Photography and Music - They Just Go Together!

"A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence."
Leopold Stokowski

​It's Sunday morning, and I love going off track from the business, marketing, and technique of photography. As I sat down to write, I knew what I wanted to talk about but just didn't like the topic. I started scrolling through Facebook and wound up listening to the video above. As music can often do, it totally changed the path I was on and gave me a completely new mindset. There are so many different aspects to my reasons for sharing the short video above. 

First, it's about friendship. The piece being played was shared on Facebook by a good friend to so many of us, Tom Curley. Tom is responsible for the LUMIX Ambassador Team, and many of you have met Tom in the Panasonic booth at the various shows. The composer for this outstanding piece is Tom's son Matthew. Tom wrote on FB, "We are very proud of Matthew Curley who composed this piece. This is superb."  So, right off the bat, we've got the feel-good fun of a Dad's pride at a son's accomplishments.

Second, it's about the role music plays in our lives.  Sheila and I have five synced Alexas in the house, including one outside by the pool and music is playing all day every day. It sounds hokey when I write this, but music soothes the soul and no matter what kind of stress I'm dealing with, the right music will always help me mellow out. And in this house, everything is played from classic rock to jazz to country to Mozart...it depends on our mood.

Third, music is about creativity. It's a foundation in the arts, just like photography. Even the challenge in copyright issues over the years that both musicians and photographers have had to deal with brings the two industries closer together. All of you have music playing in your studios, while you work and specific kinds of music for various clients during a portrait session. And, there are photographers who we all admire, like Roberto Valenzuela who gets his discipline from his foundation as a classical guitarist.

My Dad sitting with part of his collection ten years ago. Image by Cantrell Portrait Design

And last on the list is the way music is in my genes!  My folks were great supporters of the Cleveland Symphony. They were involved in fund-raising for years in helping to build Blossom, the outdoor summer venue in Ohio for the orchestra. I met Jahja Ling, who today is Maestro for the San Diego symphony back in the days when he was an assistant conductor in Cleveland. And here's a fun fact, he's a diehard hobbyist as a photographer, and a Hasselblad shooter who Sheila and I have met several times.

But the role of music in my life doesn't stop there. My Dad played trumpet his entire life, and I played the French horn in high school. As a kid, my mother would drag us into antique shops on her hunt for odd size teacups and plates - so Dad and I needed something to do, and the common bond was to start a musical instrument collection.  

Dad and I would often find something we wanted; make the purchase and then get my grandmother to write to the manufacturer and see what she could dig up on the history of the instrument itself. It was a great family hobby, and most of his collection is in our home today.

One of my favorite pieces is a string-valve cornet, complete with it's original wood and velvet lined case pictured here. Wanting to include it today, gave me a chance to play with the new LUMIX G9 with the 14-140mm lens. The photograph is right out of the can with absolutely no manipulation, shooting IA mode with window light. Shot at f4.0 @ 1/50 at ISO3200.

And there you have it...a Sunday morning post that's gone in several different directions, but all thanks to Tom Curley sharing his pride in his son's music. It kicked off a great reminder of how music plays such an important role in our lives.

Wishing all of you a perfect day and one filled not only with great friends and family, but time to enjoy the kind of music that simply makes you feel good and pushes your creativity to new heights. Always go for those eleven-second therapeutic hugs with the people you appreciate most in your life.

And from my Dad's favorite conductor when I was a kid...

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"Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable."
Leonard Bernstein

Happy Sunday everybody!