Photographing Music Photography is really about translating something you hear into something you can see, which means chasing the emotion behind the sound rather than just the source of it. This theme forces you to think about feeling over subject, whether that emotion lives in a musician’s hands, a listener’s closed eyes, or the glow of a stage; the best frames let you almost hear the song. The five photos below stood out because each one captured that spirit, and they remind us that a great image is felt, not just seen.
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“Treasure Hunting”
Why I liked it: Cindy claims this was a quick shot with her phone but the output is an incredible example of filling the frame and keeping things minimal, almost abstract. With this top-down angle and the beautiful crisp black-and-white processing, it definitely takes a second to realize what we’re looking at but once you do, it offers a beautiful whiff of fresh nostalgia.
Exif: Motorola moto g86 power 5G · @4.81mm · f/1.8 · ISO 100
Tags: #germanframers #sundayframers
Genre: Shot with a Phone, Black & White
“Unwound”
Why I liked it: Although Jen was hard on herself in her photo caption, her gripes are actually all the reasons why I like this photo. I appreciate the fact that the depth of field is shallow and allows us to see the person’s expression in the background but the focus is still clearly the tape. There’s enough focus on the tape that it doesn’t appear to be blurry at all so I don’t quite understand her self-critique. Perhaps she was referring to the pencil but what I love about this is that you can really take in the entire story even though the entire frame is not technically focused.
Exif: Sony A7R4 · Sigma 35mm f/1.4 ART (Sony Fe Mount) @35mm · 1/125 · f/1.8 · ISO 200
Tags: #cassettetape #1980s #tape #cps
Genre: f1.8 Aperture and Wider, Black & White, Humor, Portrait/Self-Portrait
“Music to their paws!”
Why I liked it: Francoise’s Ode to Eugenio Recuenco comes out like a painterly masterpiece in this beautifully composed shot. The background actually looks like smoke, which adds to the cinematic feel. Francoise explains that it’s a composite, which, on second glance, is of course obvious from the lighting patterns. The two dogs are opposite, which wouldn’t make sense with real-world physics but I think that adds to the fantastical quality of this shot. It’s just beautiful chaos, all woven together.
Exif: Nikon Z8 · Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 @38mm · 1/125 · f/10 · ISO 400 · flash
Tags: #hounds #germanframers #52francophone #inthestyleof #inspiredbyaphotographer #studio #dog
“Moving Music”
Why I liked it: Oren’s simple macro shot is made impressive by the super shallow depth of field, letting us only see a sliver of focus, but the close aspect of the subject (with a relatively wide lens) brings us fully into the action and gives us this feeling of motion at the same time. The photo perhaps could use a touch more exposure but I quite like the nostalgic darker gray feel as well.
Exif: Fujifilm X100VI · @23mm · 1/30 · f/2 · ISO 1000
“Music that never changes”
Why I liked it: Joanna’s poignant portrait works on a few levels. For one, the lighting is gentle, soft, and golden but what I like the most is the unorthodox framing that brings us even more into the subject’s world. With her eyes closed and headphones on, you can actually feel the space her daughter is in and it is captured so beautifully.
Exif: Canon EOS R5 · Canon 24-105mm f/4.0 @63mm · 1/200 · f/4 · ISO 160 · flash
Tags: #focuspocus
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