David Siffert IG
How old were you when you first picked up a camera?
Not sure — I think I got my first disposable camera at about 8 or 9 years old. I remember taking photos of my bedroom thinking they would look so cool and being super disappointed with how they came out! I got into it more seriously when I was 11 or 12. I was on a family vacation, and my point-and-shoot broke, so I had to use my dad’s old Nikon F, which he had had since college. It didn’t even have a light meter, so I had to eyeball everything — and I got some of the best photos I’d ever taken. After I went off to college, I sort of stopped taking photos for about 10 years before diving back into it more seriously, mostly digital.
What drew you into the world of live music photography?
I’ve been going to shows since I was a teenager. I never really thought to take photos for like 15 years — I was always dancing in the pit. But when I hit 30 and started slowing down a bit, and after I started getting more into digital photography and was carrying around a camera more often, I realized that even if all my show photos sucked, at least it wouldn’t be expensive!
Do you have a favorite band that you like to shoot, and why?
Really hard to choose. I think I’m probably not the only one who would say I love shooting 80HD. Hogan is just such a wild and expressive frontperson, with so much energy, and such a photogenic punim. Also, I mean, there are lots of crappy photogenic bands out there, but 80HD rules.
Is there one show you shot that’s defined your style to date?
I guess I’ll go with Rata Negra, Exotica, and Twisted Thing in the Brooklyn Bazaar basement in 2018. I always hated using a flash — my dad sort of burned into my brain that the flash kills all the interesting light in a photo. So I would go to shows and try to get shots, but it would be too dark to get things to come out on my little camera without a flash. So I started shooting long exposure shots to see what happened. Best case is I’d catch someone else’s flash in the shot. I was at that Rata Negra show, and Angela Owens (@angelaxowens) was on the other side of the non-existent “stage.” I knew Angela’s timing was always better than mine, so I just kept on shooting super-long exposures and waiting for her flash to go off. It worked out, and from then on I shot long-exposures pretty consistently, even after I started using a flash.
How do you capture the emotion and energy of the band and the audience?
I think the biggest thing in taking photos at shows is timing. I still don’t have that down, but if you look at people like Rob Coons (@robcoonsphotography), they know exactly the split second that best conveys that energy. I tend to use the long exposure as a crutch — pulling light trails in various directions that I think will help convey the feeling of being there.
Before Isolation, do you think that you took going to shows for granted?
Absolutely. I remember when COVID was on the horizon, people were talking about lockdowns as this far-off idea. I was like, “What, are we just gonna stay at home and not go to punk shows? That’ll never happen, it’s just not realistic.” I lost like five friends to COVID in March/April of 2020 alone, so my attitude changed pretty quickly. I’m pretty proud of the fact that the scene in New York took COVID seriously. Nowadays I’m one of the few that still wears a mask — COVID is still out there killing a lot of people, the pandemic isn’t over. But people need community, people need to be able to express themselves, so I feel really grateful that we can get back to what we love.
Warthog
This photo of Warthog from March 2018 is probably the first good photo I ever took at a show. It was at a certain well-known DIY space, and I happened to catch Jaime Salazar’s flash during a long-exposure — as an aside, Jaime is another incredible photographer, check out @jaime__salazar. When I saw that in my camera, I was like, “Oh wow, maybe I can do something interesting with this!” One of my favorite things about the photo is that you can clearly make out Ghoul Man through Chris’ head.
World/Inferno
Jack Terricloth was a friend of mine, and I loved the World/Inferno Friendship Society straight up until he died. I took this photo at a show in 2019, and I knew he was not doing well healthwise. World/Inferno was one of those bands that were always considered cheesy by the d-beat scene, but I think they really created something beautiful. I find a lot of different meanings in this photo, but I’ll leave it to the viewer to find their own.
Junta
Just before the pandemic hit, I went to a cramped, DIY basement show in Brooklyn — already a serious fire hazard. Junta was playing, and folks were trying to set a flag on fire. Then this guy Killer — who I have since befriended and who is an amazing videographer himself (@kill.cam.pov) — all of a sudden blows a giant fireball and fries the flag to a crisp. Easily one of the most dangerous and fun moments, and one of the last live music moments before everything shut down. I think this is also the first photo I took that people I didn’t know at all seemed really into. From a quality of photography perspective, it’s not great, and I actually have better photos of Killer breathing fire at shows, but this one feels a bit more meaningful to me.
