{"id":50103,"date":"2018-07-12T09:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-07-12T13:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.adorama.com\/alc\/?p=50103"},"modified":"2018-07-12T12:14:23","modified_gmt":"2018-07-12T16:14:23","slug":"meet-a-pro-music-photographer-adam-elmakias","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adorama.com\/alc\/meet-a-pro-music-photographer-adam-elmakias\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet a Pro: Music Photographer Adam Elmakias"},"content":{"rendered":"

Adam Elmakias<\/a> is captivated by music, musicians, and the intense contemporary music scene, and has been since his early teens. Today, at age 29, he\u2019s an internationally recognized professional who travels everywhere from his current base in San Diego, California to far-flung places such as Islamabad, Mumbai, and Rio De Janeiro to document musicians, their lives, and their performances with his camera.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Adam
Adam Elmakias (Photo courtesy of Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Elmakias grew up in the culturally diverse, art-friendly city of Madison, Wisconsin, attended numerous local concerts when he was in high school, and started bringing his camera. <\/span><\/p>\n

“My career as a music photographer has been a slow, steady, and consistent effort since then,” he tells Adorama. “I had a blast the whole time, have enjoyed the learning process very much, and I\u2019m excited to keep doing this for the rest of my life.” <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Adam
A Day To Remember finale in Atlanta, Georgia, shot on a Canon 6D with Sigma 20mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Killer
Killer Mike of Run The Jewels at The Forum in Los Angeles, California shot on Canon 6D with a Sigma 120-300mm f\/2.8. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How does Elmakias see his mission, and what is he trying to achieve in creating incisive portraits of musicians and images that distill the essence and intensity of their performances and their lives backstage? <\/span><\/p>\n

“I like to think of it as harnessing chaos to an extent that it all appears intentional, but the energy is still expressed,” he notes. “My goal is to have a very concise and perfectly laid out image comprised of a bunch of things that are more of less out of my control with the exception of how I shoot them. As far as my career is concerned, I never made a conscious decision to go pro\u2014it just kind of kept on happening as I was having fun.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Alex
Alex Shelnutt of A Day To Remember in New York City, shot on a Canon 6D with a Sigma 35mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Cole
Cole Becker of SWMRS at The Observatory North Park in San Diego California, shot on the Canon 6D with a Sigma 50mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Seeing photography as a means of expression came first,” Emakias recalls. “<\/span>I started by taking self-portraits for MySpace and school projects. I didn’t have a very positive life at that time, and I expressed something I felt I was good at. Others recognized that I had a talent for photography and the positive reinforcement I received was life changing.” To see a poignant example, please go to the image captioned, “Adam Elmakias early self-portrait.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Along the way Elmakias was mentored in photography, and also influenced by the work of more experienced music photographers. <\/span><\/p>\n

“My school counselor was into astronomical photography and he got me into it, which helped me acquire some technical skills,” he notes. “Aside from that, there were a bunch of photographers I love that I started following online. I am very much influenced by a few photographers, all with different styles and specialties. For example, Ryan Russell<\/a> is a music photographer who shot a lot of the bands I followed, and he took some really great pictures of them offstage too. I realized I could do that as well, and so I would kind of follow and hang out with musicians and capture some of my best images of them offstage. Tim Harmon<\/a> was anther guy who photographed bands I followed, but he shot studio covers for music magazines that were more posed and elaborate, but still very effective.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Fan
Fan of A Day To Remember *crowdsurfing on a crowd surfer* shot on the Canon 5D Mark III. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Tyler
Tyler Joseph of Twenty One Pilots for Rocksound Magazine in London, UK shot on a Canon 6D with a Sigma 50mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While many of Elmakias’ photographs can be classified as fine art, he also sees them as works of photojournalism \u2014 that is, images that fall into the genre of reportage, showcasing actuality. <\/span><\/p>\n

“I often follow people on the road for weeks or months at a time and show what their lives are really like,” he says. “And I always take some photos for the subjects themselves that are not intended for publication on the internet. That\u2019s not only a great way of paying them back, but a physical expression of the fact that ours is a profound cooperative relationship that goes beyond promotion and social media.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Brandon
Brandon Boyd of Incubus in Irvine California, shot with shot on a Canon 5D Mark III with a Sigma 85mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Jenna
Jenna McDougall of Tonight Alive at SOMA in San Diego, California, shot at a Canon 6D with a Sigma 50mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In terms of equipment Elmakias currently shoots most of his work with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II<\/span> and a Canon EOS 6D<\/span><\/a>. His optical arsenal includes four Sigma Art lenses, a<\/span> 20mm f\/1.4<\/span><\/a><\/span>, 85mm f\/1.4<\/span><\/a>, 35mm f\/1.4<\/span><\/a>, and 50mm f\/1.4<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

