Photographer Spotlight: Adam Ziegenhals
Next up we have Underground Scenes nominee, Adam Ziegenhals!
Photographer Spotlight: Adam Ziegenhals
Next up we have Underground Scenes nominee, Adam Ziegenhals!
How did it feel to be nominated in the Abbey Road Music Photography Awards 2024?
Incredible. At this point I feel confident in my photography, but nothing could have prepared me to get that initial email. I immediately ran to over to my wife and asked, “Wanna go to London?”
Why do you think it is important to create a platform like the MPAs to showcase music photography?
Because it’s an unsung form of the medium. When most people think of music photography, they often picture standard portraits for interviews or an artist on a big stage for a festival recap. I think the MPAs are perfect for highlighting the work it takes to go a step beyond that. It gives a chance to see how the photographer pushed to create something unique.
Have you seen any benefits to you since being nominated?
I did notice a bump in followers and engagement immediately following the nomination announcement. But I think the best thing that happened was when Lemphek won in my category, I immediately reached out to say congrats over Instagram and had a nice little back and forth. Looking forward to eventually meeting and seeing the scene in China in the near future.
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Getting Started:
How did you fall into music photography specifically?
I’ve been in love with music since I stole my dad’s Abbey Road record when I was a kid. Once I was old enough, I began to appreciate the community around live music. I studied classical guitar, recorded a bunch of weird songs, and played in bands for years. But eventually moved on and decided to just enjoy being in the crowd. After taking a few smartphone pics at various SXSW shows I liked, I slowly upgraded my equipment over 15+ years and obsessively tried to get better and better. I’ve tried my hand at landscapes and other types of photography, but the live music community just felt like a place where I belonged and wanted to contribute.
Was there a particular image, body of work or photographer that was a major inspiration when starting out?
I walked through an extensive exhibition of Henri Cartier-Bresson years ago. There was a photo titled “Italy, 1933” or something similar. It was of a space between buildings with workers and pedestrians along the edges that was so well composed, I felt weight. It was the first time I felt the power of an image. I haven’t seen that photograph since 2014 and the shape of the composition is still burned into my memory.
Years later, I walked through a different Cartier-Bresson show at The Rubin in NYC that concentrated on his time in India. I could see that he always had the same style, just tweaked for the situation, as by this time Magnum had formed and he was leaning harder into being a photojournalist. Same voice, but different scales.
What makes a good subject in music photography and what makes a good music photographer?
What makes a good subject, at least in live music, is someone who isn’t static on stage. They would have movement, presence, and energy. What makes a good music photographer is sincerity. Someone who wants to be there. They are amped about what’s happening and to be a part of it.
What advice would you give to someone getting started?
Intentionally get through those first 10,000 photos.
Shoot, shoot, shoot. Doesn’t matter if you have an amazing camera or not. Get a cheap, used point & shoot and go. Take photos of everything around you: your family, your neighborhood, and local bands. Especially local bands, they’ll love the shots.
Check your files later and learn how your auto settings picked the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. That’s how I learned about the triangle of exposure and the depth of field I wanted.
Watch tutorials online and learn the vocab. It makes it easier to learn in the future. Don’t be afraid to watch the monotonous philosophy of photography videos either. Those will get you started thinking about next steps.
After that, just go. Create your own projects but make sure you finish them. That discipline will always pay off. A fitting quote here is one of my favourites from Nick Cave: “To act on a bad idea is better than to not act at all. Because the worth of an idea never becomes apparent until you do it.”
As far as music photography, same thing. Get out as much as you can, shoot as much as you can, and meet as many people as you can.
How did you go about building a portfolio?
I shot, shot, shot. Then I thought for a long time about how to tell a story non-verbally.
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Top Tips:
What are your top tips you can give to any music photographer?
Technically: Shoot for the environment as much as the performer. It can be just as unique and give you so much for your final product. Your compositions and story telling will only benefit.
Socially: Get to know everyone. Once I started meeting other photographers, I realized most of us had the same internal dialogue. Also, everyone is incredibly kind with advice.
How do you create a distinctive style and visual identity in your music photography?
I don’t like to shoot with a flash, so I usually try to find the best source of light in a venue and use that to form my compositions. I also only shoot on a manual 40mm lens that fully dictates how quickly I can frame and shoot something. I like having the restriction of a prime lens. It slows me down so I’m forced to think a little more and work a little harder.
Live:
When shooting a live show, how do you prepare? What challenges do you typically face?
When I first started, especially for larger events, I would watch live performances online and try to figure out what they’re going to do and how they’re going to move before I get there. Now, I just show up and watch the performance for a bit just to get their rhythms and see if there’s anything unique about their presence I need to focus on.
The worst challenges I usually have are on opposite ends of the spectrum of mood and physical space.
In a slow tempo environment with a small crowd in a tight space, it’s hard to move around and not feel rude. So I tend to stay static and think about long exposures or just the one good shot I can get from where I am. While I want to get a great shot, I don’t want to interrupt anyone else’s experience.
Hardcore shows. Some of those dudes hate photographers and will aim for you. I once turned around and got punched in the face. I bought a beer between bands, held it to my face like a cold compress, and got right back to the same spot. I just had to drink with my head tilted at a 90-degree angle since the right side of my mouth was swollen.
Do you have a preference of working on location/on tour vs in a studio?
On location always. My whole thing is authenticity. I don’t like flash or catered light. No studios. I lean toward a more photojournalistic approach.
Creativity / Inspiration:
Can you share some insights into your creative process? Are there any specific techniques or equipment you prefer to use?
Narratively, a lot of my creative process is just research and talking to people face-to-face. I’m currently working on a large project about DIY in America and being able to visit each city and talk to people one-on-one is so much more valuable than over social media, email, or Zoom.
I spent quite a while buying or renting different lenses to figure out what I wanted. I fortuitously found the Voigtlander f/1.2 40mm in 2018 or so and haven’t looked back. I travel a lot and don’t want to deal with a ton of equipment. So I have the 40mm, a Sony A7R4, and backups of each. I carry a small flash just in case it’s absolutely needed.
In your opinion, what distinguishes a remarkable photograph from an ordinary one? What elements do you priorities when framing your shots?
Overall, what I look for is a human and relatable environment. There needs to be something that pulls someone in. Something that, if they were in a gallery, they stop or come back to. It could be the composition, the look on someone’s face, or an explosive moment caught.
Do you think there’s a genre of music that naturally lends itself to photography?
Punk, all forms. It’s peacocking, it’s wild, it’s active, it’s fun, and it’s usually the best people you’ll meet in your life.
Who is someone, alive or dead, you’d love to photograph?
Such an impossible question. Probably Mark E. Smith of The Fall. I was able to catch them performing over a decade ago. The whole experience was so surreal, that I barely had the presence of mind to take one cell phone photo. I feel like if I could ever speak with him, we’ll either be getting along or he’ll consistently be trying to start a fight.
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In one word, how would you describe your photography?
Is Hellyeah one word?
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