The Photographer
She’s a real sharp shooter. Photography that is. Avid concert goer and concert photographer Maryam Tunio has the best of both worlds.
Maryam, a 19 year old from Mequon, Wis. started her concert going at the young age of 14. Her first concert was seeing Justin Beiber at The Rave, which turned out to be very overwhelming and she said she was never going back. She proved herself wrong and has been to about 80 to 100 concerts since. Not only has Maryam experienced these concerts as a fan, she has done photograhy for coutless shows and artists including Young the Giant, The 1975, and Cage the Elephant. Having so much expereince shooting and attending concerts, Maryam has seen it all and become an expert alternative concert goer.
I met Maryam during my second week of school as a freshman at Marquette through a friend’s roommate. This eventually led to her becoming one of my best friends and concert buddies. When we first met, Maryam was wearing a black Twenty One Pilots sweatshirt and I immediately knew we were going to be great friends. We instantly bonded over our love of alternative music and talked for hours about concerts and our favorite artists. I was absolutely fascinated by her experience photographing bands, since I too love photography and concerts. Since then, Maryam and I have attended many concerts together and we always let each other know when our favorite bands are coming to town. I had the opportunity to talk to Maryam as both an alternative fan and photographer to learn more about how she balances the two.
Maryam started out as a normal alternative concert goer, and later enfused her love of photography with her love of music. She had a natural talent capturing the personality and mood of music through her photography which made her stand out amongst other photographers and gave her even more opportunities to shoot. Today she has built up an impressive portfolio and shoots some for some of the biggest alternative acts in Milwaukee.
Being both a fan and photographer, Maryam explained that shooting requires a lot more running around. She said, “When I shoot, there is a thing called the three song rule so you’re only allowed to shoot the first three songs of each band, but I still enjoy the rest of the show after. Shooting can be stressful, but it’s really worth it in the end.” Maryam also explained how she has the best of both worlds by shooting. During the first three songs, she gets to be in front of the barricade and up close with the artists. After she gets to relax with friends and enjoy the music. What makes this even better is that photographers get free tickets to the shows they shoot and sometimes have the chance to meet the artists.
One of the things Maryam enjoys most about shooting is the recognition from people in the audience. She explained, “Before concerts, some people will tap me on the shoulder and say ‘I follow you on Instagram’ or ‘Hey are you @maryamtuniophoto?’ It’s really awesome to know people have seen my work and recognize me.” Maryam loves alternative fans as much as the artists. She said, “Alternative music fans are just more friendly than other genres, there’s a sense of unity there. Friendships are easier to make at alternative concerts because you bond over your love of the music and it’s meaning.” Maryam used to say she had more concert friends than real friends because of how many new people she met at concerts.
Another perk of doing concert photography are the friendships she has built with other alternative concert photographers around the country. Maryam is part of a group called the Photoladies, a group of 200+ female music photographers around the world that photograph alternative concerts. Members collaborate on ideas, give advice, and help each other get in touch with other photographers. Maryam said that through the Photoladies, she has had the opportunity to meet so many cool people and make friends in different states. The Photoladies also allow their members to take turns posting their work on their Instagram account and Maryam has gotten the opportunity to post her photos on the account.
The Photoladies not only have given Maryam a great network of photographers and friends, she discovered her favorite band by being a part of the group. Maryam’s friend from Florida who she met through the Photoladies, would always photograph this band called From Indian Lakes and post photos of them on her Instagram page. Maryam said, “She kept posting pitures of them and when I finally checked them out, I fell in love with their music.” The band From Indian Lakes is an American alternative band created by California-based multi-instrumentalist Joey Vannucchi. The band is known for it’s organic and natural sound. Relevant Magazine described their music saying “When the music is as sparse as it is here, every note seems to gain extra meaning.” Maryam loves the band for it’s simple sound that distinguishes them form any other band she has listened to.
Maryam gets the best of both worlds as an alternative concert goer and photogrpaher. She gets to see concerts through a different lense than most fans which has added to her love of alternative music. Getting to talk with Maryam not just as a friend, but as a fan and photographer helped me to gain a deeper understanding of her passion for music and photography.
Check out Maryam’s work at: http://www.maryamtunio.com
