Steve's 'gear'...

A number of people have asked us about Steve’s gear and his approach to shooting the magnificent portraits included in “Their Love of Music”. As a network cameraman for NBC National News, he spends a lot of time behind the camera – both video and still – and has worked with a range of journalists and reporters. So, he gets the interview thing. But, asking a musician ready to go on stage to sit for a portrait? Sounds like ‘photographic suicide’ doesn’t it?

But, he pulled it off. Over one hundred times. Nashville-based singer/songwriter Alice Peacock said in a recent interview, “You’re in a head space to perform, [but] he went snap, snap, snap and that was that. He didn’t want you to pose or get stressed out. He wanted to take people as real people, and looking through the book, that’s what I was struck by. They are candid portraits.” As Steve told Phil Ponce, the host of Chicago Tonight, in an appearance to discuss the book, “I always tell people, ‘relax, be yourself, it’ll be alright’”. Sounds simple enough, but making it work is tougher than it seems.

Having had the opportunity to see Steve work, I can tell you that his vision for the project, preparation for each shoot and his incredibly easygoing demeanor combined with professional photography skills honed over many years of shooting under less than ideal conditions made this collection what it is. Full set-up of backdrop, lighting, and camera in less than ten minutes, complete familiarity with the subjects’ bio including recent events in their life, a full appreciation for the ‘head space’ they’re in at the moment (he is a musician too, after all!), and a clear idea of what he wants to achieve led to shoots that have ranged from a couple of minutes (listen to his Steve Miller story in the aforementioned interview) to forty-five minutes (“some of them enjoyed talking!”). The results speak for themselves.

Now to his gear. Light, easy to load in and set up, and completely familiar to him. In the shoots that I have seen, Steve’s camera seems to almost disappear as he chats with the artist and positions himself effortlessly for the next shot. It’s as if he’s simply in a conversation with the musician and in a sense, he is. Look the faces, the body positions, the expressiveness of the portrait…the musicians aren’t responding to the camera. They’re responding to Steve.

His ‘hardware’ includes:
Camera: Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II
Lens: Canon 24-70mm f 2.8
Light/ Key: One AlienBees B-800 usually set at 1/8 equipped with a Chimera video pro softbox
Iso: 160
Shutter Speed: 180
Apperture: 6.7-8.0
Backdrop: Brown Muslin (2)