Musical theory and technique
If a straw poll of those interviewed is to be taken as gospel, most music photographers these days are shooting digitally, and indeed magazines such as NME won't accept anything else.
Having been in the business for 20 years, Karen McBride now shoots her commercial work, including a recent Robbie Williams tour, on Fujifilm cameras: a FinePix S3 Pro and the new S5 Pro.
"Digital's an acquired taste," she admits. "Some of my Scissor Sisters stuff was shot on film and the rest with my old Nikon D1. I recently shot Ash on the Fuji S5 Pro at ISO 3200. Digital noise looks good as long as there's no banding. And I do utilise the camera's mono settings, as the light can be bad at live gigs."
Similarly, Chalkley shoots a lot on the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II, with a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens in the main, plus a 85mm f/1.4mm and 70-200mm f/2.8, describing it as a "very versatile" camera. "It delivers good quality even at ISO 1600 while at the same time it's fast, robust and portable," he says. "I've got a 5D as a backup, and an Epson P-4000 storage device is useful as I try not to delete anything."
In the studio Chalkley will use the Hasselblad H1 with a Phase One digital back and Capture One software. "I still think that's a fantastic system and use it regularly, but one of the most useful tools is a trolley. It's limiting putting a big rucksack on your back and that way I have enough energy to actually use it when I need it. What you want to be thinking about is ‘OK, what am I trying to say with this picture?' It has to communicate something." And when it comes to telling a story or communicating a feeling with your music shots, the NME's Patterson advises there's equally as much to avoid as embrace, whatever the scenario. "If we're doing live shots we don't want to see the typical mistake young photographers make: which is photos from the pit up people's noses," she grimaces. "We want to get a feeling of what it's like to be at that gig: pictures that include the crowd, or more of the stage. We want to see instances where the photographer has thought ‘if I stand on this table I can get the whole room in the picture'."
Cover shoots are a whole different discipline and are typically, but not exclusively, studio based.
"Our concepts, I hope, fit in quite well with where the band's coming from," Patterson continues. "We actually think quite hard before we go and shoot a band if we know we're doing a posed session."
By way of example, Dean Chalkley cites a NME cover of The Raconteurs dressed as pirates. "I hadn't heard the album, but the NME called me and said ‘it's all about seafaring'. So we had a word with the prop people and asked them to get loads of galleon-like stuff. I also wanted to show the fact that we were in a studio, so the final image is a deconstruction, showing the edges of the frame. The band loved it."
Shoots for ‘on the road' features are different again, suiting a more reportage style, while also paying as much attention to lighting and composition as you would on a typical studio shoot.
"They won't just look like a digital snap someone has got because they've stumbled backstage," Patterson confirms. "They'll be iconic and beautiful - hopefully. If a photographer can't get near the band, they'll see a guitar lying on the floor and shoot a beautiful still-life that will still make the reader feel that they are on the road. It's having an eye for that special something."
In contrast, William Ellis has the luxury of being able to shoot on his favoured film formats for capturing the giants of the jazz scene. His gear comprises a couple of Leica M6s with a 35mm f/2.0 lens that gives a natural perspective.
"You're usually working close in, in fairly small venues, and backstage as well," he relates. "When I'm shooting more formal portraits I use a C-series square-format Hasselblad and a tripod, or if I need a longer lens for stage work I use a Canon, either an EOS 1V or RS." That said, he adds that his latest purchase is a Canon 5D.
All you need is cash
While commissions to snap away at a sweaty gig for a periodical may not make you rich, a lucky few make a reasonable take-home. But an additional sum can be earned once you've built up a sufficient body of work that can then be resold as stock. In fact, that's what many of today's pros are relying on for their pensions.
NME publisher, IPC, has its own syndication department, so part of Dean Chalkley's arrangement with them is that they handle that aspect - although he retains copyright. "The feeling that you own your own work is comforting - if you're just doing it for cash and giving away copyright it's a bit demeaning," he notes.
Perhaps more heartening for those looking to break into the business, NME Picture editor Marian Patterson says that their photographers receive a flat fee, regardless of whether they're well established or brand new. "It's a set rate for live shoots, cover shoots and feature shoots," she says. "I don't want to say how much in case our competition tries to poach my photographers away, but we do pay quite generously I think. We also pay expenses, and because we're only accepting digital submissions, I'm paying a rate for digital processing. I don't think other mags are doing that."
Like those photographers who syndicate their material, William Ellis - who doesn't - has accumulated a body of work stretching back 20 years that allows him to make steady print sales instead.
"I've photographed Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, BB King and lots of massive names - so it feels slightly like a library already," he nods. "I'm conscious of jazz's heritage and how documenting the genre, over time, becomes interwoven with that culture. "That said, there's not big money on the jazz circuit unless you're shooting Herbie Hancock; it's nowhere near on a par with the rock scene. There's a lot of small independent labels working to create a lot of opportunities for musicians - so they're not big budget shoots; it's not Madonna."
Of course, if you do get to shoot for the NME or Q and become a noted scene-ster, there's the chance that record companies will come calling wanting album sleeves and press material. Inevitably such commercial commissions are likely to generate more income than editorial work, print or stock sales.
Having turned his back on shooting for the music press five years ago, Steve Gullick now earns a living shooting for music labels. "If the label's got a band that they feel would suit my photography then they get in touch with my agent," he says of the commissioning process. Because he is hired for his name and reputation he is in the enviable position of being given an open brief. "I just did a job for Atlantic with a band called Funeral for a Friend, and have recently shot Bloc Party and Arctic Monkeys." For such jobs he says it's important to understand how the band want to look, but also what the record label wants too - which may unfortunately be two different things. "Part of my job is to achieve a compromise that's acceptable to both parties," Gullick explains. "I've always regarded myself as a ‘fix-it' man, because a lot of bands look terrible, or hate to be photographed, but if you can just make them feel relaxed, then the pictures will be better, they'll be happier and you're more likely to get to work with them in the future.
"I love music and photography equally - that's why I've never really delved into other areas of photography," he reveals. "A few years ago I would have turned bands down purely because I didn't like their music, because I felt I would be judged on whom I photographed; also because you need to get on with the bands and share interests with them. But now I can look at a shoot purely as an artistic expression, and I think that's partly a growing up thing, and partly because I can now photograph who I want to."
