Jazz in Available Light

As a photographer, I captured each artist I worked with using only “available light” – no flash. Early on with my photography, I decided that I would only use whatever existing light was present – no matter the circumstances – to produce my images of musicians. I also believed it was rude and disrespectful – both to the musicians and the audiences – to flash an annoying strobe light into any setting, particularly during performances or intimate gatherings. Beyond that, especially when shooting with black-and-white film, I found the results to be more even and earthy, consistently natural, and to my mind, legitimate. I also liked spontaneity, just working on the fly. After all, I was in the company of modern music’s best practitioners who relied on their inherent abilities to create brilliant, memorable sounds at any given moment – to totally improvise. I surely didn’t want to be the antithesis of that.