Breaking into music photography and other lessons from the pit

Wednesday, April 22
7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. (ET)

Some of DC’s best music photographers talk about how they got their start, and the lessons they learned along the way. Yes, we know it may be awhile before we can all get out there and photograph some live music but that’s not going to stop us from dreaming about the day the clubs and festivals are back in business. Our panelists share the dos and don’ts of shooting in local clubs and how to parlay those free shows into something bigger — or not. Sometimes, you just have to do it for the sheer joy. Panelists: Farrah Skeiky, Lisa A. Walker, Christopher Grady and Abdullah J. Konte. Moderated by Jason Hamacher. With a special guest appearance by Alison Mosshart, lead  vocalist for the rock band The Kills.

About the Panelists

Farrah Skeiky began photographing live music in 2008, and her role as a musician as well as a zine maker contribute significantly to her photographic perspective. Her work focuses primarily on punk, DIY, and drag communities. Skeiky highlights race and gender inclusion within these groups, and examines how transience works for and against them in an ever-changing city. Skeiky has been published in The Washington Post, The Guardian, National Geographic, Rolling Stone, Kerrang, NPR, AV Club, NYMag, Vanity Fair, PDN, and more. Her first photo book, Present Tense: DC Punk and DIY Right Now will be released on February 22, 2020.

Lisa A. Walker  is a live music, festival, travel and lifestyle photographer based out of Washington, DC. She is a house photographer for IMP in DC (9:30 Club, the Anthem, Merriweather Post Pavilion, U Street Music Hall, the Lincoln Theatre, and Echostage) and a staff photographer for the SXSW Music and Bonnaroo festivals. Her work has been published in National Geographic, the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, Billboard Magazine and Rolling Stone, among many others.

Christopher Grady is a photographer in the Washington, DC area and has been focusing on taking pictures of live music for the last eight years. His work has been published in the Washington Post, Washington City Paper, Alternative Press, WAMU, Spin, the Chicago Reader, among others. In 2019, he started Leave Home Press and published a photozine called Sorry Closed which documented the final six years of the Black Cat’s smaller scale stage, the Backstage.

Abdullah J. Konte is a DC-based photographer and videographer. He was born in Albuquerque NM but also has ties to West Africa (Ghana and Gambia). He moved to DC about 6 years ago and was an accountant before he found his passion for photography. His focus is on architecture, cityscape and urban images, but he also loves to photograph concerts and sports. He has been published in the Washington Post and his clients include Livenation and Monumental Sports (Washington Wizards and Capitals).

Jason Hamacher is an internationally recognized musician, photographer, writer, and public speaker. He is the founder and director of Lost Origin Productions and the Lost Origins Gallery in Washington D.C. His photographs documenting pre-war Aleppo are held in the Library of Congress. He has played drums for several punk bands, including Frodus, and is currently the drummer for Zealot R.I.P.

Image © Farrah Skeiky