“Sigma Art primes are my favorites to shoot with because I like to be able to shoot wide open to control depth-of-field and make the subject pop off the background,” he notes. “I plan to switch to a Sony Alpha a7 III<\/span><\/a> and a Sony a7R III<\/span><\/a> as soon as I start shooting my next big assignments. I\u2019m really looking forward to using the new E-mount Sigma Art<\/span><\/a> lenses. I\u2019ve been enjoying my Sigma Quattro<\/span><\/a> cameras a lot too. I use them for most of my portraits now. I use Spider Holster<\/span><\/a> to attach my camera to me and that\u2019s pretty important when you\u2019re bouncing around shooting on the road.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Jeremy
Jeremy McKinnon of A Day To Remember in Milan, Italy, shot on a Canon 5D Mark III with a Sigma 50mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Josh
Josh Woodard of A Day To Remember at Download Festival in Milan, Italy, shot on a Canon 5D Mark III with a 20mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Unlike many photographers, Adam Elmakias shuns accolades and doesn\u2019t even like to work for publications or cite them as references. \u201cI guess I\u2019d have to admit that my images have appeared in almost every music magazine in some capacity,\u201d he tartly observes. \u201cI have been working closely with Diplo (a noted American DJ and record producer based in Los Angeles) mostly overseas, and my images have been published by Apple Music, Alternative Press, Rocktown Magazine<\/em>, and Kerrang! Magazine<\/em>. But mostly I\u2019m focused on my own magazine now. I guess my first published music image was in Alternative Press<\/em> magazine, but I\u2019m currently launching my own magazine, A Music Photographer Magazine<\/em><\/a>, to give other emerging photographers a chance.” <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

“My best friends and my parents are proud of me and I wake up generally happy, and that is as good as it gets I think.” <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

He doesn’t focus on contests or awards, but on something a lot more important. As he succinctly puts it, “My best friends and my parents are proud of me and I wake up generally happy, and that is as good as it gets I think.” <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Lil
Lil Yachty at The Observatory North Park in San Diego, California, shot with Canon 6D and the Sigma 70-200mm I borrowed from a friend that night. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Josh
Josh Woodard of A Day To Remember in the United Kingdom, shot on at Canon 6D with a 20mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And if he has as distinct style, Elmakias says it all comes down to the personal connection. <\/span><\/p>\n

“It is intentional,” he replied. “I like to try really hard to make every part of my photo perfect in my eyes. I think that is mostly due to the close relationship I have with the people I photograph, my awareness of their brand and their lifestyle. My goal is to represent them the best way they want to be represented. I want to create something they agree with, that resonates with them.  <\/span>The first rule of photography is: tune into your subject. Indeed. that is how I connect with people, both my subjects and my followers, fans, or whatever you want to call the people that follow me that do not do photography.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Neil
Neil Westfall of A Day To Remember at the Salt Flats in Salt Lake City, Utah, shot with the Sigma dp2 Quattro. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"St.
St. Vincent at Coachella in Indio, California, shot on Sony a7RIII with a Sigma 85mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Adam
Travis Barker of Blink-182 in Los Angeles, California at The Forum, shot on a Canon 6D with Sigma 20mm f\/1.4 Art. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Going forward, I want to experiment by photographing some faces, or parts of faces, very close up,” he adds. “I should do that just to see what happens, and whether it takes me to another level of expression. I like portraits because I like the moments I share with my subjects when taking their pictures. It’s a good way of getting personal with somebody, and that’s a beautiful thing in itself.”<\/span><\/p>\n

To give you an idea of the frenetic pace of traveling internationally with Diplo to shoot music images, here’s a telling excerpt from Elmakias’ blog<\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, traveling with Diplo is a bit different then traveling with a band. It’s very fast moving. This was more or less our schedule.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

01FEB \u2013 Depart for Islamabad
\n02FEB \u2013 Travel
\n03FEB \u2013 Arrival in Islamabad early AM\/show PM
\n04FEB \u2013 Travel Sri Lanka
\n07FEB \u2013 Sri Lanka – Mumbai
\n08FEB \u2013 Mumbai
\n09FEB \u2013 Major Lazer in Pune, India
\n10FEB \u2013 Depart immediately after show for BOM airport, fly to Rio De Janeiro.
\n10FEB \u2013 Get Stuck in Dubai
\n11FEB \u2013 Fly Dubai- Rio De Janeiro
\n12FEB \u2013 Show in Rio De Janeiro
\n13FEB \u2013 Go home<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

How to even prepare for this? I sit down on my floor with all my gear in front of me (sorry no photo.) I make a list of what I will be shooting, where, for how long, and then note when the images need to be turned in. It is a lot to take into consideration all at once, but it\u2019s important to be prepared.  There was a lot of flying for this trip, so all carry on luggage. <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Diplo
Diplo on a rooftop in Pakistan shot on a Canon 6D with a Sigma 24-70mm f\/2.8 Art. We had not slept in a day. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Adam
Diplo in Pakistan shot on a Canon 6D with a Sigma 24-70mm f\/2.8 Art. I had to pack light for this trip, so no Sigma Primes due to space. (Photo by Adam Elmakias)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are my notes to myself that I made before the trip. I have a lot of conversations with myself on paper.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n