see so many friends make it out! With our set finished, I put my cymbals (we were backline sharing) away and broke out my camera, setting out to capture some amazing bands.

Eva Rose King, Robin Lewis, and Ingrid Avison

We actually had a little bit of time before our set and were able to catch some talented musicians. We saw Eva Rose King at the Magic Rat, then Robin Lewis on the Wolverine Farm patio. We need to extend our deepest apologies to her, as the proximity of our soundcheck likely disrupted her set. After packing up, I snapped a few photos of Ingrid Avison, who was playing at the Wolverine Farm patio.

Antonio Lopez Band

I popped into Salt Road Brewing to catch the Antonio Lopez Band. Fun fact: Antonio Lopez actually supported us in one of our first gigs, back in 2015, playing an acoustic set between our full-band sets. I love the instrumentation of his full band. I went a little crazy photographing Jonathan on the marimba. The lighting was perfect, his colors were vibrant, and he was playing an instrument that made it fun to capture motion.

Commander Yo and the Plutos

I journeyed back to Wolverine Farm to see Commander Yo, who I was pleasantly surprised to learn is the stage name of John, a bandmate of mine from my time in the Wiseacres Jazz Band! They put on a great show!

Foxfeather

I ping-ponged back to Salt Road Brewing to check out Foxfeather. who was a new “Heartthrob” shout-out band. They really rocked out the place!

Drunken Hearts

As the night wore on, it was becoming harder to pop into packed venues. I had to adjust my game plan by arriving at the venue long before the band you wanted to see took the stage. On my way back to Surfside, I managed to catch part of Drunken Hearts’ set on Old Town Square.

With all the photos I’ve taken, I’ve broken up Friday’s post into two parts. Be sure to check out Part 2.

Help Mariana raise money for her school, get a custom bookmark!

Romey

Mariana’s school’s only fundraiser, the Cougar Glow Run, is next week, and she would love your support! She’d like to make a bookmark for anyone who donates any amount, as a way to show her appreciation. After you donate, email me at jeromey [at] balderrama [dot] org with your three favorite activities and interests, and she’ll mail you a custom-designed laminated bookmark to keep your pages company. The Glow Run is raising funds for ViewSonic smart boards, field trips, and special classroom projects.

Donate to Mariana’s Glow Run
2025 Wrap-Up

2025 Wrap-Up

Romey

Happy New Year, everybody! As we embark on 2026, it seems fitting to reflect on 2025 and capture a few memories and favorites from the past year. Hopefully I’ll remember to do it this time next year, and each one following.

Major Adventures

Experiencing Iceland with Shannon and her family

Flying back east to visit my sister and her family, seeing a majestic waterfall, horse harness racing, and Cooperstown

Balderrama fun

Both girls were active in spring and fall volleyball, and they tried out (and loved) softball

Clara stepped back from dance to focus on other activities, including being in her middle school musical production of Mary Poppins. Mariana picked up the dance slack by doubling her classload, adding a Hip Hop class, in addition to Jazz

Both girls are in Student Council at their schools

Clara is in year two of playing the French Horn in band, and started taking choir this fall

We had to say goodbye to our dear dog, Cathy

Favorite Media

Concerts: I only saw two major concerts this year, Counting Crows with Shannon, Matt and Brianna at Fiddler’s Green; Benson Boone with the girls at Ball Arena.

Favorite Movies (I saw last year): Superman, Fantastic Four, Thunderbolts, Conclave

Favorite TV Shows (I saw last year): Pluribus, Andor, Silo, X-men 97 (I also dove into Better Call Saul)

Top Songs (as Scrobbled by Last.fm): Numb Little Bug (Em Beihold), Sorry I’m Here for Someone Else (Benson Boone), Little Bit Better (Caleb Hearn), Before You Leave Me (Alex Warren), Die with a Smile (Lady Gaga)

Here’s to 2026!