Lauren Kania is an Atlanta-based photographer, specializing in live music and entertainment photography.
After discovering her talent in 2013, she became the House Photographer for then Philips Arena, now State Farm Arena and photographed over 100+ celebrities and artists over 8 years.
Tell us about your first experience photographing live music.
Back in 2013, I landed my first "audition" as a photographer for Winter Jam, a Christian concert featuring headliner Toby Mac. It was a great first experience understanding the process and technique of shooting live music. After a successful "audition", my next shoot was an up and coming musician, Taylor Swift (more below).
What is the most challenging part of being a music photographer?
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The timing. When you photograph a stop of a major tour, the artist PR team will generally approve your press pass for the first three songs of the first set, which is roughly 9-10 minutes of shooting time, in total. This short window is the only timeframe to capture your images. It's an immense challenge and rush of adrenaline.
What is your favorite moment as a music photographer?
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The greatest moment is walking out to the pit from the side of the stage, and standing between the stage and the audience. There's a energy that radiates through your whole body in the seconds the lead up to start of the first song. The crowd roars, and you literally feel high.
What artist did you enjoy meeting the most, thus far?
As the house photog, we often photography trade shots featuring the artists and the Arena leadership. My first trade shot, and first artist I met was Taylor Swift in 2013. I wasn't as nervous about meeting her, as I was fumbling that photograph. You only get one shot (literally).
A side note, when working with the Atlanta Hawks, leading their in-game performance platform, I produced live entertainment with Atlanta-based hip-hop artists such as Cee-Lo Green, 2Chainz, Jeezy, Lil Yachty, Migos and many others. Those artists were some of the most talented and brilliant musicians and businessmen in the business. I'll always cherish my team working on that really special program.
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Most Fun Shoot...
Red Hot Chili Peppers.... but Madonna was a close second.