my journey into concert photography

It all began in 2015. I was renting studio space from an old friend in Atlanta named Gene. Gene was a great photographer and we bonded on our love for music. Specifically, metal bands. One day I went into his office and noticed he had prints all over the place with his live shots of various bands he’s shot over the years. As a young photographer, still trying to figure out what I wanted to do, I immediately became infatuated and had questions…lots of them. How do you get started? How do you get a photo/media pass? What camera settings do you use? Do you get paid? How do you get affiliated with a media outlet? The list goes on. Well…. here is my journey into the world of concert photography.

Photo by James Geiser. This is me in action shooting Coheed And Cambria.

First, I’ll give you a little back story. Since I was 14, I’ve been playing music. From garage bands to national touring bands, I was always working my ass off to try and make it as a musician. I did that for years until the flame just finally died. Shortly after, I was married and had a kid on the way. That’s when I picked up a camera and stumbled across my new passion for photography but no idea of what type of photography I wanted to pursue. After trying it all out; weddings, family photography, event photography, etc. I finally found my love and comfort in music and portrait photography. After all, I did come from a stage, so it only felt natural to return to it but with a camera instead of a guitar.

Dillinger Escape Plan

So back to that day in 2015 in Gene’s office. After talking shop with him and asking him all the questions that popped up in my mind, I remember one answer specifically. When I asked him how I can get in to shoot a show me simply asked “Have you reached out to any bands?” Well…no, I haven’t. Now here’s the part where I think I’m supposed to tell you how I earned my stripes and worked my way through the local bands, but that never happened with me. I was lucky…very lucky. First thing I did was go and email a new band at the time with a lot of buzz, Butcher Babies. I knew they were the next band to come to town, opening for In This Moment. I was expecting a rejection reply because I was just shooting for myself, no magazine, no website…just little ole’ Maq who was just starting off in photography. They had absolutely nothing to gain from me being there. Well, they said “YES”. My buddy, Gene and I took off to the show and had a blast. It was my first time in a photo pit shooting national act bands. I had no idea what I was doing. Gene spit out some basic camera setting to get me started and told me I need to change settings quick to keep up with the various lighting situations during the show and that’s also when I learned that I only get to shoot the first 3 songs. Man, I felt like I ran a marathon after those first 3 songs. It was at that moment that I fell in love with concert photography.

Slipknot

After that night, I created a small portfolio of the 4 bands that were on the lineup. I shopped it around to media outlets and magazines everywhere but constantly got denied. I kept reaching out to bigger bands and constantly got denied because I was not with an outlet and, let’s be honest, the pictures probably sucked. But then it happened. It was another day in Gene’s office when he told me that he was not having fun shooting concerts anymore and that he wanted out. He had already shot all the bands that he loves and it’s turning into a job at this point. A non-paying job at that. I selfishly and immediately asked if he can put in a word for me with the outlet, he shoots for to which he enthusiastically says “Sure”! So, Gene shot for Bravewords & Bloody Knuckles. I had never heard of them, and I had no idea of how reputable they were until some years later. They happily took me on, and I immediately started getting approved for any and every concert that rolled through town. I admit, after getting approved for any and everything, I started to get a big head. “Am I that good”? “Why am I so special?" Well, Bravewords were HUGE. I felt like an idiot, I had no idea. Bravewords was an actual magazine from 1994 to 2009 in Canada. Probably the biggest metal magazine ever for Canada. It was founded by Martin Popoff and Timer Henderson. Martin is THE biggest metal critic of all time. Again, I felt like such an idiot. I was working for these legends for 2-3 years before I realized just how reputable they we’re. It wasn’t ME that was getting to shoot all these bands and all the shows that only a very select number of photographers got to shoot, it was Bravewords. It was a humbling realization that I needed in a time of my life where I was doing a lot of soul searching and working on myself as a whole.

Scorpions

Where am I today? I am now shooting for 3 outlets. Bravewords & Bloody Knuckles, Antihero Magazine & Ryze-Up Magazine. I have a blast and still love what I do. I work with TONS of smaller local and regional bands on smaller stages so I feel like I’m doing this all backwards, but I absolutely love the challenge, I love the relationships this journey has created and most importantly, I love the music. So, many of you are reading this because concert photography is something you want to get into. Here is my advice.

1. Do not take it too seriously. Have fun. If you’re not having fun, stop immediately.

2. No, you’re not going to get paid by the media outlets to shoot the bigger bands. You will get paid when you start working for the bands and become their touring photographer or in another rare situation. You simply get a free ticket to the best seats in the house.

3. Don’t be afraid of rejection. You are going to hear a lot on No’s.

4. Don’t be afraid to contact bigger bands. You must be an internet sleuth of sorts and find out who their PR is. Contact their PR rep and ask to shoot the show.

5. Don’t get cocky. Believe me, it’ll bite you in the ass.

6. Almost all local bands will let you into their shows to practice and to help you build a portfolio. Do that…a lot!

7. Once you have a decent portfolio, start contacting media outlets and magazines….and get ready for rejection overload. Don’t take it personal and don’t let it discourage you.

In closing, I just want to say that if you want to do this, it must be a passion. You must love what you do. It’s not a job. It’s not paying a single damn bill. It’s a love for photography and music. Best of luck!

Keep shooting, my friends!