Solent Music sat down with current BA (Hons) Photography student Georgia Penny about the trials and joys of going on tour with a band doing their photography. Georgia Penny is making her mark on the live photography world and aims to achieve bigger things.
What made you want to do live events e.g. gig photography over other forms of photography?
I rarely got to go to gigs in my younger years and so always wanted to commemorate the event when I did; my slide up Sony Ericsson phone camera didn’t really cut it. I got into photography and found myself wishing I had my camera at shows so that I could capture moments that embodied the essence of the band and the atmosphere of the show.
What band did you tour with and have you done anything like that before?
I started out 2017 touring with Redwood and Drawstring and later in the year I shot for Miss Vincent. I also photographed Slamdunk South and ArcTanGent as well as day-festivals around the country, which is quite similar I suppose.
What creative freedom do you get as a photographer on tour than other forms of photography?
I think because touring is so immersive I get more opportunities to get the shots I want; I always like to try and get day-time shots because I feel like they give an insight to the whole touring experience. If I see anything cool that would look good in the background of a shoot I tell the band I’m touring with and we usually end up doing an impromptu promo shoot. I think I get freedoms to pursue my personal photography during the day when I’m not ‘on shift’ for want of a better term. I also have the luxury of exploring and taking photos as opposed to meticulously planning shoots before doing them and, because it’s not such a formal shoot, the bands I’m with are usually super cool about taking my recommendations for what kinds of photos we should create so I enjoy making art that represents their art well but has a distinctive ‘Georgia’ style to it.
Best and Worst moments of being on tour?
Obviously one of the worst things is missing home/my cats/my boyfriend etc, it’s a given. Best moments are meeting new creatives and getting to travel and do the thing that I love most as a job. When I’m on tour I am surrounded by fellow artists and so am constantly in a productive mind-set and feel really inspired by those around me to keep creating; seeing people so dedicated to their craft is amazing.
A specific best moment for this year was on the Miss Vincent tour: we had an entire day and night off in Newcastle and were staying in this amazing house and we all had our own beds so we didn’t have to fight over sofa space and we just had an evening of chilling out and listening to music and playing various silly drinking games and the next day we lounged around and ordered pizza.
Aims for the future in your photography career?
My main aim is to make photography (and specifically music touring photography) a full-time occupation. To be able to travel to new places and meet like-minded creatives who are constantly pushing themselves and creating, no matter what the medium, is the dream. I aim to always be trying new things and challenging myself creatively so that my photos constantly improve.
Photos all done by Georgia Penny
Follow Georgia’s photography and her journey through her Social Media’s Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.