I am a veteran photographer and writer based in Austin, TX -- the "live music capital of the world." Professional experience as a journalist, political speechwriter, lottery launcher, and 23 years as vice president of communications at the nation's largest state medical society. Now a live music portrait artist.
Many concert photographers aim to capture the event, showing the artist(s), the fans, the venue to express what it was like to be there. That’s cool, and I enjoy those pictures. The magical ones really do take me there to experience or re-experience live music - one of my greatest loves in life.
All that's to say I shoot concert photos with a different intent. I focus (pun intended) on the musicians themselves. What are they feeling as they perform for us? For me, those complex emotional messages are best delivered by the face - particularly the eyes. Even when closed, an artist's eyes can transmit so much: joy, fear, focus, anger, humor, sorrow, curiosity, anticipation. (They also can tell you the musician is bored, but I usually find those photos uninteresting and hit the delete button.)
Since the time of the pharaohs, portraits have told their subjects' stories through a host of artistic media. I'm proud to be part of that tradition. I hope anyone looking at my photographs can see and feel what these wonderful musicians are feeling, and maybe imagine the actual notes and melodies that accompanied the moment my shutter opened and closed.
Check out:
- My first compilation of concert portraits: Beauty is in the Eye of the Musician.
- My Instagram page.
- My Behance site.
- Getting Old Sucks, on substack.
- Children's books:
- My Twitter page.
- My Reedsy page (for ghostwriting).